Hail Mary, Full of Grace

A brief update: I haven't felt as good for many months! I am on Day 13 of Cycle 20. I took myself off my medications for about a week. I have regained some appetite and food actually can be enjoyable! I have not gained much weight but I am good with my energy and I am back on the computer and driving a bit more. Praise God! After tomorrow it will be a new record, God willing! With lots of prayers, especially prayer to St. Jude - may Cycle 20 be the last!

In the hallway by the entrance of my home hangs this picture depicting the Annunciation:

 (Annunciazione Fra' Giovanni da Fiesole detto il Beato Angelico - Firenze, Museo di San Marco)

Today is the "Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord" - March 25, exactly 9 months before the birth of Jesus. The Gospel passage read during Mass was taken from Luke 1:26-38 - recounting the visit and announcement made by the Archangel Gabriel to Mary. It was very significant how Gabriel addressed Mary in Luke 1:28 (as recorded in the original Greek by Dr. Luke): "chairō charitoō ho kyrios meta sy" which is translated to Latin (Vulgate) "Ave gratia plena: Dominus tecum: benedicta tu in mulieribus", and in English (the NRSVCE translation) "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you". So where is the "Hail Mary, Full of Grace" that I say every time I recite the "Hail Mary" prayer? Dr. Geraghty gave this answer from the EWTN.com site. Dr. David Anders (one of the best bible teachers I know, a convert from Calvinism to Catholicism) has this (at the 30 minute mark of the 1 hour video) to say about the common misconception of praying to Mary.

Father Ian gave a beautiful homily on this passage. He quoted someone's survey of bookstores - the most popular section is full of self-help books. These books all encouraged us to look within ourselves to find strength to deal with the anxiety of life. Instead, from this scripture passage, we find that Mary trusted the angel Gabriel and looked to God instead. "For nothing will be impossible with God.". This commentary by Karoline Lewis is very encouraging. She calls it "The Impossible Possibility of God". And I quote, "Any sermon on this text worth its weight will somehow create, expand, and eventually resolve, to a certain extent, and as much as is theologically possible, the tension between "How can this be" and "Let it be with me according to you word." It will move us from the absence of God (1:34), to the presence of God (1:35), to the fulfillment of the promises of God (1:36). To collapse "Here I am" too quickly into our idealistic notions of answering God's call reduces Mary to simply a pawn in some sort of divine play and further marginalizes her.
Somehow, someway, a sermon on this text will negotiate the radical transformation in only three short verses, from peasant girl to prophet, from Mary to mother of God, from to denial to discipleship. In a very real way, this is the appropriate transition from Advent to Christmas. Mary's story moves us all from who we think we are to what God has called us to be, from observant believer to confessing apostle. Moreover, remarkably, impossibly, Mary's story demands that we acknowledge the very transformation of God. It is no small journey to go from our comfortable perceptions of God to God in the manger, vulnerable, helpless, dependent. Yet, this is the promise of Christmas."