18. Third Wednesday of Advent

Meditations no. 18 (unofficial computer-aided translation)

Mary’s presence in Advent: specially chosen by God, she is our Mother and our Hope.

The prophets foretold that the Saviour would be born of the Virgin Mary. During Advent our eyes and hearts are fixed on Mary. Advent is a time of hope, and all the longings of the human race are centred on our Mother. The reason is quite simple: the Blessed Virgin was specially chosen by God. Looking down mercifully upon the world, his eyes fell upon Mary: As a lily among brambles, so is my love among maidens.

Chosen to bring light into the world, Mary conceived Jesus Christ by the action and grace of the Holy Spirit. Everything had been prepared from all eternity: the Incarnation of the Son of God, and the Mother who would bear him in her womb. God always had Mary in mind, right from the first, before the beginning of the earth. He filled her with grace, and called her to a unique level of sanctity and dignity. By raising her above the whole of creation, including the angels, he fills our hearts with confidence.

Referring to our Lady’s glorification in heaven, our Father wrote: All of this affects us directly, because this supernatural itinerary is the way we are to follow. Mary shows us that we can walk this path with confidence. She has preceded us on the way of imitating Christ; her glorification is the firm hope of our own salvation. For these reasons we call her spes nostra and causa nostrae laetitiae, our hope, cause of our joy.

We know from experience that if we fail to see ourselves as Mary’s children we will sooner or later be assailed by despair. But if we receive her as our Mother and Lady, we can rest assured that one day we will reach the happy end of our journey, where she awaits us. As we keep watch for the Saviour’s arrival, let us follow our Father’s recommendation: Turn to our Lady and ask her - as a token of her love for you - for the gift of contrition. Ask her to make you sorry, with a sorrow born of Love, for all your sins and for those of all men and women throughout the ages.

With that same disposition, be bold enough to add: “Mother, my life, my hope, lead me by the hand. And if there is anything in me displeasing to my Father God, grant that I may see it, so that, between the two of us, we may uproot it.”

And don’t be afraid to continue: “O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary, pray for me, that by fulfilling the most lovable will of your Son, I may be worthy to obtain and enjoy what our Lord Jesus has promised.”

Our Lady’s fiat, a model of faithfulness to God’s will; resolutions.

The angel Gabriel said to Mary, “Rejoice most highly favoured one! The Lord is with you. Of all women you are the most blessed.”

The Lady of the sweet name, Mary, is withdrawn in prayer. You are whatever you want to be in that house: a friend, a servant, an onlooker, a neighbour… I, at this moment, do not dare to be anything. I hide behind you. Full of awe, I contemplate the scene. How often we will continue to contemplate this scene, as we are doing right now! We don’t know what to admire most, and wish we had eyes for everything so as not to miss a single detail. We would like to make time stand still at this moment, and gather from Mary’s own lips her words which are so full of gentleness, humility and self-surrender. St Ambrose comments: First she hears the words, “The Holy Spirit shall come upon you.” And the moment she hears them, she believes: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done unto me according to your word.” Contemplate her humility and readiness to serve! Chosen to be the Mother of God, Mary proclaims herself to be his handmaid.

We in turn resolve to be humble and eager to obey whenever we are told something on God’s behalf, no matter how difficult or painful it may seem. We want to respond to God’s grace, which raises us up from our wretchedness, allows us to share in God’s life, and entrusts us with a wonderful mission on earth.

Contemplating our Lady’s obedience to God, we can learn to serve delicately without being slavish. In Mary we don’t find the slightest trace of the attitude of the foolish virgins, who obey, but thoughtlessly. Our Lady listens attentively to what God wants, ponders what she doesn’t fully understand and asks about what she doesn’t know. Then she gives herself completely to doing the divine will: Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to your word. Isn’t that marvellous? The Blessed Virgin, our teacher in all we do, shows us here that obedience to God is not servile, does not bypass our conscience. We should be inwardly moved to discover the freedom of the children of God.

Our Lady will help us prepare to receive Jesus.

Fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum, be it done unto me according to your word. At the enchantment of this virginal phrase, the Word was made flesh.

Mary’s Advent has begun. We keep her company, silently, without the sound of words, awed by the greatness of the mystery. Mary awaits the Child. Her dwelling place still re-echoes the Archangel’s message, and if we listen carefully we can hear her fiat a hundred times over. O Mother, my Mother! By that fiat of yours, “be it done”, you have made us brothers of God and heirs to his glory. Blessed are you!

We too want to repeat the same word many times each day. Mary’s calm and trusting response is an invitation to us to fulfil God’s will, to surrender our own wills, and to accept unreservedly all that God asks of us, cooperating with him generously. Fiat! - be it done!

I know you have good will, my children, our Father told us in a meditation, but I also know that good will alone is not enough. The lukewarm, those who don’t strive to grow in interior life, cool us down and are a hindrance to us, they get in our way. But a tender love for our Lady turns lukewarmness into fire.

Be pious, my dear children. From the moment you get up in the morning, lovingly say to our Lady the prayers I’m sure your mothers taught you. I like to say them slowly: Blessed be your purity… My Lady, my Mother… They are marvellous prayers. Say them as you are getting ready, until the moment comes to receive our Lord Jesus Christ, a prisoner of love in the tabernacle: imprisoned because he loves us.

By loving the Blessed Virgin you will learn to be contemplatives, and to act naturally and simply, without doing strange things. Be pious, and everything in your life will go well.

Strengthened by Mary’s humble self-surrender, we ask her help, as good children, so that when our Lord comes he may find our hearts completely ready and willing to receive his commands, counsels and suggestions. Let us place these resolutions at our Mother’s feet, whilst we keep her company during this brief time of Advent, which is our Lady’s joyful time of waiting.