If my mother was alive today, it would be her 83^rd Birthday. It is not just because of her birthday that I am reminded of her today, but her first names were Norah Annunicata.

She was given the name Annunicata, as she was born on the feast day of the Annunciation. Today.

My mother was taken home to God 24 years ago. She was a simple and prayerful woman, born in Limerick and like many others had to leave the country to find work.

Annunicata is an Italian name that means announcement.

While that date represents a lot to me personally, the date means even more to us collectively as Christians. The date today is exactly nine months before Christmas Day, the birthday of our Lord. Mary is given explicit instructions by the Angel Gabriel during this momentous event.

Imagine an angel coming to visit a young Jewish girl and announcing” Hail, full of Grace! The Lord is with you.”

When Gabriel said this, he did not just mean, the Lord is with you, he meant, the Lord IS with you! She now is carrying the most precious cargo of all time.

Gabriel goes on to ensure that Mary understands that this will be no ordinary child and she has been selected for no ordinary mission. He tells Mary to name him Jesus, which in Hebrew means “God saves”.

Jesus is the savior promised in the Old Testament reading this morning from Isiah, and Mary is the Ark of the New Covenant, there to carry and care for Him right to the end of his mission.

Even His name tells us how important this is, with his identity revealed as God, and his mission to save mankind from sin.

The name of Jesus is at the heart of our Christian prayer. All liturgical prayers conclude with the words “through our Lord Jesus Christ”. The Hail Mary reaches its high point in the words “blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.” The Eastern prayer of the heart, the Jesus prayer, says: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Many Christians, such as St. Joan of Arc, have died with the one word “Jesus” on their lips.

My personal centering prayer consists only of the words “I love you Lord Jesus”. We cannot say it enough in our lives, as each time we remind ourselves in our heart of his love, his mission, his name. Like a little signature on our heart each time it is repeated.

Gabriel then continued to describe in detail what was going to happen to Mary.

Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,”

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.”

Can you imagine being there when Mary heard these words? While she knew she did not have relations with a man, she didn’t understand how she was going to be bearing a child.

Then, as she is told the Holy Spirit will come upon her, and she will be with child.

What is so amazing in these few lines of the Gospel, describing how Mary is being selected amongst all women for this role, that the whole of salvation history is unfolding before her eyes.

The promised of the Old Testament are being fulfilled.

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!”

What more perfect love could be given us, than God coming among us himself. Not only to redeem, but to instruct, to teach, to love in a new way, the way of forgiveness, the way of compassion, the way of enduring and everlasting love.

Here Mary listens, asks a simple question and then accepts fully the task given her.

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.

Could there not be a more perfect model for us to follow than Mary herself. Selfless in nature, ready to do God’s will, without further question, just following the instructions of God with a totally pure and ready heart.

God could have redeemed us in any way he wanted, but what could have been more purposeful, meaningful, loving than the path he took and presented Mary to us as a model to follow in our own lives.

Let us hope that we grow in nature more like her each day, to accept whatever is asked of us, and to do His will.

 

The readings this morning remind me of a recent discussion at St. John’s Seminary in Boston on the topic of sacramentals. Todays readings show how God directly in the Gospel, and indirectly in the reading from Kings calls us to be a sacramental.

What is a sacramental?

I recently had the pleasure of visiting my daughter in Washington, D.C. prior to the birth of her first child. Our family attended Mass together at St. Peter’s, a Catholic Church on Capitol Hill.

As if on cue for this course, the priest spoke about the Church and its position in Washington. Initially, he talked of its geographic position, situated high on Capitol Hill, near the seat of the US Government, the most powerful nation in the world. Then he talked of the bell tower of the Church, audibly announcing forthcoming services and sacraments to the surrounding community. Yet, when he arrived at the parish he felt something was missing. Looking up one day at the bell tower, he realized what it was. A light.

The Church was in a great position of visibility, yet it was invisible as soon as darkness fell, hidden amongst the street lights and activities of the area.

A fundraising effort ensued and within a short period of time a light was installed in the bell tower. One that was not just bright enough for it to be seen from the streets of Washington DC and the government buildings, but one of the first things that arriving passengers would see on an airborne approach to the Washington DC National airport.

What the priest was getting at was that not only had the light on the top of the Church become a symbol, but it was a “sacred sign” a sacramental. Not a sacrament in itself, but if you like a guidepost that would lead others to the Church, which would lead them to Christ. Supporting our mission to save souls.

So the nature of a sacramental is invitational to bring someone into union with God. This light had changed its form from that of just being an illuminating device to one of an invitation to visit, to notice, to attend to God. The Church was the host of that invitation, and all the more meaningful because of the location of the Church, high on a hill in a city of great importance.

1670 of the catechism “Sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church’s prayer, they prepare us to receive grace and dispose us to cooperate with it.”

For well-disposed members of the faithful, the liturgy of the sacraments and sacramentals sanctifies almost every event of their lives with the divine grace which flows from the Paschal mystery of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Christ.

From this source all sacraments and sacramentals draw their power. There is scarcely any proper use of material things which cannot be thus directed toward the sanctification of men and the praise of God.” 1670 Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition.

Can I be a sacramental?

The real power of the homily continued to build on this theme, having established the light as a sacramental or invitational sign, the priest brought home a theme this class has been bringing to my mind. That each of us can be a sacramental.

The role of the Laity[1] is our invitation to sanctify the world, and to achieve this role we can do so by living our own life in everyday sanctification. There are so many ways to achieve this, it appears that Christ and his bride (the Church) has given us unlimited opportunities to achieve this through the graces of sacraments and opportunities to show His love for us.

In a book written by Fr. Mullady speaks to this in Light of the Nations though our role in marriage and our right as adults to teach children based on divine and natural law[2].

Each of us are given different charisms. We are expected to use these gifts for the glory of God, and to share them with others around us.

Consecration to God and the World

We are moved and called to consecrate our lives to the world through the Holy Spirit by carrying out the saving work of Christ[3]. If we consider the Church itself as a sacrament, we can consecrate ourselves to God and become a part of His grace that flows through the world[4].

“The Church’s true end is human interior perfection,[5]” which can only occur through the life of grace and can only be completed in the vision of God in heaven.

Our consecration means leaving our old self behind. In a way the Church’s ancient tradition of the anchorite is a model for us to retreat into a fulfilling interior life while at the same time being in pursuit of the common good as Blessed John Paul II recounts.

By using the ordinary virtues, we become part of the priesthood of the laity in pursuing holiness[6]. This is achieved by self-surrender to God and keeping the goals and missions of the Church aligned with those of society in our active engagement with the world.

By acting in this way, we become part of the Church; His bride doing the work intended here on earth. Recognizing the truth and acting upon the knowledge and wisdom contained within makes us a part of the sacramental Church.

This marks us a sacramental, an instrument to help others see the grace of God by doing His will, and at the same time deepening our own faith.

Our universal call is the act of the Church and we are the Church individually created to do this loving work. Pilgrims with our own light on that hill, lit up for others to see and share in His love.

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[1] Mullady, Brian. Light of the Nations, New Hope Publications, 2006. 87.

[2] Ibid. 93.

[3] Ibid., 90

[4] Ibid., 94

[5] Ibid., 106

[6] Ibid., 97