``Where the
Bishop is, there let the multitude of believers be;
even as where Jesus is, there is the Catholic Church'' Ignatius of
Antioch, 1st c. A.D
Feast of the Annunciation
(Lady Day)
Exactly nine
months to the day before the Feast of the
Nativity, we celebrate the annunciation that the angel -- the archangel -- Gabriel
makes to Mary. Mystical
significance is given to this date by Jacobus de Voragine, Archbishop
of Genoa in his "Golden Legend" written in 1275:
This blessed
Annunciation happened the twentyfifth day of the month of March, on
which day happened also, as well tofore as after, these things that
hereafter be named. On that same day Adam, the first man, was created
and fell into original sin by inobedience, and was put out of paradise
terrestrial. After, the angel showed the conception of our Lord to the
glorious Virgin Mary. Also that same day of the month Cain slew Abel
his brother. Also Melchisedech made offering to God of bread and wine
in the presence of Abraham. Also on the same day Abraham offered Isaac
his son. That same day St. John Baptist was beheaded, and St. Peter was
that day delivered out of prison, and St. James the more, that day
beheaded of Herod. And our Lord Jesu Christ was on that day crucified,
wherefore that is a day of great reverence.
It was this day
on which Gabriel announced that Our Lord would enter the world. Most
likely, He was conceived by the Holy Ghost and the Virgin Mary after a novena of days, on 3 April, which is the most
likely date of the Crucifixion as well (in A.D. 33). It must be
remembered that it was at His conception, not Christmas, that Christ
came to the
world, as a baby inside Mary's womb; today is the feast of the
announcing of that glorious Incarnation! The Gospel reading today is
that of Luke:
Luke 1:26-38:
And in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city
of Galilee, called Nazareth, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name
was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the
Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. Who having heard, was
troubled at his saying and thought with herself what manner of
salutation this should be.
And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace
with God. Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb and shalt bring forth
a son: and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great and shall
be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God shall give unto
him the throne of David his father: and he shall reign in the house of
Jacob for ever. And of his kingdom there shall be no end.
And Mary said to the angel: How shall this be done, because I know not
man?
And the angel answering, said to her: The Holy Ghost shall come upon
thee, and the power of the most High shall overshadow thee. And
therefore also the Holy which shall be born of thee shall be called the
Son of God. And behold thy cousin Elizabeth, she also hath conceived a
son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her that is called
barren: Because no word shall be impossible with God.
And Mary said: Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me
according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.
Our Lady uttered
her fiat -- her words "Let it be done to me according to thy word" --
and the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity condescended to take on
a human nature and become man. God became man! Father Alban
Butler writes in his "Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other
Principle Saints" (1864) these beautiful words to indicate the import
of Mary's "yes":
The world, as
heaven had decreed, was not to have a Saviour till she had given her
consent to the angel's proposal; she gives it, and behold the power and
efficacy of her submissive fiat! That moment, the mystery of love and
mercy promised to mankind four thousand years before, foretold by so
many Prophets, desired by so many Saints, is wrought on earth. That
moment, the Word of God is for ever united to humanity; the Soul of
Jesus Christ, produced from nothing, begins to enjoy God, and to know
all things past, present, and to come: that moment, God begins to have
an adorer who is infinite, and the world a mediator who is omnipotent;
and, to the working of this great Mystery, Mary alone is chosen to
co-operate by her free assent. The prophets represent the earth as
moved out of its place, and the mountains as melting away before the
very Countenance of God looking down upon the world. Now that He
descends in person, who would not expect that the whole heavens should
be moved?
Yes, the whole
heavens were moved, and we Catholics are moved yet, honoring Christ's
Incarnation at each and every Mass when we kneel in gratitude during
the Creed, at the words "Et homo factus est" ("And became man"). Angelus Bells at one time (and still in some
places) reminded us three times a day -- morning, noon, and evening --
of St. Gabriel's announcement, Mary's fiat, and the Creator of the Sun
and Moon and Stars deigning to take on a human nature, all according to
prophecy:
Isaias 7:13-15:
...Hear ye therefore, O house of David: Is it a small thing for you to
be grievous to men, that you are grievous to my God also? Therefore the
Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold a virgin shall conceive, and
bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel. He shall eat butter
and honey, that he may know to refuse the evil, and to choose the good.
Isaias 11:1
And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse [David's
father], and a flower shall rise up out of his root.
