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| The Mother of God, St. Joachim and St. Ann |
The Word of God tells us that everything our heavenly Father wills always meets with the eternal “yes” and living gratitude of the divine Son.
The Father’s will and the Son’s obedient gratitude are also alive with the eternal power and communion of the Holy Spirit.
The Father’s will, the Son’s obedience and gratitude, the Spirit’s power and communion— this is the Love that made the universe.
We came into being from the will of the Father, from the obedient “yes” and living gratitude of the Son, and from the power and communion of the Spirit.
However, through sin we have shut our eyes and turned our backs against this Love that made us.
Scripture tells us that after Adam sinned, he tried to hide from God.
We have shut our eyes and turned our backs against the will of the Father, against the obedience and gratitude of the Son, and against the power and unity of the Holy Spirit.
In the face of our sin, God who made us has chosen neither to annihilate us nor force himself upon our freedom.
Instead, God has given creation a new beginning, and freely offers us this new beginning of creation as a gift.
God has done this in Christ the New Adam.
In the beginning God made the body of the first Adam from the virgin earth.
To form the body of Christ, the Sinless New Adam, God again prepared the earth through the virgin and sinless humanity of Mary.
She whose birth we celebrate today is the dawn, the threshold and the mother of our salvation.
She is ever sinless and ever virgin by the will of the Father, through the obedience and gratitude of the Son, and in the power and unity of the Holy Spirit.
Upon receiving God’s message through an angel at Nazareth, Mary gave her own “yes” to God’s plan…
her “yes” to the will of the Father…
her “yes” to the obedience and gratitude of the Son…
her “yes” to the power and unity of the Spirit.
Pope John Paul II pointed out in a lovely manner that Mary is the human race’s “yes” to God’s plan, and that she is God’s “yes” to our salvation.
Out of Mary’s “yes” is born our salvation in Christ Jesus.
In him the Son of Mary, in him the New Adam:
we return to the will of the Father;
we return in the obedience and gratitude of the Son;
we return through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Mary gave birth to all of this.
Indeed, not only “happy” but most blessed is her birthday.
Blessed is she who bore and nursed our Savior.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death! Amen.
Turn. Love. Repeat.
