Homily: Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the BVM
Today, we celebrate the Immaculate
Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary: the fact that, from the first moment of
her existence, Mary was protected by God from the stain and effects of original
sin. Perhaps it is necessary for us to
step back and ask ourselves, why is it important that we celebrate this unique
event, and why is it so important that the Church made this Solemnity one of
the seven days of obligation? I think
that there are two reasons.
First, the Immaculate Conception reminds
us of the most basic truth of human existence: that is, that we are creatures,
formed lovingly by the uncreated creator (whom we call God), who, nonetheless,
fell out of favor with God and who, therefore, are in desperate need of a
Savior to reconcile ourselves to Him.
Our first reading today reminds us of this. By giving in to the temptations of the
serpent, the first man and woman disobeyed God: they sinned. This sin was a mortal wound to human nature,
one that we could not resolve on our own.
In fact, the only way that we could be reconciled to God would be if He
first reached out to us. The Immaculate
Conception is a sign of this “reaching out”.
Obviously, no one creates him or her
self. And, although we can explain the
biological workings through which a new human being is created, we cannot rely
on them to understand how each human being acquires a unique, unrepeatable
personality: this is given by God. This
utter dependence on God demonstrates that Mary’s Immaculate Conception was a
pure gift from God: a “reaching out” to the human race that was part of God’s
plan to reconcile man to Him. God filled
her with grace from the very first moment of her existence as part of His plan
to make her a fitting mother for His Son who was to be born of human nature so
that he might restore us to friendship with Him. Mary, who was utterly powerless to save
herself from Original Sin, was preserved from it by a gratuitous act of God:
thus reminding us of our need of God’s gracious action to save us from sin and
to restore us to His friendship.
But reminding us of our need for a
Savior is only the first reason that the Immaculate Conception holds such an
important place in our lives as Catholic Christians and in our liturgy: there
is also a second reason. You see, the
Immaculate Conception also reminds us that the Savior will not force us to be
saved. Let me explain. As I’ve already mentioned, we cannot
reconcile ourselves with God without God's grace, which is why God took the
initiative to send us a Savior. But God
leaves us free to welcome or reject that Savior. In other words, He leaves it up to us to
accept and cooperate with His saving grace, or to go our own way: that is, to
keep floating away into the oblivion of separation from Him. This is why we read the Gospel passage of the
Annunciation—the story of Jesus’ conception—on the day that we celebrate Mary’s
Immaculate Conception.
God gave Mary everything she needed
to fulfill her mission, filling her with grace from the very first moment of
her life, but it was still up to her to respond freely and generously to the
angel's invitation. She could have
rejected God's action in her life. She could
have told that angel that she preferred her own plans—that God's will for her
was unreasonable, too demanding, or too uncomfortable. But Mary didn't do that. Rather, Mary trusted God. She understood that God's will always flows
from His love; and so, in her loving trust of God, bolstered by the grace with
which she was filled from the very moment of her conception, she willfully
uttered the most perfect words at the most perfect time: "May it be done
to me according to your word."
My brothers and sisters, Advent is
the season when we let our souls be strengthened by these truths: that God,
indeed, has reached out to us to restore us to his friendship and that God’s
call for us is to trust in Him and obey His will so that this restoration might
be realized. God is asking something of
each one of us today. Perhaps He is inviting us to give Him something, or to do
something, or to give up something. Our
task is to listen, as Mary listened, for the voice of Truth speaking to us and
to respond, as Mary responded, in love and in trust.
My brothers and sisters, God’s grace
is abundantly available to us in this Holy Eucharist; and so, when we receive
His grace when we receive Holy Communion today, just as Mary received His grace
at her Immaculate Conception, let's courageously echo her prayer in our own
hearts—"May it be done to me according to your word"—and thus prepare
ourselves to receive the fullness of His grace when He returns to call us all
home to Himself at the end of time.
Given
at Saint Patrick Parish: Kokomo, IN – December 8th, 2020
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