Festival of the Annunciation of Our Lord

March 25th is the day set aside in the Church to celebrate the Annunciation of Our Lord. The Annunciation (Latin for 'announcement') commemorates the day that the angel Gabriel visited Mary to announce to her that she would be the mother of Our Lord... that she would give birth to the Son of God. The date of March 25, you might note, is nine months before Christmas.

In any case, we celebrate the Annunciation because it is the day in which God finally set in motion the great plan of salvation which was first announced to Adam and Eve in the Garden after the Fall (see Gen. 3:15). There was never a doubt, of course, that the Messiah would come, as all God's prophets had predicted... but to have the time be NOW! Praise be to God that He would send Son into this fallen world of ours, to redeem us and save us from our sins.

Mary's response? After she gets over her fright and her confusion, that is?  "Let it be to me, according to Your Word" (Luke 1:38) and then later, when she visited her cousin Elizabeth, she said, "My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior" (Luke 1:46-48). With Mary, at the fervency of His love and the faithfulness of His mercy, our souls, too, magnify the Lord. Our souls, too rejoice in in God our Savior.

The Annunciation is a festival full of joy. We rejoice that God keeps His promises to us (see Joshua 21:45) and that His greatest of all His promises is being fulfilled with Mary, that she would be the mother of God. For with the angel's announcement, the Holy Spirit conceived a son in Mary's womb, a Son would truly be the Second Adam. It is this Second Adam, Jesus Christ the Incarnate Word who "came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Matthew 20:26).

In the words of the great Christian hymn which Germanus (A+D c.634-c.734) wrote so many years ago: what "a great and mighty wonder, a full and holy cure [that] the virgin bears the infant with virgin honor pure" (LSB 383:1). The announcement to Mary is that the Lord is come and is among us. Beginning in Mary's womb," the Word became flesh and dwelt Mong us" (John 1:14). What glad tidings!

The angel Gabriel from heaven came,
With wings as drifted snow, with eyes as flame:
'All hail to thee, O lowly maiden Mary,
Most highly favored lady."  Gloria!

"For know a blessèd mother thou shalt be,
All generations laud and honor thee;
Thy son shall be Emmanuel, by seers foretold,
Most highly favored lady. Gloria!

Then gentle Mary meekly bowed her head;
"To me be as it pleaseth God," she said.
"My soul shall laud and magnify God's holy name."
Most highly favored lady, Gloria!

Of her, Emmanuel, the Christ, was born
In Bethlehem all on a Christmas morn,
And Christian folk throughout the world will ever say:
"Most highly favored lady." Gloria!       (LSB 356)

Let us pray: O Lord, as we have known the incarnation of Your Son Jesus Christ by the message of the angel to the Virgin Mary, so by the message of His cross and passion bring us to the glory of His resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.



P.S. the painting at the top of this post is Campin's Annunciation. Robert Campin (A+D c.1375-1444) was a Durch master who painted in the Early Netherlandish style. The Ninja Wife tells me that every aspect of the painting has symbolic meaning and she has graciously agreed to explain the symbolism on her blog. Check it out here if you're interested.