Catechism Links
CCC 484-494: The Annunciation
CCC Cross Reference:
Is 7:14 497
Ps 40:7-9 LXX 462; Ps 40:7 2824
Heb 10:1-4 1540; Heb 10:5-10 606; Heb 10:5-7 462, 516, 2568; Heb 10:5 488; Heb 10:7 2824; Heb 10:10 614, 2824
Lk 1:26-38 497, 706, 723, 2571; Lk 1:26-27 488; Lk 1:26 332; Lk 1:28-37 494; Lk 1:28 490, 491; Lk 1:31 430, 2812; Lk 1:32-33 709; Lk 1:32 559; Lk 1:34 484, 497, 505; Lk 1:35 437, 484, 486, 697; Lk 1:37-38 494; Lk 1:37 148, 269, 273, 276; Lk 1:38 64, 148, 510, 2617, 2677, 2827, 2856
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Reading 1
Is 7:10-14; 8:10
The Lord spoke to Ahaz, saying: Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God; let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky! But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask! I will not tempt the Lord!” Then Isaiah said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary people, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us!”
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 40:7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 11
R. (8a and 9a) Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
“In the written scroll it is prescribed for me,
To do your will, O my God, is my delight,
and your law is within my heart!”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
I announced your justice in the vast assembly;
I did not restrain my lips, as you, O Lord, know.
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Your justice I kept not hid within my heart;
your faithfulness and your salvation I have spoken of;
I have made no secret of your kindness and your truth in the vast assembly.
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Reading II
Heb 10:4-10
Brothers and sisters:
It is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats take away sins.
For this reason, when Christ came into the world, he said:
“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but a body you prepared for me;
in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight.
Then I said, ‘As is written of me in the scroll,
behold, I come to do your will, O God.’”
First he says, “Sacrifices and offerings,
holocausts and sin offerings,
you neither desired nor delighted in.”
These are offered according to the law.
Then he says, “Behold, I come to do your will.”
He takes away the first to establish the second.
By this “will,” we have been consecrated
through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Gospel
Lk 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.
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Isaiah 7:10 - 8:10
Once again the Lord spoke to Ahaz and said, ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of Sheol or from the heights above’. ‘No,’ Ahaz answered ‘I will not put the Lord to the test.’
Then he said:
Listen now, House of David:
are you not satisfied with trying the patience of men
without trying the patience of my God, too?
The Lord himself, therefore,
will give you a sign.
It is this: the maiden is with child
and will soon give birth to a son
whom she will call Immanuel,
‘God is with us’.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 39(40):7-11
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
You do not ask for sacrifice and offerings,
but an open ear.
You do not ask for holocaust and victim.
Instead, here am I.
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
In the scroll of the book it stands written
that I should do your will.
My God, I delight in your law
in the depth of my heart.
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
Your justice I have proclaimed
in the great assembly.
My lips I have not sealed;
you know it, O Lord.
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
I have not hidden your justice in my heart
but declared your faithful help.
I have not hidden your love and your truth
from the great assembly.
Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
Second reading Hebrews 10:4 – 10
Bulls’ blood and goats’ blood are useless for taking away sins, and this is what Christ said, on coming into the world:
You who wanted no sacrifice or oblation,
prepared a body for me.
You took no pleasure in holocausts or sacrifices for sin;
then I said,
just as I was commanded in the scroll of the book,
‘God, here I am! I am coming to obey your will.’
Notice that he says first: You did not want what the Law lays down as the things to be offered, that is: the sacrifices, the oblations, the holocausts and the sacrifices for sin, and you took no pleasure in them; and then he says: Here I am! I am coming to obey your will. He is abolishing the first sort to replace it with the second. And this will was for us to be made holy by the offering of his body made once and for all by Jesus Christ.
Gospel Luke 1:26 – 38
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. He went in and said to her, ‘Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.’ She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God’s favor. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?’ ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you’ the angel answered ‘and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God’ ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord,’ said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me.’ And the angel left her.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Solemnity: The Annunciation of the Lord
From: Isaiah 7:10-14; 8-10
The Sign of Immanu-el (Continuation)
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[10] Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, [11] "Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven." [12] But Ahaz said, "I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test." [13] And he said, "Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? [14] Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanu-el, [10] which means 'God is with us.'"
