Mary's Advent

 

I've been wondering how Mary experienced Advent. And since writing helps me think, I started writing here. First, Mary had trust, and more than trust, faith in the words the angel communicated to her, words that came from God. She believed she would be the mother of Emmanuel, God with us. She believed and offered her fiat, which changed the course of history. So, to await Jesus, to await Christmas, we must first believe that God became man. And we must have trust in God despite everything. Mary trusted despite what her "yes" implied; she didn't stop to think about what would happen. She trusted and said "yes" to the Lord's will. Mary, the Virgin Mary, was not passive. Despite her pregnancy, she went to visit her cousin Elizabeth to help her. And she was able to transmit her joy to the baby in Elizabeth's womb. Likewise, we must not remain unmoved by the coming of Jesus. We must share our Christian joy with others, bring Jesus to those who need him, offer help, comfort, advice, and joy. It seems the Bible doesn't tell us much about Mary, but the angel called her "full of grace." Perhaps we won't reach Mary's level of grace, who was conceived without original sin, but we should still aspire to a state of grace to receive Jesus this Christmas. The purple color we see in churches this Advent season is a sign of penance. And many parishioners, as well as priests, often wear purple vestments to Mass. Let us then do penance for our sins, go to confession, and prepare ourselves to worthily receive Jesus this Christmas and celebrate his birth with renewed faith, joy, and acceptance of God's will, which at this time is that Jesus be born and remain in our hearts, not only during Christmas, but throughout our lives.