Gabriel

March 25–The Annunciation of Our Lord

From the Treasury of Daily Prayer:

The angel Gabriel appears to Mary and announces that God has shown her favor and will use her as the means for the Messiah’s birth. So Mary conceives Jesus when the angel says: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Luke 1:35). This same Spirit who hovered over the waters and brought forth creation (Genesis 1:2) will now “hover over” the waters of Mary’s womb to conceive the creation’s Redeemer. As the Holy Spirit comes upon Mary, she conceives Jesus “through her ear” (as Martin Luther says). The one who is conceived is called Holy, the Son of God. This is the moment of the incarnation of our Lord. The date of the Annunciation falls on March 25, because the Ancient Church believed the crucifixion occurred on that date. In antiquity, people linked the day of a person’s conception with the day of his or her death. Thus, in the Annunciation, the Church joined together both the incarnation of Jesus and the atonement He accomplished.

The Jesse Tree–Day Twenty-Seven

Only one more day to go!

Today’s reading was about the angel(s). The reading specifically focused on the angel(s) that appeared to the shepherds, so like yesterday, we read Luke 2:8-14. This also provided us with a good opportunity, however, to review our previous readings, and talk about all of the different times angels, (especially Gabriel), appeared in the stories relating to Christmas. Starting with Zechariah, Mary, and Joseph, before either John the Baptist and Jesus were born, and continuing through the Christmas story with the shepherds, and even after, with the Wise Men, and again, Joseph, angels are integral in bringing God’s message, especially at this time of year!