During Advent I sent an e-mail which required a reply. I waited. It didn’t come. The person concerned told me later that he seldom checks his e-mails. A rather tenuous mode of communication! Two thousand years ago, God had a message for Mary of Nazareth. It was the most vital message ever sent to any human being. In sending the Angel Gabriel God took good care that the message would be delivered safely. Mary pondered this message, while Gabriel - not to mention heaven and earth - waited expectantly. Her reply was crystal clear; absolute, humble, and obedient to God’s will. Mary said: “I am the Lord’s servant, may it happen to me as you have said.” Mary’s ‘yes’ to becoming the Mother of Jesus Christ included her becoming our mother too, for we, the Church, are the body of Christ. During Christmastide God’s message to us resembles his message to Mary: “Do we, each of us, consent to welcome Jesus into our hearts, as Mary welcomed him into her heart and womb?” God, our Father, awaits our individual replies. We say ‘yes’ readily enough to the commercial message of Christmas. And that can be good for fostering relationships, in the sending of cards and exchanging presents. But that is not sufficient for our relationship with God. He wants our wholehearted love in response to his infinite love, revealed to us in the Baby in Bethlehem. FrJoe Cunningham,C.M Spiritual Director Irish College Rome December 2004 |