The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

On this day we solemnly recall that day when, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the Word was made flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary.

For prayer and reflection

“The Archangel Gabriel visits a humble girl in Nazareth and proclaims to her that she will conceive and bear the Son of God. With this Annunciation the Lord illuminates and strengthens Mary’s faith, as He will also do for her spouse Joseph, so that Jesus could be born into a human family. This is very beautiful: it shows us how deeply the mystery of the Incarnation, as God desired, encompasses not only conception in the mother’s womb, but also acceptance in a real family.”—Pope Francis

Spiritual bonuses

On March 25, we also remember Saint Marie-Alphonse Danil Ghattas. Inspired by a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary, she helped establish the Sisters of Holy Rosary of Jerusalem. After spending her life serving the poor and educating Palestinian Christians, she died in Ein Karem, Palestine on March 25, 1927, and was canonized in 2015.

March 25 is also the day we celebrate Saint Dismas, the “Good Thief” who was crucified with Jesus. This comes from an old tradition—embraced by Tertullian and Saint Augustine—that March 25 was the day on which Jesus, together with Saint Dismas, died on the Cross.

Vocations

The Benedictine Sisters of Annunciation Monastery (Bismarck, ND): www.annunciationmonastery.org

The Discalced Carmelite Nuns of the Byzantine Rite of Holy Annunciation Monastery (Sugarloaf, PA): www.byzantinediscalcedcarmelites.com

Poor Clare Colettine Nuns of Annunciation Monastery: www.poorclaresjoliet.org

The Sisters of Life: www.sistersoflife.org

Prayer

O God, who willed that your Word should take on the reality of human flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary, grant, we pray, that we, who confess our Redeemer to be God and man, may merit to become partakers even in his divine nature. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(from The Roman Missal)

Saint profiles prepared by Brother Silas Henderson, S.D.S.