As Jesus is the cornerstone upon which the Church is built, so are his teachings the unifying cornerstone of Christian doctrine.

Unexpected Grace

What does it mean that Mary found favor with the Lord (Luke 1:30)? It was an unexpected grace from God. The word “Rejoice!” translated here as “Greetings!” was used in the prophets to the daughters of Zion. Mary represents of all the daughters of Zion. Then we have the greeting we know from our liturgy, the Lord is with you. It had a double meaning. Mary was troubled by this greeting. