FIRST GOSPEL LESSON Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a

virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name

was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.’ But

she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The

angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you

will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great,

and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of

his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there

will be no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ The angel said to

her, ‘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 holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your

relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her

who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.’ Then Mary said, ‘Here

am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel

departed from her.

ANTHEM Christ is With Us Nancy Price and Don Besig

SECOND GOSPEL LESSON Luke 1:39-56

In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she

entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,

the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with

a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why

has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the

sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who believed

that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’

And Mary said,

‘My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.

Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

for the Mighty One has done great things for me,

and holy is his name.

His mercy is for those who fear him

from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm;

he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,

and lifted up the lowly;

he has filled the hungry with good things,

and sent the rich away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel,

in remembrance of his mercy,

according to the promise he made to our ancestors,

to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’

And Mary remained with her for about three months and then returned to her home.

REFLECTION Do our souls magnify the Lord?