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In other words, Mary, by an act of HER will, made it possible for God the Son to take flesh. I.e., ALL GRACE entered the world through MARY’s willing it.

Uh... no. Do you REALLY think she could have said no? Really? Gabriel TOLD her what God was going to do. He didn't say, "Hey, Mary -- God wants to know if he can use you to give birth to a baby who you can call Jesus."

Sheesh.

Since there seems to be such an issue with context in Roman Catholicism, here it is:

" 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

35 And the angel answered her, “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. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.”"

Luke 1:31-37

Doesn't seem to be too much "asking" going on there...

So... Mary, being a believer, will say.... no? Really? God chose her. All she did was acknowledge it. And her answer isn't an, "hey, Gabriel -- tell God it's good by me!" it's an acquiescence:

Verse 38:

"And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her."

"Servant" is more like Bondservant. Not voluntary accomplice. "Let it be to me according to you word" is an acquiescence, not an allowance. A bondservant does not allow his master to do something to him; he belongs to his master.

Context is your friend, friend.

Hoss

God will not violate someone's free will, even to stop them from plummeting into Hell, and we KNOW that God is love, unconditional love toward usward. Since we do not know the thoughts of Mary's heart prior to Gabriel being sent to her, we really cannot say how it is that God knew Mary would bow her head and say 'thank you, Lord; be it unto me according to God's will.' To raise Mary to a spot where even some would have to come through her to Christ's Kingdom is, well, contradicting the Bible! Jesus said No man cometh unto the Father but by Me.' He didn't say 'but by me and my Mom'. But Mary consented to the mothering, sheltering of an Holy One from God.

God did not force or compel her. And that is the more astonishing, that God would choose a lowly Jewish girl betrothed to a Jewish man in order to cometh in the flesh to this world to save us who are doomed without His Grace and Mercy.

My mother was impregnated by a rape, yet she had such love and fear of the Lord that she brought me forth anyway, as her third child. It is indeed a power pro-life message that Mary chose the rigors of child bearing instead of rejecting the Holy One of God. Any woman or girl pregnant with another living human being should take a lead from Mary's bowed head.