Psst!
Shout a little louder; perhaps he is asleep.
Posted on 03/25/2015 10:46:15 PM PDT by Steelfish
Because Mary Said “Yes…” — A Reflection For The Solemnity of the Annunciation of Our Lord
March 25, 2011 by Fr. Thomas Rosica
Standing in the middle of the present day city of Nazareth is the mammoth Basilica of the Annunciation, built around what is believed to be the dwelling of Mary. In a grotto-like room at the heart of the basilica is a small inscription on an altar. It reads, “verbum caro hic factum est,” here the Word became flesh. There, it is believed, the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, and her response changed the world forever.
Imagine yourself in Mary’s place, asked to say “yes” to a divine plan so vast, so profound and so seemingly impossible that you cannot comprehend it. “How can this be?” she asks, bewildered. She is rooted in the faith of her ancestors, and yet now an angel has appeared in the midst of everyday life, extending a startling invitation. “You have found favor with God,” the angel says, “and you will conceive and bear His Son.” Will she accept?
It is Mary above all others who can teach us what it means to live by faith, and how to respond when God’s providence disrupts the daily course of our lives, overturning its rhythms and expectations. Despite her fears and uncertainty over how this promise could be fulfilled, she still answered “Yes.” Are we able to respond to God this way?
When we reflect on the Annunciation to Mary, and her acceptance of the angel’s message, we also reflect on our own vocation — our own calling from God. In the Lord’s Prayer, we pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” — an echo of Mary’s “Be it done unto me according to your word.”
Each time we commit ourselves to embracing God’s call and accepting His will, we mark a new point on the path of our relationship with Him. For the rest of her life, Mary pondered her extraordinary encounter with God, turning the weight of the angel’s message over and over again in her heart. From the manger to the cross, Mary’s life was radically changed — her relationship with God profoundly deepened — the moment she said “Yes.”
Mary received and welcomed God’s Word in the fullest sense — becoming impregnated with it, and bearing it to the world. Angels might not appear in our doorsteps, but we do encounter God in each of our daily prayers, and he whispers to us a similar invitation: Will we accept His love and bring it joyously to those around us? Will we trust in His providence, even when we can’t see the path ahead? Amid the noise of everyday life, will we listen for and embrace his call?
When making his pilgrimage to the Basilica of the Annunciation, Pope Benedict XVI offered this prayer to the humble Virgin of Nazareth. It speaks for all of us who likewise seek to accept God’s will with joy:
Mary, Mother of the “Yes,” you listened to Jesus, and know the tone of his voice and the beating of his heart. Morning Star, speak to us of him, and tell us about your journey of following him on the path of faith."
I hate typing on an iPad......
You have totally discredited yourself vlad.
LOL! Yes, autocorrect gets me all the time on my droid. :)
“I in no way agree with the Muslims.”
You do if you profess to believe in the God of Abraham.
“He’s not Catholic.”
So you’re saying he/she does not profess to believe in the God of Abraham? Because he/she just said he/she did.
“Aren’t YOU going to openly profess what your own church teaches?”
Do YOU profess to believe in the God of Abraham?
“You are obligated.”
You are obligated. All Christians must believe in the God of Abraham don’t they? You and Muslims, therefore, both profess to believe in the God of Abraham.
“You have totally discredited yourself vlad.”
You and Muslims both profess to believe in the God of Abraham. Does that bother you? Does it bother you that YOU and Jews and Muslims believe in the God of Abraham but only Christians believe He is a Trinity of Divine Persons?
So if the Mormons say they believe in the God of Abraham, do you think they worship the same God as the one elucidated by the Nicene and Athanasian creeds? All it takes is a label? Content doesn’t matter? Slap an Apple label on a Dell computer and you’ve got an Apple? Really?
I expressly wrote in post 349 that "it is no game" so the only way it could be a game is if you are playing a game. I certainly am not. Mind reading is not an prrmissible option. If you do not wish to be asked questions about what you confess or deny from the scriptures you need only not reply and not engage in non-caucus threads. But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled; But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.
First Peter, Catholic chapter three, Protestant verses fourteen to seventeen
See ya vlad.
Oh?
None are so blind....
Here; I'll post them
Bonaventure: …the gates of heaven will open to all who confide in the protection of Mary. Blessed are they who know thee, O Mother of God, for the knowledge of THEE is the high road to everlasting life, and the publication of thy virtues is the way of ETERNAL SALVATION . Give ear, O ye nations; and all you who desire heaven , serve, honor Mary, and certainly you will find ETERNAL LIFE.