It is through
Our Lady that the Ancient of Days sprang from the root of Jesse according to the
flesh, thereby restoring the Davidic Kingdom and coming to reign as
King of Kings from the Heavenly Jerusalem.1
Tertullian (b. c. 160) writes of the significance of Mary's heritage
when arguing against those who denied Christ's human nature:
Now, since He is
the blossom of the stem which sprouts from the root of Jesse; since,
moreover, the root of Jesse is the family of David, and the stem of the
root is Mary descended from David, and the blossom of the stem is
Mary's son, who is called Jesus Christ, will not He also be the fruit?
For the blossom is the fruit, because through the blossom and from the
blossom every product advances from its rudimental condition to perfect
fruit. What then? They, deny to the fruit its blossom, and to the
blossom its stem, and to the stem its root; so that the root fails to
secures for itself, by means of the stem, that special product which
comes from the stem, even the blossom and the fruit; for every step
indeed in a genealogy is traced from the latest up to the first, so
that it is now a well-known fact that the flesh of Christ is
inseparable, not merely from Mary, but also from David through Mary,
and from Jesse through David. "This fruit," therefore, "of David's
loins," that is to say, of his posterity in the flesh, God swears to
him that "He will raise up to sit upon his throne." If "of David's
loins," how much rather is He of Mary's loins, by virtue of whom He is
in "the loins of David?"
St. Augustine
(b. 354), in his first sermon on the New Testament, explains what Our
Lord's being born of a woman teaches about the dignity of women:
But now, would
He have been any less a man, if He had not been born of the Virgin
Mary" one may say. "He willed to be a man; well and good; He might have
so been, and yet not be born of a woman; for neither did He make the
first man whom He made, of a woman."
Now see what answer I make to this. You say, Why did He choose to be
born of a woman? I answer, Why should He avoid being born of a woman?
Granted that I could not show that He chose to be born of a woman; do
you show why He need have avoided it. But I have already said at other
times, that if He had avoided the womb of a woman, it might have
betokened, as it were, that He could have contracted defilement from
her; but by how much He was in His own substance more incapable of
defilement, by so much less had He cause to fear the woman's womb, as
though He could contract defilement from it.
But by being born of a woman, He purposed to show to us some high
mystery. For of a truth, brethren, we grant too, that if the Lord had
willed to become man without being born of a woman, it were easy to His
sovereign Majesty. For as He could be born of a woman without a man, so
could He also have been born without the woman. But this hath He shown
us, that mankind of neither sex might despair of its salvation, for the
human sexes are male and female. If therefore being a man, which it
behoved Him assuredly to be, He had not been born of a woman, women
might have despaired of themselves, as mindful of their first sin,
because by a woman was the first man deceived, and would have thought
that they had no hope at all in Christ.
He came therefore as a man to make special choice of that sex, and was
born of a woman to console the female sex, as though He would address
them and say; "That ye may know that no creature of God is bad, but
that unregulated pleasure perverteth it, when in the beginning I made
man, I made them male and female. I do not condemn the creature which I
made. See I have been born a Man, and born of a woman; it is not then
the creature which I made that I condemn, but the sins which I made
not."
Let each sex then at once see its honour, and confess its iniquity, and
let them both hope for salvation. The poison to deceive man was
presented him by woman, through woman let salvation for man's recovery
be presented; so let the woman make amends for the sin by which she
deceived the man, by giving birth to Christ. For the same reason again,
women were the first who announced to the Apostles the Resurrection of
God. The woman in Paradise announced death to her husband, and the
women in the Church announced salvation to the men; the Apostles were
to announce to the nations the Resurrection of Christ, the women
announced it to the Apostles. Let no one then reproach Christ with His
birth of a woman, by which sex the Deliverer could not be defiled, and
to which it was in the purpose of the Creator to do honour.
This parallel
between Eve and the Blessed Virgin is why Our Lady is referred to as
"the New Eve," as Christ is referred to as "the New Adam." St. Irenaeus
wrote in his Apology, Book II, Chapter XII:
Those,
therefore, who allege that He took nothing from the Virgin do greatly
err, since, in order that they may cast away the inheritance of the
flesh, they also reject the analogy between Him and Adam.... Wherefore
also Luke, commencing the genealogy with the Lord, carried it back to
Adam, indicating that it was He who regenerated them into the Gospel of
life, and not they Him. And thus also it was that the knot of Eve's
disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. For what the virgin
Eve had bound fast through unbelief, this did the virgin Mary set free
through faith.
