Walking together, open to encountering and welcoming the God made incarnate among us.
Feast of the Immaculate Conception
God´s word to Mary in today´s gospel is a word of supreme value: “Rejoice, highly favoured”. Mary is the beloved, the favoured one of Yahweh. Perhaps we do not really believe that God favours us. Maybe we think God only loved Mary? Today let the word of God be yours. Rejoice, highly favoured, for I have chosen you to be holy and live in my presence. Yes, YOU reading this article rejoice.
But why should I rejoice? I rejoice because God has chosen me. This great truth was expressed by St Paul when he wrote: God chose us in Christ, to be holy and spotless and to live through love in his presence. He destined us in love to be his sons and daughters…… Ephesians 1:5. God loves you and me and wants us to live fraternally as brothers and sisters.
So, my dear ones, during this Advent time as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Saviour let us love and rejoice. The ONE who is coming is LOVE and wants all of us to love one another as well.
I finish this reflection with an excerpt from an ecumenical Christian prayer by Pope Francis from Fratelli Tutti it says, “Come Holy Spirit, show us your beauty, reflected in all the peoples of the earth, so that we may discover anew that all are important, and all are necessary, different faces of the one humanity that God so loves. Amen.” This is my prayer also for all God´s children as we wait for the birth of Christ this year.
Rosemary Mwagarezano, RSHM
Novitiate Directress
