Tag: Annunciation

March 25 ~ The Annunciation

The Annunciation | Luke 1:26-38

So much of our conversation regarding faith is centered on what each of us is doing about it. We are preoccupied with human liberty, some notion of “the individual,” and overly concerned with the subjective experience of God. We tend to want to play the leading role in the story, which we are writing, and we offer God a supporting role in a cast of thousands. We like to be in control of our universe.

The Annunciation is a reminder to me that what I'm doing about my faith is always in response to what God is first doing in my life, even when I'm not thinking of it in that way. God sent Gabriel to make an announcement to Mary about the role she would play in God's story, not to ask her to "volunteer." Like Mary, we are often perplexed when God enters our lives uninvited and calls us to do what seems humanly impossible.

Reflect with me on that thought today in pursuit of a more God-centered and objective life of faith.

St. Augustine was aware of the divine initiative when he wrote, “Thou didst strike on my heart with Thy word and I loved Thee.” – from Confessions (397-398 A.D.) If you know anything about Augustine's life, you know he started out as a very self-absorbed and strong-willed individual. It would take a major epiphany to get his attention. God's undeserved grace knocked on Augustine's heart and by God's grace he was able to love God in response.

C.S. Lewis offers this perspective:

Christianity “does not tell of a human search for God at all, but of something done by God for, to, and about Man. And the way in which it is done is selective, undemocratic, to the highest degree. After the knowledge of God had been universally lost or obscured, one man from the whole earth (Abraham) is picked out. He is separated (miserably enough, we may suppose) from his natural surroundings, sent into a strange country, and made the ancestor of a nation who are to carry the knowledge of the true God. Within this nation there is further selection: some die in the desert, some remain behind in Babylon. There is further selection still. The process grows narrower and narrower, sharpens at last into one small bright point like the head of a spear. It is a Jewish girl at her prayers. All humanity (so far as concerns its redemption) has narrowed to that” (Chapter 14, Miracles:A Preliminary Study, Harper Collins, 2001).

And, because I love the poetry and music of our faith so much, this 19th Century hymn comes to mind:

I sought the Lord, and afterward I knew
he moved my soul to seek him, seeking me;
it was not I that found, O Savior true;
no, I was found of thee.

Thou didst reach forth thy hand and mine enfold;
I walked and sank not on the storm-vexed sea;
'twas not so much that I on thee took hold,
as thou, dear Lord, on me.

I find, I walk, I love, but oh, the whole
of love is but my answer, Lord, to thee;
for thou wert long beforehand with my soul,
always thou lovedst me.

(Author: Jean Ingelow 1820-1897)

Maybe today would be a good day to say with Mary, “Let it be with me according to your word.”

Blessings,

The Very Reverend Ron Pogue
Interim Rector
St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church
Keller, Texas

March 25, 2021
The Annunciation

The Feast of the Annunciation (March 25) Luke 1:26-38

So much of our conversation regarding faith is centered on what each of us is doing about it. We are preoccupied with human liberty, some notion of “the individual,” and overly concerned with the subjective experience of God. We tend to want to play the leading role in the story, which we are writing, and we offer God a supporting role in a cast of thousands. We like to be in control of our universe.

The Annunciation is a reminder to me that what I'm doing about my faith is always in response to what God is first doing in my life, even when I'm not thinking of it in that way. God sent Gabriel to make an announcement to Mary about the role she would play in God's story, not to ask her to "volunteer." Like Mary, we are often perplexed when God enters our lives uninvited and calls us to do what seems humanly impossible. Reflect with me on that thought in pursuit of a more God-centered and objective life of faith.

St. Augustine was aware of the divine initiative when he wrote, “Thou didst strike on my heart with Thy word and I loved Thee.” – from Confessions (397-398 A.D.) If you know anything about Augustine's life, you know he started out as a very self-absorbed and strong-willed individual. It would take a major epiphany to get his attention. God's undeserved grace knocked on Augustine's heart and by God's grace he was able to love God in response.

