May Jesus Christ be praised and may his holy Mother pray for
us.
In the season of Advent we keep watch for the one who keeps
his promise. We prepare the way of the
Lord and we rejoice because the promise made to our fathers, the promise made
to Abraham and to his children forever, is being fulfilled. The promise is being fulfilled, and Mary, the
Virgin of Nazareth, believes the promise.
In the name of all creation, Mary believes the promise.
It was not the word of a prophet that Mary believed. It was not the voice crying out in the
wilderness. It was the voice of the
angel Gabriel, sent from heaven with the message of salvation. The angel Gabriel approached the holy Virgin
with reverence and revealed the invitation of the Most High God. The angel Gabriel revealed that the promise
of the Redeemer was being fulfilled. And
Mary believed the promise. She believed
the promise of God made in the Garden of Eden.
She believed in the promise of God made to the House of David. She believed in the promise of God that
brings liberty to captives, sight to the blind, and comfort to the
broken-hearted. She believed in the
promise that will set us free and that will make us whole.
Mary is the believer of the promise and Mary is the bearer of
the promise. Within her, the promise of
the Most High God dwells in hidden silence.
Within her, the union of God and man is present to the world and yet
veiled from sight. Within her, the power
that all creation cannot contain resides in an unborn child. Mary is the bearer of the promise. Mary is the Ark of the Covenant. King David did not build the house for the
Ark of God. God himself built the Ark of
the new Covenant in Mary. She is the
bearer of the promise of God. She is the
Ark of the New Covenant. Mary is the
first tabernacle and the first Church.
Consecrated at her conception, within Mary dwells the God who is worthy
of our worship, the High Priest who offers the acceptable sacrifice, and the
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. She is the bearer of the promise.
And so are we. We have
heard the promise. We have prepared the
way of the Lord and we have rejoiced in the salvation announced by our
God. We are believers in the promise
made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children forever. From generation to generation we have kept
watch and we have believed the promise.
From generation to generation, we have been made sharers in the
promise. We are bearers of the promise
of salvation because the Lord has chosen to dwell within us. He has claimed his place. He has consecrated his temple. Now, dear brothers and sisters, we await the
fulfillment of the promise. Amen.
Preached at Our Lady of Lourdes
Catholic Church, Monroe, NC
