Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint 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.

The annunciation

1) Rejoice. Today we celebrate the Annunciation of the Lord to Mary. Mary is told by the Angel Gabriel that she will become a mother. The Angel says, “Rejoice, Mary” because it is the joy of knowing that she will be the mother of Jesus, our Saviour. As a Christian, you are invited to live in joy, because you have Jesus and you are with him. That is your joy, that Jesus is in you and with you. The joy comes from knowing Mary is a woman of peace and gave birth to the blessed child. You have the wonderful fruit of life, Jesus. So, rejoice.

2) Do not fear. Of course, there are difficult and hard times, Mary is in a complex situation, but God has the ability to move hearts and knows where to lay his kind hand. Do not fear the obstacles you must face in life because you are never alone. God is always with you. God gives you a mission but does not leave you on your own.

3) The handmaid. It is faith that leads Mary to abandon herself entirely in God. Mary becomes a servant of the Lord out of love, she surrenders readily to His will and allows the work of God to act in her. Today surrender yourself, give yourself entirely to God and trust in the Lord, so that He may do his work within you and together with you. Remember that God is most generous and will never abandon you.

God bless you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. And remember, Heaven is our goal.