20 December - Season of Advent

If you were in Mary's shoes, and the angel Gabriel came to you to tell you that you would conceive and give birth to a son, how would you respond? Perhaps you might be excited, elated or happy and humbled to be given such honour and opportunity. Perhaps some locations of society today are more tolerant and understanding towards such a situation, and if you are in such a society, then you may experience less issues. But supposing you are in a place, like Mary, where becoming pregnant out of wedlock was unacceptable, or even a crime or a sin? How would you respond then?

In today's Gospel, the angel Gabriel told Mary that she would conceive and give birth to a son and his name would be Jesus. Certainly Mary would have been fearful of the consequence of having a child in this way, since she could be accused of adultery and stoned to death for becoming pregnant before marriage, as she was only betrothed and not yet married. But the angel assured her that God would take care of things and that nothing is impossible to God, since her kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month. When Mary heard these, she chose to have faith and trust in God and said: "I am the handmaid of the Lord, let what you have said be done to me."

What about us? Are we willing to put our trust and faith in God, no matter how difficult or challenging the situation may seem? Would we let God take care of things and continue to do His will? May we, like Mary, remain courageous and confident, and leave it in the hands of the Lord.

20 December - Season of Advent

Life can sometimes be full of uncertainty, especially when an important or significant event is taking place. For example, a woman who discovers that she is pregnant could be full of hope and doubt at the same time, since she would be concerned about things like whether the foetus would be able to be carried to term, whether the baby born would be healthy, and other concerns which may crop up. Some people would continue to place their hope and trust in God, knowing that He would take care of things. Others may begin to doubt whether God would help, and may turn to other forms of help, only to discover that these other forms are not really helping. As Christians, how do we handle such uncertain or doubtful situations?

In today's Gospel, the angel Gabriel told Mary that she would conceive and give birth to a son and his name would be Jesus. Certainly Mary would have been fearful of the consequence of having a child in this way, since she could be accused of adultery and stoned to death for becoming pregnant before marriage, as she was only betrothed and not yet married. But the angel assured her that God would take care of things and that nothing is impossible to God, since her kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month. When Mary heard these, she chose to have faith and trust in God and said: "I am the handmaid of the Lord, let what you have said be done to me."

What about us? Are we willing to put our trust and faith in God, no matter how difficult or challenging the situation may seem? Would we let God take care of things and continue to do His will? May we, like Mary, remain courageous and confident, and do our best, and then leave it in the hands of the Lord.

20 December - Season of Advent

If Zechariah is an example of doubt, even when a message is given by an angel, in today's Gospel, we see an example of trust and total dependence on God. Mary did ask the angel Gabriel: "But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?" The difference here is that Mary accepted and believed in the angel's message by responding: "I am the handmaid of the Lord, let what you have said be done to me."

Supposing we received a message from an angel, would we unreservedly and willingly accept and act on the message? Or would we allow doubt to take over?