Something for
you to keep in mind: note that St. Luke said that Mary was espoused to
-- that is, married to --
Joseph when Gabriel came to her. She was not "an unwed mother," as you
so often hear these days, apparently in some attempt to normalize unwed
motherhood, or to take the shame out of it ("Mary was an unwed mother,
so big deal!"). In Truth, though, Our Lady was married. Jewish marriage
at that time began with the betrothal, or kuddushin.
This was an exchange of marital vows and
signified the beginning of the marriage. After the kuddushin, the couple were taxed
together, referred to as man and wife, considered married by law in
terms of inheritance, etc., and they could only separate through divorce, and then only if the
marriage hadn't been consummated. But the couple did not live together
until months later, when they would have a celebration of their marriage vows,
at which point the groom would take his wife to their new home (called
"home-taking" or nisuin).
Anyway, as to depictions of Mary at the Annunciation, we read in
"Legends of the Madonna" (1895)
It is usual to
exhibit her as kneeling in prayer, or reading with a large book open on
a desk before her. St. Bernard says that she was studying the book of
the prophet Isaiah, and as she recited the verse, "Behold, a Virgin
shall conceive and bear a son," she thought within her heart, in her
great humility, "How blessed the woman of whom these words are written!
Would I might be but her handmaid to serve her, and allowed to kiss her
feet!" — when, in the same instant, the wondrous vision burst upon her,
and the holy prophecy was realized in herself.
Depictions of
the Annunciation also usually show St. Gabriel the Archangel handing
lilies to Our Lady. Mary is often represented by lilies, and the
Madonna Lily, named for her, is often called the Annunciation Lily in
honor of this Feast and is a perfect ornament for the day. The
Venerable Bede (A.D. 672-735) described the transluscent white petals
as symbolic of Mary's pure body, and the golden anthers as a symbol of
the glory of her soul when she was taken up to Heaven at the Assumption. This poetic
commentary 2 by Oscar Wilde
makes mention of the lily while describing the humility of the
Incarnation:
Ave Maria
Gratia Plena
By Oscar Wilde
Was this His coming! I had hoped to see
A scene of wondrous glory, as was told
Of some great God who in a rain of gold
Broke open bars and fell on Danaë ,
Or a dread vision as when Semele,
Sickening for love and unappeased desire,
Prayed to see God's clear body, and the fire
Caught her brown limbs and slew her utterly.
With such glad dreams I sought this holy place
And now with wondering eyes and heart I stand
Before this supreme mystery of Love:
Some kneeling girl with passionless pale face,
An angel with a lily in his hand
And over both the white wings of a dove.
And, finally,
there is the beautiful story about Gabriel's words to Our Lady, also
from "The Golden Legend" mentioned earlier:
Of the
salutation that the angel brought to the glorious Virgin, we read an
example of a noble knight which for to amend his life gave and rendered
himself into an abbey of Citeaux, and, forasmuch as he was no clerk,
there was assigned to him a master for to teach him, and to be with the
brethren clerks, but he could nothing learn in long time that he was
there save these two words: Ave Maria, which words he had so sore
imprinted in his heart that alway he had them in his mouth wheresomever
he was.
At last he died and was buried in the churchyard of the brethren. It
happed after, that upon the burials grew a right fair fleur-de-lis, and
in every flower was written in letters of gold: Ave Maria, of which
miracle all the brethren were amarvelled, and they did open the
sepulchre, and found that the root of this fleur-de-lis came out of the
mouth of the said knight, and anon they understood that our Lord would
have him honoured for the great devotion that he had to say these
words. Ave Maria.
Customs
There are few
special practices today that I know of, but, as with all Marian Feasts,
it is a good day to pray the Magnificat,
the Litany of Loreto, the Little Crown of the Blessed Virgin, the Akathistos Hymn to the Theotokos, the
Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary, etc. Know,
too, that because of the time of year this day comes, it is traditional
for those
in farming communities to pray special prayers for the success of this
year's crops. In that same vein, the planning and prayers for the
success of Mary Gardens are a natural
for today.
