S. FAUSTI - Christian life brings in its heart and has as a principle and aim the Incarnation of the Word. All centered on this mystery, it is a continuous actualization "today" of the "Yes" that had attracted God in the world. Mary is the figure of every believer and of the entire Church. What it happened to her has to happen to each one and everyone. The yes of the man that welcomes and generates the Word, from which everything begins is the real aim of the creation. The scene takes place in the "house", because God has finally found the house of which the temple is figure. It is the meeting that He has searched for all eternity, the moment in view of which the time began , crown of His dream of love, reward of His work, recompense for His effort. Eventually from the depths of His creation that has gone away from Him, it rises a "Yes" able to attract Him. And He comes , joins, is compromised forever. What was God's joy in being able to say to Mary: "Rejoice". The Bridegroom, eventually , after so many tragedies, finds the bride of His heart. Lastly the suffering ends. He is embraced by those that He loves. His offer finds hands that welcome Him, and the great arms of the world embrace, conceive and shake that without which man is not man. Love is loved. He has found a home where to live in and man's home is no longer deserted. The Incarnation has a "passional"character : it reveals the passion of God. It is the beginning of the marriage between Him and mankind, the beginning of a love that will be greater than death. The event begins with the “ sent” angel (= apostle) and ends with the angel that departs. The angel is the presence of God in His proclaimed Word. Our faith in His Word welcomes Him and unites us to Him: It is the Christmas of God on earth and of man in heaven. The Word becomes flesh inside us and does'nt leave us anymore. and the angel shall go to proclaim it to others, until the mystery accomplished in Mary it will be fulfilled in all men. The salvation of every man is to become like Mary. To say yes to the proposal of love of God, giving flesh in our body to the Eternal Word, generating the Son in the world.
Gospel, Luke 1:26-38 26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,
27 to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
28 He went in and said to her, 'Rejoice, you who enjoy God's favour! The Lord is with you.'
29 She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean,
30 but the angel said to her, 'Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God's favour.
31 Look! You are to conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus.
32 He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David;
33 he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.'
34 Mary said to the angel, 'But how can this come about, since I have no knowledge of man?'
35 The angel answered, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God.
36 And I tell you this too: your cousin Elizabeth also, in her old age, has conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month,
37 for nothing is impossible to God.'
38 Mary said, 'You see before you the Lord's servant, let it happen to me as you have said.' And the angel left her.
Reading 2, Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12 3 Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings of heaven in Christ.
4 Thus he chose us in Christ before the world was made to be holy and faultless before him in love,
5 marking us out for himself beforehand, to be adopted sons, through Jesus Christ. Such was his purpose and good pleasure,
6 to the praise of the glory of his grace, his free gift to us in the Beloved,
11 And it is in him that we have received our heritage, marked out beforehand as we were, under the plan of the One who guides all things as he decides by his own will,
12 chosen to be, for the praise of his glory, the people who would put their hopes in Christ before he came
S. FAUSTI - Christian life brings in its heart and has as a principle and aim the Incarnation of the Word. All centered on this mystery, it is a continuous actualization "today" of the "Yes" that had attracted God in the world.
RispondiEliminaMary is the figure of every believer and of the entire Church.
What it happened to her has to happen to each one and everyone.
The yes of the man that welcomes and generates the Word, from which everything begins is the real aim of the creation. The scene takes place in the "house", because God has finally found the house of which the temple is figure.
It is the meeting that He has searched for all eternity, the moment in view of which the time began , crown of His dream of love, reward of His work, recompense for His effort.
Eventually from the depths of His creation that has gone away from Him, it rises a "Yes" able to attract Him. And He comes , joins, is compromised forever.
What was God's joy in being able to say to Mary: "Rejoice". The Bridegroom, eventually , after so many tragedies, finds the bride of His heart.
Lastly the suffering ends. He is embraced by those that He loves.
His offer finds hands that welcome Him, and the great arms of the world embrace, conceive and shake that without which man is not man.
Love is loved. He has found a home where to live in and man's home is no longer deserted.
The Incarnation has a "passional"character : it reveals the passion of God. It is the beginning of the marriage between Him and mankind, the beginning of a love that will be greater than death.
The event begins with the “ sent” angel (= apostle) and ends with the angel that departs.
The angel is the presence of God in His proclaimed Word.
Our faith in His Word welcomes Him and unites us to Him:
It is the Christmas of God on earth and of man in heaven.
The Word becomes flesh inside us and does'nt leave us anymore. and the angel shall go to proclaim it to others, until the mystery accomplished in Mary it will be fulfilled in all men.
The salvation of every man is to become like Mary. To say yes to the proposal of love of God, giving flesh in our body to the Eternal Word, generating the Son in the world.
Gospel, Luke 1:26-38
RispondiElimina26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,
27 to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
28 He went in and said to her, 'Rejoice, you who enjoy God's favour! The Lord is with you.'
29 She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean,
30 but the angel said to her, 'Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God's favour.
31 Look! You are to conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus.
32 He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David;
33 he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.'
34 Mary said to the angel, 'But how can this come about, since I have no knowledge of man?'
35 The angel answered, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God.
36 And I tell you this too: your cousin Elizabeth also, in her old age, has conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month,
37 for nothing is impossible to God.'
38 Mary said, 'You see before you the Lord's servant, let it happen to me as you have said.' And the angel left her.
Reading 2, Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12
3 Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings of heaven in Christ.
4 Thus he chose us in Christ before the world was made to be holy and faultless before him in love,
5 marking us out for himself beforehand, to be adopted sons, through Jesus Christ. Such was his purpose and good pleasure,
6 to the praise of the glory of his grace, his free gift to us in the Beloved,
11 And it is in him that we have received our heritage, marked out beforehand as we were, under the plan of the One who guides all things as he decides by his own will,
12 chosen to be, for the praise of his glory, the people who would put their hopes in Christ before he came