Pope at Audience: Mary’s service reveals depths of hope in God
By Devin Watkins
Pope Francis focused his catechesis at the Wednesday General Audience on the Virgin Mary and how hope filled her life and animated her actions.
He reflected on the angel Gabriel’s annunciation to Mary that she would bear the Son of God.
In the village of Nazareth, a town in Israel never mentioned in the Old Testament, God’s messenger greets Mary with an unusual greeting—"Hail," “rejoice!”—which is used in Scripture to announce the coming of the Messiah to the Daughter of Zion.
“It is an invitation to the joy that the Lord addresses to His people when the exile ends and the Lord makes His living and active presence felt,” noted the Pope.
He added that the angel Gabriel also uses an endearing Greek term meaning “filled with divine grace,” which indicates that God has already dwelt in Mary’s heart for some time and will continue to do so.
“He says how ‘full of grace’ she is, and above all how God’s grace has accomplished in her an inner engraving, making her His masterpiece,” said the Pope.
Speaking off-the-cuff, Pope Francis noted that the angel reassured Mary not to be afraid. We, too, he added, must not fear the uncertainties of life, since the Lord walks with us.
Discerning movements of God in our heart
Pope Francis said the angel then announces Mary’s mission to be the mother of the long-awaited Messiah, who will be king in the “divine, spiritual manner.”
Jesus, he added, means “God saves,” offering an eternal reminder that only God has the power to save us.
Upon hearing Gabriel’s annunciation, Mary is shaken to the core by the invitation to bear God’s Son.
“As the intelligent woman she is, thus capable of reading into events,” said the Pope, “she tries to understand, to discern what is happening to her. Mary does not look outside, but within.”
In the depths of her heart, said Pope Francis, Mary is drawn to place her trust entirely in God.
Serving God, revealing His Son’s divinity
Mary’s trust in God, noted the Pope, reveals her desire to make room for God and take up “the greatest mission ever entrusted to a human being.
“She places herself in service,” he said. “She is full of all.”
In conclusion, Pope Francis invited the faithful to learn from Mary how to hope in God’s word, so that each of us may become hospitable homes where hope flourishes.
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