|
|
|
When the "Word was made Flesh" through Mary's yes |
|
|
Hello MICHELE KEARNEY,
This year, Good Friday
fell on March 25 and so the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
was shifted to the first available date after the Easter Octave: Monday,
April 4. In honor of yesterday’s observance, we offer four visual
meditations on that pivotal moment in human history when “the Word was
made Flesh” through Mary’s yes.
|
|
“How
often must Mary have returned inwardly to the hour when God’s angel had
spoken to her, pondering afresh the greeting: ‘Rejoice, full of grace!’
and the consoling words: ‘Do not be afraid!’ The angel departs; her
mission remains, and with it matures her inner closeness to God, a
closeness that in her heart she is able to see and touch.” – Pope
Benedict XVI
|
|
|
|
| Fourteenth
Century Icon from the church of St Clement in Ohrid (Skopje,
Macedonia). In this classic image, Gabriel’s feet are spread apart, as
if he has been running full stride to deliver his message; the staff
represents that he is, in fact, a messenger. Mary is seated on an
elevated platform, because she is “higher than the cherubim”; in her
left hand she holds the spindle of scarlet thread with which she was
imagined to be weaving the veil for the Temple of Jerusalem. The three
stars (at her forehead and on each shoulder) represent her perpetual
virginity. |
|
“When the angel appeared to Mary, God was announcing this love for the new humanity.”
– Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
|
|
|
|
| Italian
master Gentile da Fabriano gave us this lovely representation (circa
1425) of the Angel’s visit. Notice the Heavenly Father, surrounded by
flaming seraphim, in the extreme upper left corner of the image. The
Incarnation is a Trinitarian event: through the outpouring of the Holy
Spirit, the Eternal Son of the Father is conceived in Mary’s womb. |
|
|
|
| In
1610, Peter Paul Rubens created this dynamic image. Mary appears to
have been startled by the Angel’s dramatic entrance; she leans back,
perhaps wondering “what manner of greeting this ‘Hail, full of grace’
might be” (see Luke 1:29).
Her left hand rests gently on the open book while her right hand, palm
facing out, seems to speak for her: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord. Be
it done to me…" |
|
“Mary
showed complete trust in God by agreeing to be used as an instrument in
his plan of salvation. She trusted him in spite of her nothingness
because she knew he who is mighty could do great things in her and
through her. Once she said 'yes' to him, she never doubted. She was just
a young woman, but she belonged to God and nothing nor anyone could
separate her from him.” – Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
|
|
|
|
| African-American
artist Henry Ossawa Tanner created this stunning Annunciation (found in
the Philadelphia Museum of Art) in 1898, after studying art in Paris
and in the Holy Land. Here, Gabriel’s form is reduced to a bright flame,
evoking the burning bush in the desert though which God revealed not
only his surpassing transcendence, but his merciful nearness to his
people—a nearness that became oneness through the Incarnation. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
We'd love for you to share this news!
|
|
|
|
| © Daughters of St. Paul. All Rights Reserved.
|
|
No comments:
Post a Comment