Friday - March 25, 2022
“Fasting cleanses the soul, raises the mind, subjects one’s flesh to the spirit, renders the heart contrite and humble, scatters the clouds of concupiscence, quenches the fire of lust, kindles the true light of chastity.”
-St. Thomas Aquinas
TODAY'S READINGS
SOLEMNITY OF THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD
Lectionary: 545
Is 7:10-14; 8:10
The LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying:
Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God;
let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!
But Ahaz answered,
“I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!”
Then Isaiah said:
Listen, O house of David!
Is it not enough for you to weary people,
must you also weary my God?
Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign:
the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son,
and shall name him Emmanuel,
which means “God is with us!”
Responsorial Psalm 40:7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 11
R. (8a and 9a) Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
“In the written scroll it is prescribed for me,
To do your will, O my God, is my delight,
and your law is within my heart!”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
I announced your justice in the vast assembly;
I did not restrain my lips, as you, O LORD, know.
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Your justice I kept not hid within my heart;
your faithfulness and your salvation I have spoken of;
I have made no secret of your kindness and your truth
in the vast assembly.
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Reading 2
Heb 10:4-10
Brothers and sisters:
It is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats
take away sins.
For this reason, when Christ came into the world, he said:
“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but a body you prepared for me;
in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight.
Then I said, ‘As is written of me in the scroll,
behold, I come to do your will, O God.’”
First he says, “Sacrifices and offerings,
holocausts and sin offerings,
you neither desired nor delighted in.”
These are offered according to the law.
Then he says, “Behold, I come to do your will.”
He takes away the first to establish the second.
By this “will,” we have been consecrated
through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Verse Before the Gospel Jn 1:14ab
The Word of God became flesh and made his dwelling among us;
and we saw his glory.
Gospel Lk 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.
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The Right Hand of God
The story of the Annunciation in today's Gospel reading reaches the high point when Mary says, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word." A handmaid is someone whose essential function is to assist. Assist! Not: Take charge of. Not: Become the Savior of. Not: Be such a good priest or lay minister or religious brother/sister that people admire you and give you credit for a job well done.
An assistant is often called the employer's "right hand" or, more literally, an extension of the employer's hand. When I'm given an assignment by God, such as "write a book" or "give a retreat" or "add something new to the website", my first inclination is to kick into high gear with all the skills and enthusiasm that God has given me. Although this seems holy, it is not.
And when I see someone lost in the darkness of sin and God nudges me to intervene, my strong sense of caring drives me into action, and if I don't see results fast enough, I assume that it's because I'm not trying hard enough and must push into higher gear.
None of this is being a handmaid of the Lord. It's me being me, stretching out my own hand to see how far I can make it reach. Let's consider how Mary modeled the assistant's job:
(1) She responded first with great faith in her master.
(2) A good handmaid listens closely to what the master wants. Mary said, "Let it be done to me according to your word." She was a good listener.
(3) She left the consequences of her "yes" in God's hands. She did not make her "yes" conditional, as in "Okay, but make sure the townsfolk don't stone me."
(4) Her consent came from true humility. She accepted the value that God gave to her, yet she knew she could do nothing valuable without him. She gave herself to God completely, knowing that she had something to give while also knowing that God's goodness was far greater than her own best efforts.
(5) Mary united her will to the intentions and actions of God. The Father would redeem the world through his Son; Mary intended to redeem the world through her Son in accordance with his plan as it unfolded. The Father would let his Son die for our sins; Mary let go of her Son as she watched him suffer, even though she didn't yet understand the plan.
Mary is still God's handmaid for the redemption of the world. She assists God whenever we need his helping hand in our lives.
How can you serve as God's hand for the people around you? Observe and listen to what he is asking you to do today and say, "Lord, let it be done to me according to your will; I am your handmaid (or handyman)." And then give your Master the credit for a job well done.
Today's Prayer
Jesus, You can reach my brothers and sisters every time I proclaim: "I'm the slave of the Lord. Let His will be done." Thank You for giving me the gift of being Your slave for the salvation of others. Amen.
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The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”
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