Gospel Luke 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end." But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?" And the angel said to her in reply, "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 called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God." Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.

Reflection
Mary ushers in a new stage and the full revelation of who God the Father truly is. He has chosen to live with us, to become a human being. And Mary was chosen to be the vessel of this humanity that God would take on while He was on this earth teaching, showing us who we are, awakening us to the future.
That one day we like Mary, would hold within us the divinity of God, the Father, and God the Son. She is the model of the church, the model for all of us. And we are in awe of what she did and also longing for it to happen to us.

Closing Prayer
Father, you are all powerful. Your will, will always be done. Nothing is impossible for you. And if you are able to place within the womb of a woman your very presence as a human being in this world, then why would we ever doubt that you will do something very like that with us? You will place yourself within our hearts. Give birth to all that you are. All that you can be. Let us be witnesses to you, not to ourselves, but to who you are. We ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

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