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Commentary:
7:10-17. Even though the king did not listen, the Lord offers him a sign that he has no reason to fear the threats made by the kings of Israel and Syria: a maiden will conceive and bear a son, who will be called Immanuel; within a few years, before the boy reaches the age of reason, the two kingdoms that Ahaz fears will be laid low, and Judah will enjoy even greater prosperity than it had prior to the Assyrian threat.
The prophet's words, which at the time and taken literally would have been easy enough for the protagonists to understand, can have further significance: and as Revelation develops this becomes clearer. Verse 14 has three elements in it which, taken separately and together, can be read as a sign of peace and salvation--the mother, the child, and his name, "Immanuel". The mother is a maiden, that is, a young woman who has had no children previously. This could refer to the young wife of Ahaz or to some other young woman. In any event, by setting her pregnancy in the context of a sign given to the king, the point is that something quite important is involved. It is not surprising, therefore, that, to stress this, later interpreters, particularly those who translated the text into Greek in the second century BC, translated the Hebrew word for "young woman" into the Greek word for "virgin". Later, the evangelists St Matthew (Mt 1:23) and St Luke (Lk 1:26-31) indicated that the virginity of Mary was the sign that her son was the Messiah, the true God with us, who brings salvation.
The child, the son, is the most significant part of the sign. If the prophecy refers to the son of Ahaz, the future King Hezekiah, it would be indicating that his birth will be a sign of divine protection, because it will mean that the dynasty will continue. If it refers to another child, not yet known, the prophet's words would mean that the child's birth could manifest hope that "God was going to be with us", and his reaching the age of discretion (v. 16) would indicate the advent of peace; the child's birth would, then, be the sign that "God is with us". In the New Testament, the deeper meaning of these words find fulfillment: Mary is Virgin and Mother, and her Son is not a symbol of God's protection but God himself who dwells among us.
The word "Immanuel" is a prophetic indication of the revelation that the child's birth implies, just as the names of Isaiah's sons also contain revelation -- Shearjashub, which means "a remnant shall return" (7:3), and Maher-shalal-hash-baz, meaning "the spoil speeds, the prey hastens" (8:1-3). In the New Testament, the name conveys the joyful news that Jesus is truly "God with us".
Christian tradition has treated this lsaian oracle with great reverence: "Learn from the prophet himself how all this could come to pass. Does it, perhaps, follow the laws of nature? Absolutely not, replies the prophet: 'Behold, a virgin.... What a miracle! A virgin will become a mother and remain a virgin! [...] It is fitting that he who enters into human life to save all mankind [...] should be born of a woman of perfect integrity who has given herself wholly to Him" (St Gregory of Nyssa, "In Diem Natalem Christi", 1136).
Therefore, expounding the Church's interpretation, the Second Vatican Council has this to say: "The Holy Scriptures of both the Old and the New Testament, as well as ancient Tradition, show the role of the Mother of the Savior in the economy of salvation in an ever clearer light and draw attention to it. The books of the Old Testament describe the history of salvation, by which the coming of Christ into the world was slowly prepared. These earliest documents, as they are read in the Church and are understood in the light of a further and full revelation, bring the figure of the woman, Mother of the Redeemer, into a gradually clearer light. When it is looked at in this way, she is already prophetically foreshadowed in the promise of victory over the serpent which was given to our first parents after their fall into sin (cf. Gen 3:15). Likewise she is the Virgin who shall conceive and bear a son, whose name will be called Immanuel (Is 7:14; Mic 5:2-3; Mt 1:22-23). She stands out among the poor and humble of the Lord, who confidently hope for and receive salvation from Him. With her the exalted Daughter of Sion, and after a long expectation of the promise, the times are fulfilled and the new economy established, when the Son of God took a human nature from her, that He might in the mysteries of His flesh free man from sin" ("Lumen Gentium", 55).
The fact that the oracle was spoken in a specific historical context does not mean that it does not have a more transcendental, that is, messianic meaning; in the light of salvation history, past events should be read as part of God's plan of salvation and of its climax, the advent of Jesus Christ. Only by adopting this viewpoint can we see that what happened in the Old Testament, taken as a whole and many of the stages in it, are a prophecy of New Testament events, a "preparation for the Gospel". Therefore, a Christian reading of the text, which in a way enjoys "hindsight" and gives a messianic interpretation to the Immanuel Oracle, is perfectly compatible with its literal meaning.
