Saturday of the Third Week of Advent

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“So has the Lord done for me at a time when he has seen fit …” – Luke 1:25

Hope: the virtue that permeates the season of Advent pervades the two stories presented in the liturgy today. Prior to the revelation of their pregnancies, both women, Manoah’s wife and Elizabeth, would not have had the certainty of the good news. Their time of waiting must have been long enough that their communities have already considered both barren.

The time of darkness and unknowing often seem unending. Most of us must feel this right now. But today, let us allow ourselves to be encouraged by the story of these two women: the story of the Lord coming into their lives at the time he sees fit.

Thus, we can pray in hope: come to save us without delay, O Root of Jesse’s stem, sign of God’s love for all his people.

Fr. Alvin Te, OFM

Franciscan Friar

Immaculate Conception Province New York