From the responsorial psalm: “All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation by our God. Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands; break into song; sing praise. Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous deeds.”
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 1:26-38)
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” With these words, the angel Gabriel addresses Mary, telling her not to be afraid and announcing that she will bear a son and name him Jesus, the Son of the Most High. Mary asks how this is possible since she has no relations with a man, and Gabriel explains to her that the “Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” Saying “Nothing will be impossible for God,” Gabriel then hears Mary’s great fiat as she says, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church says this about Mary’s Immaculate Conception: “Through the centuries the Church has become ever more aware that Mary, ‘full of grace’ through God, was redeemed from the moment of her conception.”
God, strengthen my faith. In the Annunciation, your overshadowing love through the Holy Spirit makes possible the redemption of all who call on the name of Jesus Christ, Son of God and son of Mary. Freely choosing to do your will, Mary becomes the vessel of your incarnation that brings to fulfillment all of your promises. If I remember only two lessons from the Annunciation, help me always be unafraid to say yes to your will; and in doing your will, help me live courageously in the realization that through your overshadowing love, nothing is impossible. Blessed Virgin Mary, pray for us!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.