Rejoice, the Lord is with Thee: Annunciation

On March 25th in the Life of the Church, we celebrate the Great Feast of the Annunciation of our Lord. This Feast is described in the Gospel according to Luke 1:26-38. Luke tells the story of the meeting between the Archangel Gabriel (being sent by God) to visit with Mary in the city of Nazareth.

To read more about this Great Feast, please go HERE.

Great Feast of the Annunciation

Mary hears the words of the angel Gabriel: "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!" She is troubled at his words and presence, but the angel Gabriel continues by saying, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus." Mary is even more confused at this encounter and replies, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?" The angel Gabriel offers her this explanation, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God."

The laws of nature are suspended, for a virgin shall conceive and bear a son. This great Mystery reaffirms the love of God for His creation. Truly God becomes truly Man! Our Lord will take upon himself our humanity in order to renew our blessed opportunity towards His Divinity.

Here's a little personal note from last year about this Great Feast: While researching for this blogpost I came across an awesome footnote. My whole life I've honestly hated my middle name, which is "Evan." I never used it, rarely told anyone what it is, etc. But I found out today, that my middle name of Evan is of Greek origin (which totally changes my outlook)! It comes from the Greek word "evangelion" or its English translation of "good news" as in the Christian gospels or this Great Feast of the Annunciation (Archangel Gabriel telling of the "good news" to the Virgin Mary).

Blessed Great Feast of the Annunciation to all & blessed Name's Day to those bearing the name of Evan!

- A Day in the Life of the Youth Director