December 19, 2023.

Gospel

Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month,

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.

Homily Highlights of Most Rev. Benny Varghese Edathattel, Bishop of Itanagar, India

 
Bishop Benny emphasizes two points to reflect on in the life of our Blessed Mother. The first is humility, and the second is to walk by faith rather than by sight.

“ For our reflection today, I stand here before you to reflect the Blessed Mother. I want you to draw attention firstly about the humility of the mother when the Angel Gabriel appeared to her and said that she was highly favored. She did not question the angel but simply accept the invitation and said " Here I am, Lord". The aspect of humility is a great virtue we see in the life of our Blessed Mother.

“ The greatest virtue of a Christian can have is humility. We need to humble ourselves before God, to accept what God has installed for us. It should be God's will that we need to fullfil in our life and not us. We need to surrender our will, our life totally to the Lord. It is the Lord who should be my guiding star and of my family. If we are proud and walk by pride, we will have a downfall. We, Christians, need to learn how to walk in humility.”

“ Second reflection is, Mary walk by faith rather than by sight. Can you imagine a young girl accept the fact that she is chosen? If other girls experience what happen to Mary, they will be unprepared and reject it. This 15 year old girl simply accept the will of God and said, "Let it done unto me according to the word". She walk[s] by faith rather than by sight.”

“ After nine months of pregnancy, it was time to give birth to her child Jesus. Upon reaching Bethlehem, they have no place to find. Mary did not complain. Can you imagine a young girl giving birth not in a palace or house? But Mary did not doubt God's presence but she walked by faith rather than by sight.”

“ When we are faced by problems in life, we surrender our life into the hands of God. Let God take control of us, lead us and direct us. Let us learn to walk by faith rather than by sight. Mary always trusted in the providence of God. God has plan in your life.”

“ Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid. God is with you always. If God is with you, who can be against you? No evil power can out us down. Like Mary, we may walk by faith rather than by sight. Let us learn to trust God more and more and walk the path of light.”