Daily Gospel Reflection
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December 20, 2024
In the sixth month,
the angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
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.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
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.
There’s a famous painting by the French artist Jean-François Millet entitled The Angelus. Two peasant figures stand in a half-tilled field at dusk, heads bowed against the darkening sky. The husband has removed his hat in a gesture of reverence while his wife’s hands are clasped in prayer. In the distance is the unmistakable silhouette of a church tower, whose bell rings out silently across the canvas.
The Angelus prayer, namesake of the painting and a traditional custom enjoying revival among young Catholics today, was once recited at noon and evening following the ringing of church bells nine times. The prayer recounts the Angel Gabriel’s words from the Gospel of Luke in three sections, each followed by a Hail Mary.
The modern Angelus has roots in praying three Hail Marys at the toll of the “Ave” bell, a custom dating back to the 12th century, as tradition held that the moment of the Annunciation occurred in the afternoon. Many church bells in Europe are engraved with “Ave Maria” or dedicated to the Angel Gabriel with phrases like, “Ecce Gabrielis sonat hæc campana fidelis” (Behold this bell of faithful Gabriel sounds).
The Angelus concludes with a prayer asking the Lord to fill our hearts with grace so “that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ thy Son was made known by the message of an Angel, may by his Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of his Resurrection.”
On Notre Dame’s campus, the steeple of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart rings out the Angelus bells at noon and 6 pm, inviting all who hear its sound to meditate on the great mystery of Christ’s Incarnation and the fiat we are each invited to give in service to God’s love.
“Hail, full of Grace! The Lord is with thee!”
Prayer
Eternal God, Author of Life, through the “Yes” of our Blessed Mother, the yoke of sin and death was broken and the gates of salvation were opened to the human race. We pray in thanksgiving for Mary’s trust in, and obedience to, your holy will. As we approach the blessed season of Christmas, may we echo her words: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” We ask this in the name of Christ the Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Dominic was born in eleventh century Spain to a poor family. He grew up doing the work of his father—shepherding—and he came to love the solitude and silence. He left the family and joined a monastery nearby, and grew in holiness and stature. He was eventually elected abbot.
He came into a dispute with the king, and was removed from the monastery. He traveled to a different monastery in another part of Spain, Silos, and was appointed abbot there. The monastery in Silos was in disrepair and its community life was in sad shape—Dominic restored the physical and spiritual foundations of life there and made it one of the most famous monasteries in Spain.
Miracles were attributed to Dominic in his work—it was said that there was not an illness that could not be cured through his intercession. There is even a story that has been passed down that a group of 300 Christians who were enslaved in north Africa were set free when they prayed in his name.
Dominic died in 1073. Nearly 100 years later he appeared to Blessed Joan of Aza, a woman who was making a pilgrimage to his shrine. In this vision, he promised Joan that she would have a son—soon after, she did, and named her son after the saint who appeared to her. This Dominic is famous for restoring the Church through the establishment of a religious order that continues today: the Order of Preachers.
St. Dominic of Silos is patron saint of prisoners, pregnant women, and shepherds.
St. Dominic of Silos, you appeared to the mother of the great St. Dominic to foretell her son’s birth, pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Dominic of Silos is in the public domain. Last accessed November 1, 2024 on Wikimedia Commons.