As to music, Bach wrote Wie Schön
Leuchtet Der Morgenstern (BWV1) for
the day:
The Annunciation is celebrated in a special way in Florence.In 1250,
the seven founders of the Servite Order built the Oratory of Cafaggio
there. It is now a basilica, and at its entrance is a very old
painting, one said to be a result of a miracle. The artist who painted
it was having some difficulty in portraying the Virgin when he fell
asleep only to wake up to find her depiction completed -- and utterly
beautiful. Ever since then, pilgrims
would come to honor the Virgin by visiting the miraculous painting.
Among those pilgrims have been St. Charles Borromeo, Pope Pius IX,
and St. Aloysius Gonzaga, who made his vows of perpetual
virginity before it. To this day, fairs are held in Florence on Our
Lady's Day.
In Naples, it is said that the Virgin walks about at night, feeding the
poor, orphans, and all who call on her -- so much so that she wears out
her shoes. The Basilica of the Santissima Annunziata Maggiore there
used to be a great orphanage run by nuns, and it was housed with a
great wheel -- la Ruota degli
Espositi, the Wheel of the Exposed, that is of babies who in
less Christian times would have been left to die exposed on rocks. From
outside the convent, babies who needed to be cared for were placed on
the wheel which, when turned, would carry him inside the convent where
he could be retrieved and loved by the nuns as best as they could. In
the basilica, a statue of the Virgin known as Madonna delle Scarpette (Madonna of
the Shoes) is venerated on this day (and on the Feast of the Assumption).
She has real hair, and is dressed in a beautiful white brocade dress
with gold threads and a blue cape -- but her gold satin shoes
mysteriously wear out and are replaced each year on this feast by the
nuns who tend to it. The worn-out shoes are loaned out to the very sick
to place under their pillows, and many miracles are said to have been
granted through this devotion. Grateful people who've been granted such
favors by God will leave shoes as an ex-voto
offering, with some women also leaving their hair at the foot of
the statue. [As a side note, there is a flower, Cypripedium calceolus, called
Lady's-slipper orchid after the Madonna's shoes]
It also used to be customary in Naples for married couples to refrain
from marital relations on the 25th of March. Why? Because it was said
that children born 9 months later, on Christmas Day, would become
witches if female, or werewolves if male. To assuage each other's
feelings, spouses would give each other a type of hard candy called franfellicco.
In Hertfordshire, England, the tradition is, or at least was, to
eat "Pope Ladies" -- little breads made in the shapes of women -- well,
the torso, arms, and heads of women.
Pope Ladies
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/4 c warm water
1 c sour cream
2 tbsp butter
8 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 egg
3 c flour, divided
1 egg for brushing
raisins for eyes
Dissolve yeast in water in mixing bowl and set aside.
Heat sour cream gently over very low heat just until it melts
and is slightly warm. Add the warm sour cream, butter, sugar, salt, one
egg and 1 cup of flour to yeast mixture and beat until smooth. Add
remaining 2 cups of flour and mix until dough comes away from the sides
of the bowl.
Knead about 10 minutes on a well-floured surface until
smooth.
Grease the mixing bowl, put dough back into it and turn once
so greased side is facing up. Cover tightly and put in a very warm
place to rise 1 hour. When dough has doubled in size, preheat your oven
to 375F, punch down your dough, and form the Pope Ladies:
To form the Ladies: Divide dough into 12 pieces.
Take one of the twelve pieces and divide in half again. Take one of
those halves and shape into an oval that's about 4" long and lay it on
your baking sheet so the tapered end points toward you. This will be
the Lady's torso. Divide the
remaining half into half once more and with one half, form a long rope
about 4" long. Lay the rope in a U-shape at the fat end -- the top --
of the oval to
form the Lady's arms such that they hang downward or are folded on top
of the oval body. Take the remaining piece of dough and make a ball for
the
Lady's head. Place it above the arms, making sure the body, arms, and
head are all touching. Add two raisins for eyes, and pinch the
dough where the nose should be.
Repeat making Ladies from the remaining 11 pieces of dough,
keeping the Ladies spaced at least 3 inches apart on the baking sheet.
Cover and let them rest for about 30 minutes in a warm place.
Beat the remaining egg with a tablespoonful of water and brush over the
Ladies. Bake 12-15 minutes until golden brown. Eat them fresh out of
the oven.
