Those who had been waiting for the Messiah would have their hopes fulfilled. The Almighty had answered their fervent prayers. The Second Person of the Most Blessed Trinity now had become incarnate, taking our human nature unto Himself.
It is clear what the Annunciation meant for those believers who for centuries had anticipated and prepared their hearts for the Lord’s arrival. But now that Jesus Christ has appeared, suffered, died, risen and ascended to His Father, what relevancy has the Annunciation for us?
The Solemnity of the Annunciation, which the Universal Church commemorates each March 25, spurs us to reflect on this great mystery and recognize its value for us. The import of the Annunciation is multifaceted. Here are just a few of its various significances for us.
1. The Annunciation signals the beginning of our relationship with Jesus, “God with us.” The humble Messiah did not disdain the Ever-Virgin’s chaste body. He came to us through her. And as so many spiritual authors have suggested — Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716) being one of the most famous — we can now choose to approach Christ as He has come to us: through the pure hands of the Maiden.
Mary infallibly leads us to her Divine Son. If we want to know Jesus, we should get close to His mother. She will teach us plenty of those “maternal secrets” that will enable us to love and understand Him better.
2. Mary’s prompt acceptance of the will of the Lord is the pattern for our obedience. Our Blessed Lady really did enjoy the freedom to say “no” to the Almighty. She was not coerced to yield to the virginal conception of Jesus. But she replied affirmatively, trusting that the Lord would help her. And each of us is the better for it.
Mary realized that God would not lead her astray. Whatever He asked of her, she surrendered without delay.
3. The “spirit world,” with its good angels and demons, has relevancy for us. It is fashionable today in some quarters to deny those “created spirits” that are either virtuous or evil. They are only figments of our imagination or, if you prefer, mere objects of artistic genius.
Not so. Whether righteous or fallen, the angels are as real as we are. God uses His angelic servants for many just purposes, while the demons never stop trying to tempt us to commit sin. By cultivating a rapport with our Guardian Angel and his companions, we not only benefit from the assistance of the angels, but we also remind ourselves of the existence of the spirit world.
4. The treasure that we call human life commences at the moment of conception. Some argue that because the magnificent Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225?-1274) thought that the soul was not infused until some weeks after conception, we may, for a certain period, allow for abortion since without a soul there is no person.
True, a human person is a “body-soul composite.” But Saint Thomas did not advocate aborting the newly-conceived. He held that abortion at any time in a pregnancy was a grave wrong. And since his era, science and medicine indicate that the tiny human embryo grows and matures — and lives!
The Annunciation cannot be overestimated. It ushered in the reign of Jesus Christ to Whom we belong and of Whom it may be said: “I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:34).
© Copyright 2004 Catholic Exchange
Monsignor Charles M. Mangan was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Sioux Falls in 1989. He is presently assigned to the Vatican Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.
