At the last meeting, I was torn between using the old spiritual “Were you there” or talking about the amazing Feast the Church celebrated on that day, The Annunciation. Well, I chose a reflection inspired by that song, but I can’t talk about the Annunciation, so here goes.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and the Word became man and dwelt among us. He was in the beginning with God. All things came through him, and nothing came to be without him. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race.” Jn 1:1-4
Our galaxy has roughly 100 billion stars. The universe has approximately two trillion galaxies, each with one to four hundred billion stars. The universe is 90+ billion light years across. A light year is 5.88 trillion miles across, which makes the universe 522 sextillion miles across. There are at least 527 sextillion stars in the universe. There is one star, maybe the largest, called the Big Dog. It could hold seven quadrillion earths inside of it.
And after he spoke all that into existence, he said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky.” We read that he spoke all of creation into being, but then he formed man from the clay with his hands, as it were.
Now, because of the fall, man needed a savior. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him shall not perish but might have eternal life.” Jn 3:16
When we think of the Annunciation, which we are reminded of with every “Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee,” we see the Angel Gabriel and Mary, but what the angel says next should fill us with awe. “Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son; you shall name him Jesus.” Lk 1:31
Now think on that for a minute or more. The God who created that unimaginable, unfathomable universe entered his creation to rescue us. And he didn’t just appear, but instead determined to be born of a woman, just as we were. To live and learn, stumble and fall, and bruise a knee, accept correction from Mary and Joseph, probably smash a thumb or finger now and then, to grieve and weep, all that we experience as human beings. Does that not speak to God’s great love for us and the dignity of the human person?
With Mary’s yes, God entered his magnificent creation and became a man in every way but sin, like us. With every Hail Mary, ponder on that.
I think I spoke in the past about how, with His passion, death, and resurrection, Jesus won the war, but there are still battles to be fought. Look around today, and you will see darkness over the land. There is a spiritual battle raging, a battle for souls. One of the primary targets is the family. As a response, Bishop Olmsted wrote the booklet Into the Breach. The Knights of Columbus has produced a video series from that publication, and beginning with our August meeting, we will start viewing that series. I hope you will commit to attending the upcoming meetings and encourage other Knights to come as well.
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