Through Jesus’
sacrifice our human nature has been transformed from within; we have been given
access to God’s own holiness. Mary’s “Yes” is the fruit of this reconciliation achieved
through the Cross of her Son. It is through the redemption he won for us that
she possesses the purity and holiness to utter her “Yes.”
Mary placed herself at the service of God’s call in
complete surrender: with the whole strength and depth of her ability; in both
strength and weakness. In strength, in that she is ready for whatever the Lord
asks; in weakness, in that her whole life has already been placed at his
disposal. She lives from the recognition that everything good comes to her from
God, by herself she is nothing. God alone has the power to make her life
fruitful. Mary is weak enough to acknowledge that God alone has all the power,
but strong enough to offer him her life without reserve. God also calls us to this complete surrender.
Mary’s assent is in a special way an act of the Holy Spirit through whose effect she
gives herself soul and body to God. At the
time of her overshadowing, the Spirit flooding through her will meet with the
Spirit already dwelling within her. Mary’s Yes will be as though enclosed
within a Yes of the Spirit. Enveloped in this way in the Holy Spirit, Mary’s assent,
as grace truly given and received in her own spirit, will become a true, free
and independent word of her own spirit.
The action of the Spirit becomes a word of her own spirit
first of all in renunciation. Mary renounces
herself, in order to let God alone become active in her. Mary makes every
potentiality of her nature accessible to the divine action. She renounces all
self-shaping of her own existence, so that God can make of her what he wishes. Likewise, if we are to become the self God intends, we
need to renounce ourselves and trust enough to place all the good potentialities
God has bestowed on us at his disposal to be used as he sees fit.
From renunciation follows cooperation. Mary resolves to let God alone work; and yet, precisely by virtue of
this resolution, she becomes cooperative. Every renunciation made in love is fruitful because it makes room for consent to God, who is
waiting for our consent so that he can go to work in us.
From cooperation
there follows fulfillment. In
renouncing all her potentialities, Mary obtains their fulfillment beyond all
expectation: cooperative in body, she becomes the mother of the Lord; cooperative
in spirit, she becomes his handmaid and his bride. As our spiritual mother, every grace Mary has received is
in principal open to us, and she wishes us to share in it as well. We turn
to her in confidence, that she may accompany us as, open to the Lord’s will, we move through this holy season toward the events of Holy
Week and Easter.
Annunciation by Fra Angelico. Excerpts from this morning's homily by Father Timothy.
Annunciation by Fra Angelico. Excerpts from this morning's homily by Father Timothy.