Note that when Lady Day falls on Good Friday or during Holy
Week, it is
transferred to the
Monday
following Low Sunday (the Sunday
after Easter). English folk belief is
that the coincidence of the date of the Annunciation falling on Good
Friday is a bad sign, and that bad luck is sure
to follow it. The English say, "If Our Lord falls in Our Lady's lap,
England will meet with a great mishap."
When God turned back eternity and was young,
Ancient of Days, grown little for your mirth
(As under the low arch the land is bright)
Peered through you, gate of heaven—and saw the earth.
Or shutting out his shining skies awhile
Built you about him for a house of gold
To see in pictured walls his storied world
Return upon him as a tale is told.
Or found his mirror there; the only glass
That would not break with that unbearable light
Till in a corner of the high dark house
God looked on God, as ghosts meet in the night.
Star of his morning; that unfallen star
In that strange starry overturn of space
When earth and sky changed places for an hour
And heaven looked upwards in a human face.
Or young on your strong knees and lifted up
Wisdom cried out, whose voice is in the street,
And more than twilight of twiformed cherubim
Made of his throne indeed a mercy-seat.
Or risen from play at your pale raiment's hem
God, grown adventurous from all time's repose,
Or your tall body climbed the ivory tower
And kissed upon your mouth the mystic rose.
Psalm 44
Unto the end, for them that shall be changed, for the sons of Core, for
understanding. A canticle for the Beloved. My heart hath uttered
a
good word: I speak my works to the king; My tongue is the pen of a
scrivener that writeth swiftly. Thou art beautiful above the sons
of
men: grace is poured abroad in thy lips; therefore hath God blessed
thee for ever. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O thou most mighty. With
thy comeliness and thy beauty set out, proceed prosperously, and reign.
Because of truth and meekness and justice: and thy right hand shall
conduct thee wonderfully.
Thy arrows are sharp: under thee shall people fall, into the hearts of
the king's enemies. Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the
sceptre of thy kingdom is a sceptre of uprightness. Thou hast loved
justice, and hated iniquity: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee
with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. Myrrh and stacte and cassia
perfume thy garments, from the ivory houses: out of which the
daughters of kings have delighted thee in thy glory. The queen stood on
thy right hand, in gilded clothing; surrounded with variety.
Hearken, O daughter, and see, and incline thy ear: and forget thy
people and thy father's house. And the king shall greatly desire
thy
beauty; for he is the Lord thy God, and him they shall adore. And the
daughters of Tyre with gifts, yea, all the rich among the people, shall
entreat thy countenance. All the glory of the king's daughter is
within in golden borders, Clothed round about with varieties. After her
shall virgins be brought to the king: her neighbours shall be brought
to thee.
They shall be brought with gladness and rejoicing: they shall be
brought into the temple of the king. Instead of thy fathers, sons
are
born to thee: thou shalt make them princes over all the earth.
They
shall remember thy name throughout all generations. Therefore shall
people praise thee for ever; yea, for ever and ever.
Homily on the Annunciation to the Holy Virgin Mary
By St. Gregory Thaumaturgus (a.k.a. Gregory of Neocaesarea),
A.D. 213 - ca. 270 (excerpt)
Today are
strains of praise sung joyfully by the choir of angels, and the light
of the advent of Christ shines brightly upon the faithful.
Today is the glad springtime to us, and Christ the Sun of righteousness
has beamed with clear light around us, and has illumined the minds of
the faithful.
Today is Adam made anew, and moves in the choir of angels, having
winged his way to heaven.
Today is the whole circle of the earth filled with joy, since the
sojourn of the Holy Spirit has been realized to men.
Today the grace of God and the hope of the unseen shine through all
wonders transcending imagination, and make the mystery that was kept
hid from eternity plainly discernible to us.
Today are woven the chaplets of never-fading virtue.
Today, God, willing to crown the sacred heads of those whose pleasure
is to hearken to Him, and who delight in His festivals, invites the
lovers of unswerving faith as His called and His heirs; and the
heavenly kingdom is urgent to summon those who mind celestial things to
join the divine service of the incorporeal choirs.
Today is fulfilled the word of David, "Let the heavens rejoice, and let
the earth be glad. The fields shall be joyful, and all the trees of the
wood before the Lord, because He cometh." David thus made mention of
the trees; and the Lord's forerunner also spoke of them as trees "that
should bring forth fruits meet for repentance," or rather for the
coming of the Lord. But our Lord Jesus Christ promises perpetual
gladness to all those who believe on Him. For He says, "I will see you,
and ye shall rejoice; and your joy no man taketh from you."