The words of the prophet, which find fulfillment in Christ, have been given many lovely spiritual interpretations: "This Immanuel, born of the Virgin, eats curds and honey, and asks each of us to provide him with the curds that he eats [...]. Our good deeds, our sweet and noble words, are the honey eaten by the Immanuel born of the Virgin [...]. For truly he consumes our good words and intentions and actions, and feeds us, in turn, with a spiritual food that is greater and divine. As soon as we realize that to welcome the Savior is a blessing, and open wide the doors of our hearts, we will prepare for him the 'honey' and all his feast, and he will bring us to the great feast of the Father in the kingdom of heaven, that is in Christ Jesus" (Origen, "Homilae In Isaiam", 2, 2).
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From: Hebrews 10:4-10
The Sacrifices of the Old Covenant Could Not Take Away Sins (Continuation)
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[4] For it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins.
Christ's Offering of Himself Has Infinite Value
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[5] Consequently, when Christ came into the world, He said,
"Sacrifices and offerings Thou hast not desired,
but a body hast Thou prepared for Me;
[6] in burnt offerings and sin offerings Thou hast taken no pleasure.
[7] Then I said, 'Lo, I have come to do Thy will, O God,'
as it is written of Me in the roll of the book."
[8] When He said above, "Thou hast neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings" (these are offered according to the law), [9] then He added, "Lo, I have come to do Thy will." He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. [10] And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
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Commentary:
2-4. These verses repeat what is said in verse 1 and in 9:12-13. "Tell me, then, what is the point of having more victims and more sacrifices when a single victim would suffice for atonement for sins [...]. Multiple sacrifices in effect show that the Jews needed to atone for their sins because they had failed to find forgiveness: it points to the inefficacy of the victims offered, rather than to their power" (Chrysostom, "Hom. on Heb.", 17). The ultimate reason for this inefficacy is explained by a striking statement: "It is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins" (v. 4). There is here an echo of those proclamations of the prophets which reminded the people that true purification comes not from external actions but from conversion of heart (cf. Jeremiah 2:22; 4:14; 11:15; Micah 6:7-8; Psalm 51:18-19; etc.).
And yet, is it not the case that the priests of the New Testament renew Jesus' sacrifice in the Mass everyday? St. John Chrysostom answers: "Yes, that is true, but not because we regard the original sacrifice, Christ's sacrifice, as ineffective or impotent. We priests repeat it to commemorate His death. We have but one victim, Christ--not many victims [...]. There is but one and the same sacrifice [...], one Christ whole and entire, here as elsewhere, the same everywhere--the same Christ on all the altars. Just as Jesus Christ, although offered in different places, has only one body, so everywhere there is but one sacrifice [...]. What we do is a commemoration of Christ's offering, for at the Supper He said, 'Do this in memory of Me.' Therefore, we do not offer, as the high priest of the Law did, a new, additional victim: it is not one sacrifice more, but always the same one" ("Hom. on Heb.", 17).
The Mass "is the sacrifice of Christ, offered to the Father with the cooperation of the Holy Spirit--an offering of infinite value, which perpetuates the work of the Redemption in us and surpasses the sacrifices of the Old Law. The holy Mass brings us face to face with one of the central mysteries of our faith, because it is the gift of the Blessed Trinity to the Church. It is because of this that we can consider the Mass as the center and the source of a Christian's spiritual life. It is the final end of all the Sacraments" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 86-87).
5-10. This passage carries a quotation from Psalm 40:7-8, but one taken from the Greek translation, the Septuagint, not from the Hebrew. Where the Hebrew says, "Thou hast opened My ears", the Greek reads, "a body Thou hast prepared for Me". The difference is not substantial, because the Hebrew expression points to the docility and obedience of the speaker, who is the Messiah Himself. The Greek translation gives the sentence a more general meaning: God has not only opened the ears of the Messiah; He has given Him life as a man (cf. Philippians 2:7). The words of this Psalm "allow us as it were to sound the unfathomable depths of this self-abasement of the Word, His humiliation of Himself for love of men even to death on the Cross [...]. Why this obedience, this self-abasement, this suffering? The Creed gives us the answer: 'for us men and for our salvation' Jesus came down from Heaven so as to give man full entitlement to ascend (to Heaven) and by becoming a son in the Son to regain the dignity he lost through sin [...]. Let us welcome Him. Let us say to Him, 'Here I am; I have come to do Your will'" ([Pope] John Paul II, "General Audience", 25 March 1981).