Ephem: …devotion to the divine Mother…is the unlocking of the heavenly Jerusalem.
Blosius: To the, O Lady, are committed the KEYS and the treasures of the kingdom of Heaven.
Ambrose: …constantly pray ‘Open to us, O Mary, the gates of paradise, since thou hast its KEYS.
Fulgetius: …by Mary God descended from Heaven into the world, that by HER man might ascend from earth to Heaven.
Athanasius: …And, thou, O Lady, wast filled with grace, that thou mightiest be the way of our SALVATION and the means of ascent to the heavenly Kingdom.
Richard of Laurence: Mary, in fine, is the mistress of heaven; for there she commands as she wills, and ADMITS whom she wills.
Guerric: …he who serves Mary and for whom she intercedes, is as CERTAIN of heaven as if he were already there…and those who DO NOT serve Mary will NOT BE SAVED.
Anselm: It suffices, O Lady, that thou willest it, and our SALVATION is certain.
Antoninus: …souls protected by Mary, and on which she casts her eyes, are NECESSARILY JUSTIFIED AND SAVED.
The game is very similar to hopscotch.
Jump here - hop there - leap again.
Or maybe Twister is a closer comparison.
“So if the Mormons say they believe in the God of Abraham, do you think they worship the same God as the one elucidated by the Nicene and Athanasian creeds?”
I think they think they do. As a Catholic, however, we do not consider them to be Christian because they do not accept the Nicene Creed in any proper sense. Thus, we do not accept their baptism as valid because it isn’t truly Trinitarian in nature or intent. Having said that, I would not hesitate to say that they PROFESS to believe in the God of Abraham. So do Jews. So do Muslims. So do all Christians.
“All it takes is a label?”
I have no idea what you mean.
“Content doesn’t matter?”
It does matter. It also matters what they PROFESS to believe. If they profess to believe in Jesus I am not going to say they don’t profess to believe in Jesus.
“Slap an Apple label on a Dell computer and you’ve got an Apple? Really?”
No, so why are you even suggesting it by way of question since nothing I said even remotely suggested that?
Not right here is an example of what is wrong with Catholics.
Not taking a non-answer as valid; they want to supply their OWN answers!
For one thing, it's a condition described in Jesus in the Beatitudes: "Blessed" are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for justice, the peacemakers, etc. It means God will vindicate them, make them fortunate or happy, they will receive God's favor. Opposite, "Woe to," the people who have bad stuff coming.
It's also a general adjective meaning good in the eyes of God. A blessed event, blessed assurance, blessed hope, a blessed relief from pain, the blessed departed, their blessed memory.
It's also an honorific title for good people who are thought to be in heaven but have not been canonized, like "Blessed Junipero Serra". It's also applied to God: Blessed Trinity, Blessed Savior, the Blessed Sacrament.
So the range can go from something simply good and fortunate, (a blessed break in the summer's heat) all the way up to the Infinite Godhead. Context will rule the meaning in every instance.
And there's no reason not to call Mary Bessed.
And ELSIE said: Behold the servant of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word. And the badger departed from him.
You do if you profess to believe in the God of Abraham.
Dude, it's not working. You're not "arguing" -- you're "contradicting" -- now, give you dad back the keyboard. It's supper time.
Hoss
Shout a little louder; perhaps he is asleep.
“Oh?”
Yep. Once again, not a single one of the quotes you posted even hinted at any Catholic worshiping Mary. The fact that Mary intercedes for doesn’t mean we worship for her.
If you were to intercede for someone that doesn’t mean that person would mistake you for God and worship you as if you were God.
Apparently - even though I have pointed this out to you before - you can’t tell the difference between the fact that you posted quotes about what Mary does for us rather than any evidence of anyone actually worshiping Mary.
I think the nature of this phenomenon we witness is that a strong anti-Protestant bias filters anything perceived to be Protestant so that it must be combated without actually discerning whether it is true or not.
“Not right here is an example of what is wrong with Catholics.”
“Not right there...”
Gee, we agree.
Here’s what’s wrong with Protestants:
“To Protestantism False Witness is the principle of propagation. … Taking things as they are, and judging of them by the long run, one may securely say, that the anti-Catholic Tradition could not be kept alive, would die of exhaustion, without a continual supply of fable.” (John Henry Newman, Lecture 4. True Testimony Insufficient for the Protestant View)
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