Today is the illustrious and ineffable mystery of Christians, who have
willingly set their hope like a seal upon Christ, plainly declared to
us.
Today did Gabriel, who stands by God, come to the pure virgin, bearing
to her the glad annunciation, "Hail, thou that art highly favoured! And
she cast in her mind what manner of salutation this might be. And the
angel immediately proceeded to say, The Lord is with thee: fear not,
Mary; for thou hast found favour with God. Behold, thou shalt conceive
in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call His name Jesus. He
shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the
Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David, and He
shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever: and of His kingdom there
shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be,
seeing I know not a man? " Shall I still remain a virgin? is the honour
of virginity not then lost by me? And while she was yet in perplexity
as to these things, the angel placed shortly before her the summary of
his whole message, and said to the pure virgin, "The Holy Ghost shall
come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee;
therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be
called the Son of God." For what it is, that also shall it be called by
all means.
Meekly, then, did grace make election of the pure Mary alone out of all
generations. For she proved herself prudent truly in all things;
neither has any woman been born like her in all generations. She was
not like the primeval virgin Eve, who, keeping holiday alone in
paradise, with thoughtless mind, unguardedly hearkened to the word of
the serpent, the author of all evil, and thus became depraved in the
thoughts of her mind; and through her that deceiver, discharging his
poison and refusing death with it, brought it into the whole world; and
in virtue of this has arisen all the trouble of the saints.
But in the holy Virgin alone is the fall of that (first mother)
repaired. Yet was not this holy one competent to receive the gift until
she had first learned who it was that sent it, and what the gift was,
and who it was that conveyed it. While the holy one pondered these
things in perplexity with herself, she says to the angel, "Whence hast
thou brought to us the blessing in such wise? Out of what
treasure-stores is the pearl of the word despatched to us? Whence has
the gift acquired its purpose toward us? From heaven art thou come, yet
thou walkest upon earth! Thou dost exhibit the form of man, and (yet)
thou art glorious with dazzling light."
These things the holy one considered with herself, and the archangel
solved the difficulty expressed in such reasonings by saying to her:
"The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest
shall overshadow thee. Therefore also that holy thing which shall be
born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And fear not, Mary; for I
am not come to overpower thee with fear, but to repel the subject of
fear. Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favour with God. Question not
grace by the standard of nature. For grace does not endure to pass
under the laws of nature. Thou knowest, O Mary, things kept hid from
the patriarchs and prophets. Thou hast learned, O virgin, things which
were kept concealed till now from the angels. Thou hast heard, O purest
one, things of which even the choir of inspired men was never deemed
worthy. Moses, and David, and Isaiah, and Daniel, and all the prophets,
prophesied of Him; but the manner they knew not. Yet thou alone, O
purest virgin, art now made the recipient of things of which all these
were kept in ignorance, and thou dost learn the origin of them. For
where the Holy Spirit is, there are all things readily ordered. Where
divine grace is present, all things are found possible with God. The
Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall;
overshadow thee. Therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of
thee shall be called the Son of God." And if He is the Son of God, then
is He also God, of one form with the Father, and co-eternal; in Him the
Father possesses all manifestation; He is His image in the person, and
through His reflection the Father's glory shines forth. And as from the
ever-flowing fountain the streams proceed, so also from this
ever-flowing and ever-living fountain does the light of the world
proceed, the perennial and the true, namely Christ our God. For it is
of this that the prophets have preached: "The streams of the river make
glad the city of God."And not one city only, but all cities; for even
as it makes glad one city, so does it also the whole world.
