Saint Gabriel

The angels call for our veneration and awe as part of God’s creation. Part of the destructive modernism of the 1970s included advice to Catholic school teachers that they should not talk to children about angels. This wrought lasting damage which continues to need rectifying. We should include in our prayers a heartfelt recourse to our own Guardian Angels.

The Archangel Gabriel “God is my strength” would be terrifying were he to appear to any of us. Our Lady was “troubled” at the word of Saint Gabriel and wondered at the manner of the salutation. Immediately, according to his mission, the awesome messenger explained himself. Modern retelling of the event is often reduced to the jejune “Mary said Yes to God”. In fact, she said “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word”. This conveys more accurately the flawless faith and trust of the Immaculata.

In the infinitely wise providence of the Father, we now know the structure of the event in even more detail. Our Lady’s response was the moment of the conception of the first cell of the body of the incarnate Word.

Today’s feast, and tomorrow’s celebration of the Annunciation are truly filled with awe, wonder, and joy for us. In our humble efforts to take into our tiny minds the greatness of what we celebrate, we beg for the grace to penetrate a little more towards the glory that we one day hope to know fully in the courts of the Most High.

PICTURE CREDIT: Wikimedia. The Annunciation c.1660 by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo. Public Domain.

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