GOSPEL POWER l SEPTEMBER 8, 2021 l WEDNESDAY

The Nativity of the Blessed  Virgin Mary

Gospel: Mt 1:18-23 (or Mt 1:1-16, 18-23)  

18The birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his  mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived  together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19Her  husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her  to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. 20But just when he  had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a  dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary  as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  21She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save  his people from their sins.” 22All this took place to fulfill what had  been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23“Look, the virgin  shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,”  which means, “God is with us.” 

That the Son of God will enter the world of creatures as  one of them has been foreseen from the very beginning.  The Incarnation is NOT a plan B that replaces a failed  plan A. God’s eternal purposes can never be undone by anyone, for  nobody can fully fathom them. The Old Testament recounts the long  preparation that culminates in what St. Paul calls “the fullness of  time” when “God sent his Son, born of a woman” (Gal 4:4). Today’s  Gospel attests that this woman, who was to bear God’s Son, was also  involved in the lengthy preparation. She was foretold by the prophet  Isaiah ages before she herself was born. The feast of Mary’s nativity  speaks primarily of God’s faithfulness. God keeps his promises and  fulfills his plans. Moreover, God involves human beings, prepares  and empowers us for the realization of the grand divine design for  the whole creation. Lord Jesus, may our life too, like Mary’s, become a resounding  proclamation of God’s fidelity. Amen.