C.S. Lewis offers this perspective:

Christianity “does not tell of a human search for God at all, but of something done by God for, to, and about Man. And the way in which it is done is selective, undemocratic, to the highest degree. After the knowledge of God had been universally lost or obscured, one man from the whole earth (Abraham) is picked out. He is separated (miserably enough, we may suppose) from his natural surroundings, sent into a strange country, and made the ancestor of a nation who are to carry the knowledge of the true God. Within this nation there is further selection: some die in the desert, some remain behind in Babylon. There is further selection still. The process grows narrower and narrower, sharpens at last into one small bright point like the head of a spear. It is a Jewish girl at her prayers. All humanity (so far as concerns its redemption) has narrowed to that” (Chapter 14, Miracles:A Preliminary Study, Harper Collins, 2001).

And, because I love the poetry and music of our faith so much, this 19th Century hymn comes to mind:

I sought the Lord, and afterward I knew
he moved my soul to seek him, seeking me;
it was not I that found, O Savior true;
no, I was found of thee.

Thou didst reach forth thy hand and mine enfold;
I walked and sank not on the storm-vexed sea;
'twas not so much that I on thee took hold,
as thou, dear Lord, on me.

I find, I walk, I love, but oh, the whole
of love is but my answer, Lord, to thee;
for thou wert long beforehand with my soul,
always thou lovedst me.

Maybe this would be a good day to say with Mary, “Let it be with me according to your word.”

I’ll see you in Church!

The Very Reverend Ronald D. Pogue
Interim Dean
St. Andrew’s Cathedral
Jackson, Mississippi

March 22, 2019
God Calling

Read the Gospel for the Fourth Sunday of Advent.

St. Bernard of Clairvaux once remarked that three miracles are reported in the story of the Annunciation:

That a virgin should conceive a child.

That God and humans should be united in the child.

That Mary should believe what had been announced to her.

Commenting on the three miracles, Martin Luther said that the first is a trifle for God, the second is greater, and the third, that Mary should believe that the first two miracles would be accomplished in and through her, is the greatest. God frequently wants to work miracles through us. If by some miracle we happen to be listening and hear the divine voice, will we believe it enough to "let it be?" Or, will we take a pass because it is too fantastic, an imposition, or something for which we are surely not worthy?

In the event God should get your attention and you are tempted to take a pass, remember that God's choice of people through whom to accomplish things leaves something to be desired by human standards. The biblical record alone shows that God prefers to work the greatest miracles through unlikely people, from unlikely places, at unlikely times, and in unlikely ways.

There's a reason angelic messengers usually begin by saying, "Don't be afraid." Next time, as unlikely as it may seem, it could be you! Whenever that happens, may faith conquer our fears and excuses so that Mary's prayer might be our own: "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word."

I’ll see you in Church!

P.S. Christmas Eve services are at 12:00 noon (St. John’s Chapel), 4:00, 6:00, and 10:00 p.m. (St John’s Church). The Christmas Day service is at 10:00 a.m. (St. John’s Chapel). Also, on Christmas Day, we will have TWO informal Carols and Candlelight services at the Chapel of the Transfiguration. I’ve arranged for the road to the chapel to be cleared so those who cannot get there on snowshoes or skis can drive in and walk a short distance. I suggest that those who intend to drive attend at 4:00 p.m. since last year the chapel was packed at 5:00 p.m. with people who were able to come by snowshoes or skis.

P.S.S. The Coptic icon depicting the Annunciation is the work of Dr. Stephane Rene.

December 17, 2015
Here am I…Let it be

I'm listening to the Beatles' song "Let it be" as I read Luke's account of the Angel Gabriel's announcement to the Blessed Virgin (Luke 1:26-38). The song tells us Mary's words are "words of wisdom." Who would have expected wisdom from one so young?

Frederick Buechner, in his book Peculiar Treasures, has this to say about the Annunciation:

She struck the angel Gabriel as hardly old enough to have a child at all, let along this child, but he’d been entrusted with a message to give her and he gave it. He told her what the child was to be named, and who he was to be, and something about the mystery that was to come upon her. “You mustn’t be afraid, Mary,” he said. And has he said it, he only hoped she wouldn’t notice that beneath the great golden wings, he himself was trembling with fear to think that the whole future of creation hung now on the answer of a girl.”

