Reading I 2 Sm 7

Reading I
2 Sm 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16

When King David was settled in his palace,
and the LORD had given him rest from his enemies on every side,
he said to Nathan the prophet,
"Here I am living in a house of cedar,
while the ark of God dwells in a tent!"
Nathan answered the king,
"Go, do whatever you have in mind,
for the LORD is with you."
But that night the LORD spoke to Nathan and said:
"Go, tell my servant David, 'Thus says the LORD:
Should you build me a house to dwell in?'

"It was I who took you from the pasture
and from the care of the flock
to be commander of my people Israel.
I have been with you wherever you went,
and I have destroyed all your enemies before you.
And I will make you famous like the great ones of the earth.
I will fix a place for my people Israel;
I will plant them so that they may dwell in their place
without further disturbance.
Neither shall the wicked continue to afflict them as they did of old,
since the time I first appointed judges over my people Israel.
I will give you rest from all your enemies.
The LORD also reveals to you
that he will establish a house for you.
And when your time comes and you rest with your ancestors,
I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins,
and I will make his kingdom firm.
I will be a father to him,
and he shall be a son to me.
Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me;
your throne shall stand firm forever."

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 89:2-3, 4-5, 27, 29

R. (2a) Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
The promises of the LORD I will sing forever;
through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness.
For you have said, "My kindness is established forever";
in heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness.
R. Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
"I have made a covenant with my chosen one,
I have sworn to David my servant:
Forever will I confirm your posterity
and establish your throne for all generations."
R. Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
"He shall say of me, 'You are my father,
my God, the Rock, my savior.'
Forever I will maintain my kindness toward him,
and my covenant with him stands firm."
R. Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.

Reading II
Rom 16:25-27

Brothers and sisters:
To him who can strengthen you,
according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ,
according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret for long ages
but now manifested through the prophetic writings and,
according to the command of the eternal God,
made known to all nations to bring about the obedience of faith,
to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ
be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Gospel
Lk 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
"Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you."
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
"Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.

"Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
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."
But Mary said to the angel,
"How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?"
And the angel said to her in reply,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God."
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

COMMENTARY
The first reading verses from the Second Book of Samuel is fundamental in Israelite, Jewish, and Christian royal messianism. The prophet Nathan, who is mentioned elsewhere only where Bathsheba and Solomon appear, is part of the dynasty theme. That the Lord does not communicate directly with David but through Nathan underlines the continued importance of prophecy in relation to the monarchy. The Lord himself will build a house for David, a house in the sense of dynasty, one that will rule forever.

Paul blesses God in his letter, who assures the gospel of Christ to human beings and also constancy in Christian life. "Gospel" refers to the good news that Paul makes known. "Preaching of Jesus Christ" is the proclamation that announces Christ Jesus. "According to the revelation of the mystery": Paul is expressing his theology that Old Testament apocalyptic writings bear witness to Christ. This is the climax of Paul's doxology (hymn of praise) to God the Father, through his Son Jesus Christ.

Luke's Gospel narrative of the Annunciation presents Mary's conception as virginal and through the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is Son of the Most High, occupant of the throne of David, whose reign will not end. John the Baptist's birth may have been extraordinary because he is born to aged parents; Jesus' is more extraordinary still because he is born to a virgin. The faith of Mary is highlighted - she is the model believer. Luke gives us several names: Joseph means "May Yahweh add"; Mary means "Excellence"; and, Jesus means "God saves". Of all the names given to Mary, "Full of Grace" is the most significant. Mary of Nazareth is the model believer and slave who responds wholeheartedly to God's plan.

REFLECTION
Today's readings bring us the expectation that soon God will fulfill his promise of salvation. The words uttered by the prophet Nathan so many years ago will become a reality in the womb of an unknown maiden named Mary from an obscure village called Nazareth. It is here that God choose to take upon himself our humanity, to become one with his creation.

Mary, like many a young Israelite woman, lived a life of obscurity. Had it not been for the few times she is mentioned in Sacred Scripture (the Gospels to be exact) nothing would be known of her. Indeed, Mary was known only to God. Her entire life is a mystery, yet she is without a doubt the Almighty's greatest work of creation. God rests in Mary with greater joy than anywhere else. We read in Genesis that God planted a garden so that man could live, but I tell you that he created Mary so that through her, salvation may come to man; because in her, God would take upon himself our humanity. The Almighty so loved Mary that all that Jesus is, his flesh, his blood - his entire human nature comes from Mary alone. To know Mary is to know Jesus; and if we do not know the real Jesus perhaps it is because we do not know Mary. How great must God's work in Mary be when she, the most humble of all creatures exclaims "The Mighty One has done great things for me!"

Only through Mary does God give us his Only Begotten Son. Many people will give greater glory to the patriarchs and prophets of Israel who, for four thousand years pleaded with God for a savior. Yet only Mary found favor with God and only through Mary did God give us his Son. The Holy Spirit formed Jesus within Mary's womb only after her consent to do so. God the Son descended as a new Adam into Mary's virginal womb - into this new paradise to give life to a new world - a new creation brought forth from Mary's humbleness. By submitting himself to Mary, God's Only Begotten Son was exulted.

For thirty years our Lord's life was molded by Mary - first in her womb, then as a child, and finally as a man whose fidelity would bring redemption to all creation. Through Mary, Jesus was cared for, fed, instructed, and sacrificed; and through his submission to Mary greater glory was given to God than all the miracles he performed.

Jesus' great works begin with Mary. Through Mary's word and presence, St. John the Baptist was sanctified. At the moment she greets her cousin, the child in Elizabeth's womb leapt with joy because the grace conceived in Mary's womb was given for the first time; and at Mary's humble petition, Jesus blesses a marriage by changing water into wine; the first of his public signs and the first miracle as relates to nature. Through Mary, he continues to work wonders until the end of time.

In the same way that God the Father and Creator gathered the waters and called them "seas", he also gathered all that is precious, all that is splendid and beautiful, all that is rare and called it Mary. Even his greatest treasure, his Only Begotten Son Jesus was contained in her, thereby making her the fountain by which we obtain everything from God - not because it was necessary for God to do this, but because it was his will that everything flow from Mary. Nothing comes to us unless it comes through Mary. Indeed even Jesus fulfills the plan of salvation by coming to us through Mary.

Biblical Sources: New American Bible; United States Conference of Catholic Bishops; Campbell, A.F., "Of Prophets and Kings"; Paula J. Bowes, The Collegeville Bible Commentary; Barrett, C.K., "A Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans"; Fitzmyer, J.A., "The Gospel According to Luke"; Karris, R.J., "Luke: Artist and Theologian"; LaVerdiere, E., "Luke"; Brown, Raymond E., S.S., "Introduction to the New Testament"; Brown, Fitzmyer, and Murphy (ed.) "The New Jerome Biblical Commentary.

Other Sources: St. Luis Maria Gringnion de Montfort, "Treatise on the True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin."

Reflection: Deacon Lazaro J. Ulloa