Thursday of the Fourth Week of Advent

Today's Readings

St. Paul wrote these essential words " in the fullness of time God sent his son" (Galatians 4:4-5).

     Is there time with God, I think not. But with the human there is time and we measure our lives in the passing of time.

     We are at that place in our year where we are almost and yet not yet there the birth of the Messiah, Jesus-Emmanuel, God with us.

     For the last few days, and probably we have not yet noticed this, the days have been getting longer. Like grace which subtly enters

our lives it takes time to realized that we have been visited by this gift.  "In the fullness of time", one so pure, so holy, so wholesome 

appeared in human history. We call her Mary of Nazareth. How many other times, always present before God, was the invitation to

become the mother of the Messiah been offered to a maiden? Will we ever know?

     The Gospel for the mass today is the Magnificat. In Scripture studies it is generally accepted that Luke who recorded this had a

private conversation with Mary in which this invitation from The Creator through the message of the angel Gabriel was uttered, and

Mary said yes. 

     There is in Italy, in the Sanctuary of LaVerna, a series of terra cotta pieces of baked clay with enamel painting generally in white

and blue of the life of Jesus.  My favorite is the one in which Gabriel greets Mary and invites her to accept the Father's invitation.

In the upper right hand corner of this masterpiece is a very apprehensive bust of the The Creator awaiting the hoped for response of

Mary.  I really love it and see it every time I visit that sanctuary. Mary said yes and it changed the world forever.

     St. Francis left a writing for his sisters and brothers with a poignant  statement of the reality and the fact that "daily 

we bring him to birth by our right living and our good works". If today you heard  God's invitation will you say yes?

Bro. Tom Barton, OSF
Franciscan Brothers of Brooklyn