The future of creation hung now on the answer of a girl. Imagine all the angels looking down and holding their breath, wondering what she would say. We know her answer: “Here am I, the servant of the Lord. Let it be with me according to your word.”

Mary wasn’t the first to say these words. She stands in a line of witnesses who said “Here am I” to God’s request. Noah said, “Here am I,” and God told him to build a floating zoo. Abram said, “Here am I,” and God told him to get his wife, pack his things, and go to a land God would show him. The boy Samuel said, “Here am I,” and began a career of speaking truth to the powers that be. Isaiah said, “Here am I,” and God sent him to deliver a prophetic message promising deliverance by a Messiah who is to come.

When we say the words, “Here am I,” and are open to hearing what it is God is asking of us, we take our places in that long line of faithful people. We are liberated and given the necessary strength to do what God is calling us to do.

Mary has already given birth to the Messiah, so God isn’t asking us to do that. Still, the angels in heaven are holding their breath to hear our answer when God draws near and calls us. We won’t need to find new words to say because the old ones still work just fine: “Here am I, the servant of the Lord.”

Gay and I are blessed to spend another Christmas with the people of Good Shepherd. May your Christmas and the coming year be filled with joy, peace, and blessings in abundance.

December 15, 2011
March 25 ~ The Annunciation

The Annunciation
Luke 1:26-38

So much of our conversation regarding faith is centered on what each of us is doing about it. We are preoccupied with human liberty, some notion of “the individual,” and overly concerned with the subjective experience of God. We tend to want to play the leading role in the story, which we are writing, and we offer God a supporting role in a cast of thousands. We like to be in control of our universe.

The Annunciation is a reminder to me that what I'm doing about my faith is always in response to what God is first doing in my life, even when I'm not thinking of it in that way. God sent Gabriel to make an announcement to Mary about the role she would play in God's story, not to ask her to "volunteer."
Like Mary, we are often perplexed when God enters our lives uninvited and calls us to do what seems humanly impossible.

Reflect with me on that thought today in pursuit of a more God-centered and objective life of faith.

St. Augustine was aware of the divine initiative when he wrote, “Thou didst strike on my heart with Thy word and I loved Thee.” – from Confessions (397-398 A.D.) If you know anything about Augustine's life, you know he started out as a very self-absorbed and strong-willed individual. It would take a major epiphany to get his attention. God's undeserved grace knocked on Augustine's heart and by God's grace he was able to love God in response.

C.S. Lewis offers this perspective:

Christianity “does not tell of a human search for God at all, but of something done by God for, to, and about Man. And the way in which it is done is selective, undemocratic, to the highest degree. After the knowledge of God had been universally lost or obscured, one man from the whole earth (Abraham) is picked out. He is separated (miserably enough, we may suppose) from his natural surroundings, sent into a strange country, and made the ancestor of a nation who are to carry the knowledge of the true God. Within this nation there is further selection: some die in the desert, some remain behind in Babylon. There is further selection still. The process grows narrower and narrower, sharpens at last into one small bright point like the head of a spear. It is a Jewish girl at her prayers. All humanity (so far as concerns its redemption) has narrowed to that” (Chapter 14, Miracles:A Preliminary Study, Harper Collins, 2001).

And, because I love the poetry and music of our faith so much, this 19th Century hymn comes to mind:

I sought the Lord, and afterward I knew
he moved my soul to seek him, seeking me;
it was not I that found, O Savior true;
no, I was found of thee.

Thou didst reach forth thy hand and mine enfold;
I walked and sank not on the storm-vexed sea;
'twas not so much that I on thee took hold,
as thou, dear Lord, on me.

I find, I walk, I love, but oh, the whole
of love is but my answer, Lord, to thee;
for thou wert long beforehand with my soul,
always thou lovedst me.

Maybe today would be a good day to say with Mary, “Let it be with me according to your word.”

March 25, 2010