By her, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word," Mary exhibits such faith and thereby undoes the refusal of Eve. And this fiat to the impossible made possible the Incarnation of God. In accepting the seduction of the alluring Mystery, she allowed God’s love to become enfleshed for the transformation of the world.
In the Catholic faith, Mary is praised as the Mother of the Church, the matrix of all discipleship. What this means is that her fiat is the ground and model of every disciple’s response to God’s desire for incarnation. Meister Eckhart said that all believers become "mothers of Christ," bearers of the incarnate Word, in the measure that they acquiesce to the divine passion to push concretely into creation.
Reflect: In what ways have
you said "yes" to the mystery of God? What is the result?
--- Bishop Barron
|
By decree of the
Emperor, Mary and Joseph found themselves forced to leave their people, their
home, and their land, and undertake a journey to be registered in the census.
This was no comfortable or easy journey for a young couple who were about to
have a child. At heart, they were full of hope and expectation because of the
child about to be born. Yet their steps were weighed down by the
uncertainties and dangers that follow those who must leave home behind. |
—Excerpt from On Love by Pope Francis
