His Word Today: Fiat

Good morning everyone,

Today, the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord.  Solemnities are the highest level of celebration accorded by the Church.  In this case, the event that is being celebrated is the apparition of the angel Gabriel to the young virgin of Nazareth whose name was Mary (cf Lk 1:26-27).  Mary was a very young girl - some say as young as 14 years old - but already she had been betrothed to Joseph.  Plans had been made for her future, but then God sent his messenger to share a surprise with her, a modification of her own plan: a divine plan that had been put in place a long time ago, one of which she was totally unaware.

From a human point of view, it seems that God reveals plans to us from time to time that bring about changes in our own plans, but in the grand scheme of things, perhaps it is the case that God's plans were made long before we were around.  When these plans are revealed to us, they appear to be surprising, but often, when we look back at the way things have worked out, especially if we see these things through the lens of faith, we understand that what first appeared as a surprise was always part of a much larger plan, and we are merely the instruments through which our God continues to carry out his eternal design.

Some of the details of the conversation that took place between Mary and the angel are recounted in Saint Luke's telling (cf Lk 1:28-35; 38).  Mary's questions are asked from a human point of view, but the angel's explanations point out a plan that is far beyond the scope of any human reasoning.  When we realize the short-sightedness of human reasoning compared to the wisdom of God, it is very difficult to contradict it.  Rather, we must pray for the grace to accept the eternal plan and surrender our will into the hands of our loving God who is much wiser than we could ever hope to be.  If we can find it in our hearts to repeat Mary's fiat, the immediate reward is an awesome knowledge of freedom and a sense that we are cooperating with His divine plan.

Have a great day.