The author of the letter, elaborating on the text of the psalm, asserts that the Messiah's sacrifice is greater than the sacrifices of the Old Law, unbloody as well as bloody, sin-offerings as well as burnt offerings as they were called in the liturgy (cf. Leviticus 5;6; 7:27). The sacrifice of Christ, who has "come into the world", has replaced both kinds of ancient sacrifice. It consisted in perfectly doing the will of His Father (cf. John 4:34; 6:38; 8:29; 14:31), even though He was required to give His life to the point of dying on Calvary (Matthew 26:42; John 10:18; Hebrews 5:7-9). Christ "came into the world" to offer Himself up to suffering and death for the redemption of the world. "He knew that all the sacrifices of goats and bulls offered to God in ancient times were incapable of making satisfaction for the sins of men; He knew that a divine person was needed to do that [...]. My Father (Jesus Christ said), all the victims offered You up to this are not enough and never will be enough to satisfy Your justice; You gave Me a body capable of experiencing suffering, so that You might be placated by the shedding of My blood, and men thereby saved; 'ecce venio, here I am, ready'; I accept everything and in all things do I submit to Your will. The lower part of His human nature naturally felt repugnance and reacted against living and dying in so much pain and opprobium, but its rational part, which was fully subject to the Father's will, had the upper hand; it accepted everything, and therefore Jesus Christ began to suffer, from that point onwards, all the anguish and pain which He would undergo in the course of His life. That is how our Divine Redeemer acted from the very first moments of His coming into the world. So, how should we behave towards Jesus when, come to the use of reason, we begin to know the sacred mysteries of Redemption through the light of faith?" (St. Alphonsus, "Advent Meditations",
II, 5).
The Psalm speaks of "the roll of the book": this may refer to a specific book or else to the Old Testament in general (cf. Luke 24:27; John 5;39, 46, 47).
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From: Luke 1:26-38
The Annunciation and Incarnation of the Son of God
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[26] In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, [27] to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.[28] And he came to her and said, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!" [29] But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. [30] And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. [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 for ever;
and of His Kingdom there will be no end."
[34] And Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no husband?"
[35] And the angel said to 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 kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. [37] For with God nothing will be impossible." [38] And Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.
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Commentary:
26-38. Here we contemplate our Lady who was "enriched from the first instant of her conception with the splendor of an entirely unique holiness; [...] the virgin of Nazareth is hailed by the heralding angel, by divine command, as 'full of grace' (cf. Luke 1:28), and to the heavenly messenger she replies, 'Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word' (Luke 1:38). Thus the daughter of Adam, Mary, consenting to the word of God, became the Mother of Jesus. Committing herself wholeheartedly to God's saving will and impeded by no sin, she devoted herself totally, as a handmaid of the Lord, to the person and work of her Son, under and with Him, serving the mystery of Redemption, by the grace of Almighty God. Rightly, therefore, the Fathers (of the Church) see Mary not merely as passively engaged by God, but as freely cooperating in the work of man's salvation through faith and obedience" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 56).
The annunciation to Mary and incarnation of the Word constitute the deepest mystery of the relationship between God and men and the most important event in the history of mankind: God becomes man, and will remain so forever, such is the extent of His goodness and mercy and love for all of us. And yet on the day when the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity assumed frail human nature in the pure womb of the Blessed Virgin, it all happened quietly, without fanfare of any kind.
St. Luke tells the story in a very simple way. We should treasure these words of the Gospel and use them often, for example, practising the Christian custom of saying the Angelus every day and reflecting on the five Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary.
27. God chose to be born of a virgin; centuries earlier He disclosed this through the prophet Isaiah (cf. Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:22-23). God, "before all ages made choice of, and set in her proper place, a mother for His only-begotten Son from whom He, after being made flesh, should be born in the blessed fullness of time: and He continued His persevering regard for her in preference to all other creatures, to such a degree that for her alone He had singular regard" (Pius IX, "Ineffabilis Deus," 2). This privilege granted to our Lady of being a virgin and a mother at the same time is a unique gift of God. This was the work of the Holy Spirit "who at the conception and the birth of the Son so favored the Virgin Mother as to impart fruitfulness to her while preserving inviolate her perpetual virginity" ("St. Pius V Catechism," I, 4, 8). Paul VI reminds us of this truth of faith: "We believe that the Blessed Mary, who ever enjoys the dignity of virginity, was the Mother of the incarnate Word, of our God and Savior Jesus Christ" ("Creed of the People of God", 14).
