Elizabeth – Mary’s cousin – and Zechariah are of noble ancestry. They have spiritual nobility also, following in all of the commandments and ordinances of the old Law in such a way that they are righteous before God. Zechariah is a priest, moreover. He serves God in the Temple, at the centre of Jewish society and faith. His son John the Baptist will go out to the wilderness to preach, but his journey starts here [ … ]
As I reflect upon the Annunciation to Mary, I am filled with a sense of awe and wonder at the way God works in our lives. The story of the angel Gabriel appearing to Mary to announce that she will conceive and bear a son is a powerful reminder of God’s love and mercy, and of the miraculous ways in which He works in our lives [ … ]
Jesus invites us to a life of giving. Jesus declares for the Christian an end to egotism, that hoarding of self as of property which can so restrict our lives, distancing us from God and from our fellow human beings, ultimately from perfect happiness. Our happiness is to be found in the service of God, which is also the service of others. As we give our lives away in this sense, as we deny ourselves, so we grow in community as a Christian people [ … ]
