Gabriel Interventions

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. (Luke 1:26-38)

This Gospel reading is not primarily a story about Mary.  It is about God’s intervention in human affairs and the need for us to recognize those Godly actions.   Of course, it is often impossible to know God’s intent even when we suspect an intervention.  We are unsure of what God wants.  

According to Luke, Mary conversed with the angel Gabriel.  She ended that exchange with “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”  Mary gives us guidance.  At every Mass we hear the Gospel reading concluded with “The word of the Lord.”  Our response is: “Thanks be to God.”  Therefore, we all must try to behave according to the word we just heard, like Mary, meaning we must believe and act like nothing is impossible for God.  

As willing servants, we enable God’s intervention in human affairs through love, justice, and compassion.  The truth is we don’t always.  Let us be careful our actions don’t force our angels to depart from us.  We need those Gabriel's in our lives especially when we are troubled, like Mary.

Deacon David Pierce