Although many suggestions have been made as to what the name Mary means, most of the best scholars seem to agree that Mary means "lady". However, no single meaning fully conveys the richness of the name.
28. "Hail, full of grace": literally the Greek text reads "Rejoice!", obviously referring to the unique joy over the news which the angel is about to communicate.
"Full of grace": by this unusual form of greeting the archangel reveals Mary's special dignity and honor. The Fathers and Doctors of the Church "taught that this singular, solemn and unheard-of-greeting showed that all the divine graces reposed in the Mother of God and that she was adorned with all the gifts of the Holy Spirit", which meant that she "was never subject to the curse", that is, was preserved from all sin. These words of the archangel in this text constitute one of the sources which reveal the dogma of Mary's Immaculate Conception (cf. Bl. Pius IX, "Ineffabilis Deus"; Paul VI, "Creed of the People of God").
"The Lord is with you!": these words are not simply a greeting ("the Lord be with you") but an affirmation ("the Lord is with you"), and they are closely connected with the Incarnation. St. Augustine comments by putting these words on the archangel's lips: "He is more with you than He is with me: He is in your heart, He takes shape within you, He fills your soul, He is in your womb" ("Sermo De Nativitate Domini", 4).
Some important Greek manuscripts and early translations add at the end of the verse: "Blessed are you among women!", meaning that God will exalt Mary over all women. She is more excellent than Sarah, Hannah, Deborah, Rachel, Judith, etc., for only she has the supreme honor of being chosen to be the Mother of God.
29-30. Our Lady is troubled by the presence of the archangel and by the confusion truly humble people experience when they receive praise.
30. The Annunciation is the moment when our Lady is given to know the vocation which God planned for her from eternity. When the archangel sets her mind at ease by saying, "Do not be afraid, Mary," he is helping her to overcome that initial fear which a person normally experiences when God gives him or her a special calling. The fact that Mary felt this fear does not imply the least trace of imperfection in her: hers is a perfectly natural reaction in the face of the supernatural. Imperfection would arise if one did not overcome this fear or rejected the advice of those in a position to help--as St. Gabriel helped Mary.
31-33. The archangel Gabriel tells the Blessed Virgin Mary that she is to be the Mother of God by reminding her of the words of Isaiah which announced that the Messiah would be born of a virgin, a prophecy which will find its fulfillment in Mary (cf. Matthew 1:22-23; Isaiah 7:14).
He reveals that the Child will be "great": His greatness comes from His being God, a greatness He does not lose when He takes on the lowliness of human nature. He also reveals that Jesus will be the king of the Davidic dynasty sent by God in keeping with His promise of salvation; that His Kingdom will last forever, for His humanity will remain forever joined to His divinity; that "He will be called Son of the Most High", that is that He really will be the Son of the Most High and will be publicly recognized as such, that is, the Child will be the Son of God.
The archangel's announcement evokes the ancient prophecies which foretold these prerogatives. Mary, who was well-versed in Sacred Scripture, clearly realized that she was to be the Mother of God.
34-38. Commenting on this passage John Paul II said: "'Virgo fidelis', the faithful Virgin. What does this faithfulness of Mary mean? What are the dimensions of this faithfulness? The first dimension is called search. Mary was faithful first of all when she began, lovingly, to seek the deep sense of God's plan in her and for the world. 'Quomodo fiet?' How shall this be?, she asked the Angel of the Annunciation [...]."
"The second dimension of faithfulness is called reception, acceptance. The 'quomodo fiet?' is changed, on Mary's lips, to a 'fiat': Let it be done, I am ready, I accept. This is the crucial moment of faithfulness, the moment in which man perceives that he will never completely understand the 'how': that there are in God's plan more areas of mystery than of clarity; that is, however he may try, he will never succeed in understanding it completely[...]."
"The third dimension of faithfulness is consistency to live in accordance with what one believes; to adapt one's own life to the object of one's adherence. To accept misunderstanding, persecutions, rather than a break between what one practices and what one believes: this is consistency [...]."
"But all faithfulness must pass the most exacting test, that of duration. Therefore, the fourth dimension of faithfulness is constancy. It is easy to be consistent for a day or two. It is difficult and important to be consistent for one's whole life. It is easy to be consistent in the hour of enthusiasm, it is difficult to be so in the hour of tribulation. And only a consistency that lasts throughout the whole life can be called faithfulness. Mary's 'fiat' in the Annunciation finds its fullness in the silent 'fiat' that she repeats at the foot of the Cross" ("Homily in Mexico City Cathedral", 26 January 1979).
