would still be my godchild! It is with great joy I present to you Rose Therese.
In the midst of all of the new challenges and adjustments God grace is present. In a very small liturgy, Rose was baptized and her sister Grace received her first holy communion. Great gifts…great grace…great joy…even celebrated by proxy! Can’t wait to hold you Rose.
Today, Catholics celebrate and remember another rose. Mary, the mother of Jesus is the mystical Rose. Today is the Solemnity of the Annunciation. The angel Gabriel presents to Mary the plan of God. “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.”
This raised questions in Mary, of course…how can this be? Me? Why me? And it also raised courage grounded upon her faith in her God who made the promise. Her life experienced new challenges and adjustments, with out a doubt. Her she is, an engaged single now pregnant woman in a religiously legalistic society. A young woman, perhaps, telling a crazy story. I’m sure her new situation spread faster than a virus. But she said yes to all of it. Not to just the circumstances— they change—but to the reality. She was the mother of her savior. She was the Tabernacle of her Lord. She was her son’s best vessel: Mary the mystical Rose.
Our circumstances are temporary—whether it is a virus, or unemployment, or financial or relational…our circumstances change. But what does not change is reality. As people of faith we are called to live with courage because we are not alone. Like Mary, we are the Tabernacle of our Lord. We hold him within us—in order to present him to the world — as Good News. Remember what Mary did directly following this divine message? She went to visit her older cousin Elizabeth. She put her faith to action!
And this reflects the Good News… like donating blood, getting groceries for neighbors, making well-check phone calls, extending patience—EXTENDED GRACE…like a rose!
Read and reflect on: Luke 1:26-38
