The Joyful Mysteries reflect on the mystery of God's grace in the Word Incarnate. The great joy of life itself is more than the hunger and quench for the food and sustenance of this world - the purest joy of every heart, even those marred by sin and broken by ingratitude and betrayed by the flesh - can only find pure rest in the joy of Christ. The Joyful Mysteries invite us to choose Jesus and God's perfect will, over our imperfect ambition. The Joyful Mysteries tell us we can trust in God even in times of suffering and sorrow - God is never truly lost - God is with us in every struggle and triumph through Christ. We may wander far from God, but Jesus is always waiting for us to turn towards HIS light. We can never find peace when we are separated from God.
The Joyful Mysteries of the Holy Rosary always remind me to TRUST GOD and SAY YES TO CHRIST. They remind me of the power of being obedient to God, not as an arbitrary rule following and psychological and spiritual tick for tat reward system - the reward is God Himself, but the joy is revealed fully when we set aside the physical expectations of the world and lean in fully to God.
As I meditate on the Rosary for the 54 Day Novena I will publish my reflections and welcome comments on others insights on the mysteries. The beauty of studying scripture is that as simple as the words appear - the depth of meaning is infinite - a person who searches the WORD will never be left without deeper faith and at times questions - in questioning the WORD, God reveals HIMSELF more fully and breaks down the limitations of our human flawed nature and brings us closer to union with HIS Holy Spirit.
1. The Annunciation:
Meditating on the Angel Gabriel's announcement of the Incarnation to Mary is a point that often is forgotten in the hustle and bustle of the Nativity Story - yet The Annunciation is one of my favorite Holy Mysteries because it is a spiritual dance of God's Grace and the human decision to let go of pride and worldly pleasures - saying yes to God. It is a perfect union of the mercy of God and our place in serving God and in that service having love deeper than the fathoms and more infinite than the universe.
I love how God comes to Mary in the most ordinary of settings - on what should be an ordinary day filled with housework and chores - God often calls us to HIS service in the noise of our lives - in the mundane tasks - ARE WE LISTENING.
God gives Mary a choice - While God's plan for salvation is reliant on Mary's participation as mother of HIS Incarnate self in Jesus - God does not force Mary's hand - rather he asks her for her service. God's humility is revealed to me in this act - for while God is all powerful and all just - God works through our capacity and free will - Mary's willing cooperation is tantamount for the success of Christ's life, death and resurrection - because had God forced her choice, God would go against HIS nature - all powerful and all loving. God needed Mary's willingness so that her womb would continue to be filled with the natural grace he gave her - God provided Mary with an immaculate heart, free from sin - yet God still called Mary to make the choice to choose God. How many great graces do we throw away because we don't choose God - even in ordinary tasks?
Mary's decision to say YES to God shows her loving, kind, patient nature and is an example for us all to follow in seeking to be filled with God's grace and serve Jesus. Mary did not say 'yes' as an arbitrary response - rather she pondered the decision and then in active faith said 'YES to God.' In the annunciation, the full union of God and human flesh is redeemed as promised in Genesis. Many see Mary as the antithesis to Eve - in her decision to choose to be fully united to God and not worry about the shame and power of the world - in God she found her security and strength.
What is the most remarkable revelation I've pondered in my own faith journey is the decision to say YES to God for the immediate or even long term physical reward. While heaven is blessing - and often called a reward - everything from God is a grace. If we yearn for heaven merely for the material aspects of its perfection - then we lose sight of the true purpose of faith which is love for the sake of God alone - God is love and heaven and all the blessings of the earth are outward signs of God's love but we must never lose sight of Christ at the center of all things....
Our goal is not 'rewards' (although God is always rewarding us with every grace) but the desire for a perfect union for the center of all things, which is God and only when we fully surrender to God's work in our lives and the desire for perfect communion with Christ can we be made whole.
In a way I think the annunciation is a foreshadowing of Christ's ministry - The life of the Spirit in the flesh - God fully divine and fully human, the struggle to reject the world and yet the necessary duty to reject the darkness (in the world I refer to sinful nature - not the grace and beauty of creation and the simple joys of life itself that lead us in communion with one another and with God)...The complete union of Mary and the Holy Spirit - formed to God's will, in The Word Incarnate - Christ - we also witness the coming of our own ability to take part in the full communion of spiritual union with God - I think of this as a prelude to the Institution of the Eucharist and a drawing us into relationship with God.
Raphael Soyer painting is reimagined to show Gabriel and Mary pensively awaiting the most important decision in history.
God is always calling us to spread HIS joy in the Gospel and in HIS creation. God often calls us from the most un-extraordinary places to ordinary tasks that with God become extraordinary grace.
How will you respond to God's call for service in your life? The most important lesson is Do Not be Afraid - but TRUST in God and that means allowing our worldly ambition to die - opening our hearts to the infinite universe of God's grace and communion with human hearts and souls.
Scripture: Luke 1: 26-28: The Hail Mary prayer comes from Gabriel's greeting to Mary and Elizabeth's blessing of Mary - the Hail Mary prayer is straight out of scripture!
26 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.32 He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,[a] and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, 33 and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34 But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?”[b] 35 And the angel said to her in reply, “The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. 36 And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived[c] a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; 37 for nothing will be impossible for God.” 38 Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
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