Leave it with God!

The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary
December 8, 2014
At the time of her conception Mary received a blessing from the Lord and loving mercy from God her saviour.

First Reading: Genesis 3:9-15,20

After Adam had eaten of the tree the Lord God called to him. ‘Where are you?’ he asked. ‘I heard the sound of you in the garden;’ he replied ‘I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.’ ‘Who told you that you were naked?’ he asked ‘Have you been eating of the tree I forbade you to eat?’ The man replied, ‘It was the woman you put with me; she gave me the fruit, and I ate it.’ Then the Lord God asked the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’ The woman replied, ‘The serpent tempted me and I ate.’

  Then the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this,

‘Be accursed beyond all cattle,

all wild beasts.

You shall crawl on your belly and eat dust

every day of your life.

I will make you enemies of each other:

you and the woman,

your offspring and her offspring.

It will crush your head

and you will strike its heel.’

The man named his wife ‘Eve’ because she was the mother of all those who live.

Psalm: Psalm 97:1-4

Second Reading: Ephesians 1:3-6,11-12

Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

who has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings of heaven in Christ.

Before the world was made, he chose us, chose us in Christ,

to be holy and spotless, and to live through love in his presence,

determining that we should become his adopted sons, through Jesus Christ

for his own kind purposes,

to make us praise the glory of his grace,

his free gift to us in the Beloved,

And it is in him that we were claimed as God’s own,

chosen from the beginning,

under the predetermined plan of the one who guides all things

as he decides by his own will;

chosen to be,

for his greater glory,

the people who would put their hopes in Christ before he came.

Gospel: Luke 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. He went in and said to her, ‘Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.’ She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God’s favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?’ ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you’ the angel answered ‘and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God’ ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord,’ said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me.’ And the angel left her.

Reflection

By  Pietro S. Albano

These past few days I have been worried about the Philippines, especially those areas to be hit by typhoon Ruby.  I kept on telling my wife about this. At first she was just agreeing with my view, but last night, she told me "Daddy, it is beyond your control. All you can do now is to pray. Leave it with God!". 

Being in control has always been a temptation for man. Our first parents fell from that trap.  Then comes worrying. See how Adam and Eve reacted when God searched for them in the garden?

By God's grace, Mary's immaculate conception in the womb of her mother exempted her from falling into the same trap and from its ill effects.  Which is why she willingly accepted God's invite to be His mother. No ifs or buts. No craving for control. She represents "the people who would put their hopes in Christ before he came" (Ephesians 1:12).

Prayer

God our Father, cleanse our hearts from all that prevents us from trusting You.  Through the example and prayers of Mary Immaculate, may we always remember that nothing is impossible to You.  On her feast day today, we renew our trust in You! Amen.