34. Mary believed in the archangel's words absolutely; she did not doubt as Zechariah had done (cf. 1:18). Her question, "How can this be?", expresses her readiness to obey the will of God even though at first sight it implied a contradiction: on the one hand, she was convinced that God wished her to remain a virgin; on the other, here was God also announcing that she would become a mother. The archangel announces God's mysterious design, and what had seemed impossible, according to the laws of nature, is explained by a unique intervention on the part of God.
Mary's resolution to remain a virgin was certainly something very unusual, not in line with the practice of righteous people under the Old Covenant, for, as St. Augustine explains, "particularly attentive to the propagation and growth of the people of God, through whom the Prince and Savior of the world might be prophesied and be born, the saints were obliged to make use of the good of matrimony" ("De Bono Matrimonii", 9, 9). However, in the Old Testament, there were some who, in keeping with God's plan, did remain celibate--for example, Jeremiah, Elijah, Eliseus and John the Baptist. The Blessed Virgin, who received a very special inspiration of the Holy Spirit to practise virginity, is a first-fruit of the New Testament, which will establish the excellence of virginity over marriage while not taking from the holiness of the married state, which it raises to the level of a sacrament (cf. "Gaudium Et Spes", 48).
35. The "shadow" is a symbol of the presence of God. When Israel was journeying through the wilderness, the glory of God filled the Tabernacle and a cloud covered the Ark of the Covenant (Exodus 40:34-36). And when God gave Moses the tablets of the Law, a cloud covered Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:15-16); and also, at the Transfiguration of Jesus the voice of God the Father was heard coming out of a cloud (Luke 9:35).
At the moment of the Incarnation the power of God envelops our Lady -- an expression of God's omnipotence. The Spirit of God--which, according to the account in Genesis (1:2), moved over the face of the waters, bringing things to life -- now comes down on Mary. And the fruit of her womb will be the work of the Holy Spirit. The Virgin Mary, who herself was conceived without any stain of sin (cf. Pius IX, "Ineffabilis Deus") becomes, after the Incarnation, a new tabernacle of God. This is the mystery we recall every day when saying the Angelus.
38. Once she learns of God's plan, our Lady yields to God's will with prompt obedience, unreservedly. She realizes the disproportion between what she is going to become--the Mother of God--and what she is--a woman. However, this is what God wants to happen and for Him nothing is impossible; therefore no one should stand in His way. So Mary, combining humility and obedience, responds perfectly to God's call: "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done according to your word."
"At the enchantment of this virginal phrase, the Word became flesh" (St. J. Escriva, "Holy Rosary", first joyful mystery). From the pure body of Mary, God shaped a new body, He created a soul out of nothing, and the Son of God united Himself with this body and soul: prior to this He was only God; now He is still God but also man. Mary is now the Mother of God. This truth is a dogma of faith, first defined by the Council of Ephesus (431). At this point she also begins to be the spiritual Mother of all mankind. What Christ says when He is dying--'Behold, your son..., behold, your mother" (John 19:26-27)--simply promulgates what came about silently at Nazareth. "With her generous 'fiat' (Mary) became, through the working of the Spirit, the Mother of God, but also the Mother of the living, and, by receiving into her womb the one Mediator, she became the true Ark of the Covenant and true Temple of God" (Paul VI, "Marialis Cultus", 6).
The Annunciation shows us the Blessed Virgin as perfect model of "purity" (the RSV "I have no husband" is a euphemism); of "humility" ("Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord"); of "candor" and "simplicity" ("How can this be?"); of "obedience" and "lively faith" ("Let it be done to me according to your word"). "Following her example of obedience to God, we can learn to serve delicately without being slavish. In Mary, we don't find the slightest trace of the attitude of the foolish virgins, who obey, but thoughtlessly. Our Lady listens attentively to what God wants, ponders what she doesn't fully understand and asks about what she doesn't know. Then she gives herself completely to doing the divine will: 'Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word'. Isn't that marvellous? The Blessed Virgin, our teacher in all we do, shows us here that obedience to God is not servile, does not bypass our conscience. We should be inwardly moved to discover the 'freedom of the children of God' (cf. Romans 8: 21)" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 173).
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
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