Second Week of Advent
Advent – A Marian Time
According to the joint work entitled Mary: The Church at the Source, then Cardinal Ratzinger and Hans Urs von Balthasar provide two theological essays detailing Mary as both the embodiment of the Church and the Mother who co-operates in giving birth to the Church in the souls of believers. Advent is a Marian time in many ways. It is the season in which Mary made room in her womb for the world’s Redeemer and bore the expectation and hope of humanity. To celebrate Advent means to become Marian, to enter into that communion with Mary’s fiat or yes which, ever anew, makes room for God’s birth in the fullness of time. Mary also occupies an important place in Orthodox churches, where she is known as Theotokos, or “God-bearer.” In addition to Marian references in eastern liturgies and prayers throughout the year, three of the Twelve Great Orthodox Feasts commemorate events in Mary’s life: her birth, the first great feast of the year, on September 8; her presentation in the Temple, on November 21; and her death or Koimesis, or Mary’s Dormition in Western thought, derived from the expression in regard to her falling asleep taking place on August 15, near the close of the Orthodox liturgical year.
Two Marian Feasts
Though usually observed on December 8, this year the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary is transferred to Monday, December 9. It marks the day when the future Mother of God was conceived in the womb of her mother, Saint Ann. The day marks an expression of thanks to God for preserving Mary from the stain of Original Sin from the first moment of her conception. This special privilege made her a worthy dwelling place for Jesus to assume human nature from her and gives a hopeful example of what God’s grace is meant to magnify in each of us. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains the significance of this unique blessing, “To become the mother of the Savior, Mary ‘was enriched by God with gifts appropriate to such a role.’ The angel Gabriel at the moment of the annunciation salutes her as ‘full of grace.’ In fact, in order for Mary to be able to give the free assent of her faith to the announcement of her vocation, it was necessary that she be wholly borne by God’s grace. Through the centuries the Church has become ever more aware that Mary, ‘full of grace’ through God, was redeemed from the moment of her conception. It was through prevenient grace (or the grace that preceded her existence) that Mary was kept free of the stain of original sin – a gift from God solely based on His divine will and His foresight of her role in salvation history.
Then, a few days later, on December 12, we celebrate the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, rejoicing that Our Blessed Mother appeared to Juan Diego and assured him of her motherly protection and assistance. As Patroness of all the Americas, we are drawn to Our Lady of Guadalupe and seek her guidance so that we, too, may be faithful disciples of her Son, Jesus.
Mary’s humble presence is situated at the center of the drama of Christ’s coming into the world. The last or Fourth Sunday of Advent is often identified as Mary Sunday with the Gospel of the Visitation. In Abraham Joshua Heschel’s work I Asked for Wonder, the late rabbi wrote, “God is not always silent, and man is not always blind. In every man’s life there are moments when there is a lifting of the veil at the horizon of the known, opening a sight of the eternal.” Mary’s visitation with Elizabeth is one of those veil-lifting moments that follows the earlier Annunciation of the angel Gabriel to the Mother of God.
In the Office of Readings on December 20, St. Bernard of Clairvaux offers a vivid meditation describing how all of Heaven and Earth anxiously awaited Mary’s reply at the moment of the Annunciation. Although Mary was free from original sin, she still had free will and the ability to say “no” to God. However, we can imagine that after the Angel Gabriel relayed God’s mission and message to the Virgin Mary, she paused to consider everything in her heart. In the moment of silence before the Angel Gabriel, the tension of the moment is highlighted by St. Bernard in his meditation. He says, “We too are waiting, O Lady, for your word of compassion; the sentence of condemnation weighs heavily upon us.” The meditation ends with the triumph of Mary’s fiat, that is, her surrender to God in declaring, “May it be done to me according to your word.” (Lk. 1:38). Let us marvel by Mary’s response, her humility and willingness to freely participate in God’s plan for the world’s salvation.
http://www.occatholic.com. Joan Patten. “A Marian Approach to Advent.” 5 December 2023.
Nature and dignity 