Appropriately, therefore, did the angel say to Mary the holy virgin
first of all, "Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with
thee; "inasmuch as with her was laid up the full treasure of grace. For
of all generations she alone has risen as a virgin pure in body and in
spirit; and she alone bears Him who bears all things on His word. Nor
is it only the beauty of this holy one in body that calls forth our
admiration, but also the innate virtue of her soul. Wherefore also the
angels addressed her first with the salutation, "Hail, thou that art
highly favoured, the Lord is with thee, and no spouse of earth; "He
Himself is with thee who is the Lord of sanctification, the Father of
purity, the Author of incorruption, and the Bestower of liberty, the
Curator of salvation, and the Steward and Provider of the true peace,
who out of the virgin earth made man, and out of man's side formed Eve
in addition. Even this Lord is with thee, and on the other hand also is
of thee. Come, therefore, beloved brethren, and let us take up the
angelic strain, and to the utmost of our ability return the due meed of
praise, saying, "Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with
thee!" For it is thine truly to rejoice, seeing that the grace of God,
as he knows, has chosen to dwell with thee-the Lord of glory dwelling
with the handmaiden; "He that is fairer than the children of men " with
the fair virgin; He who sanctifies all things with the undefiled. God
is with thee, and with thee also is the perfect man in whom dwells the
whole fulness of the Godhead. Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the
fountain of the light that lightens all who believe upon Him! Hail,
thou that art highly favoured, the rising of the rational Sun, and the
undefiled flower of Life! Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the mead
of sweet savour! Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the ever-blooming
vine, that makes glad the souls of those who honour thee? Hail, thou
that art highly favoured!-the soil that, all untilled, bears bounteous
fruit: for thou hast brought forth in accordance with the law of nature
indeed, as it goes with us, and by the set time of practice, and yet in
a way beyond nature, or rather above nature, by reason that God the
Word from above took His abode in thee, and formed the new Adam in thy
holy womb, and inasmuch as the Holy Ghost gave the power of conception
to the holy virgin; and the reality of His body was assumed from her
body. And just as the pearl comes of the two natures, namely lightning
and water, the occult signs of the sea; so also our Lord Jesus Christ
proceeds, without fusion and without mutation, from the pure, and
chaste, and undefiled, and holy Virgin Mary; perfect in divinity and
perfect in humanity, in all things equal to the Father, and in all
things consubstantial with us, apart from sin.
Most of the holy fathers, and patriarchs, and prophets desired to see
Him, and to be eye-witnesses of Him, but did not attaint hereto. And
some of them by visions beheld Him in type, and darkly; others, again,
were privileged to hear the divine voice through the medium of the
cloud, and were favoured with sights of holy angels; but to Mary the
pure virgin alone did the archangel Gabriel manifest himself
luminously, bringing her the glad address, "Hail, thou that art highly
favoured!"
And thus she received the word, and in the due time of the fulfilment
according to the body's course she brought forth the priceless pearl.
Come, then, ye too, dearly beloved, and let us chant the melody which
has been taught us by the inspired harp of David, and say, "Arise, O
Lord, into Thy rest; Thou, and the ark of Thy sanctuary." For the holy
Virgin is in truth an ark, wrought with gold both within and without,
that has received the whole treasury of the sanctuary. "Arise, O Lord,
into Thy rest." Arise, O Lord, out of the bosom of the Father, in order
that Thou mayest raise up the fallen race of the first-formed man.
Setting these things forth, David in prophecy said to the rod that was
to spring from himself, and to sprout into the flower of that beauteous
fruit, "Hearken, O daughter, and see, and incline thine ear, and forget
thine own people and thy father's house; so shall the King greatly
desire thy beauty: for He is the Lord thy God, and thou shalt worship
Him." Hearken, O daughter, to the things which were prophesied
beforetime of thee, in order that thou mayest also behold the things
themselves with the eyes of understanding. Hearken to me while I
announce things beforehand to thee, and hearken to the archangel who
declares expressly to thee the perfect mysteries.
Note: Today is also one of the 4 English "Quarter Days," days which
fall around the Equinoxes or Solstices and mark the beginnings of new
natural seasons (i.e., Spring, Summer, Winter, Fall) and which were
used in medieval times to mark "quarters" for legal purposes, such as
settling debts. The other days like this are: the Feast of St. John on
June 24, Michaelmas on September 29, and Christmas on December 25.
Footnotes: 1 St. Joseph was also of
the House of David, so Our Lord was of this House by the flesh through
Mary, and legally through St. Joseph's adopted fatherhood.
2
Danaë was a woman of Greek mythology who was locked away in
room to prevent any male offspring who, it was predicted, would kill
her father. Zeus entered her room as a shower of gold and impregnated
her, resulting in the birth of Perseus.
Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), by the way, always had a deep fascination for
the Catholic Church, and all throughout his life entertained the
possibility of conversion only to reject it. He eventually converted,
praise God, on his deathbed in Paris, and was conditionally baptized,
and then anointed, by a Passionist priest.
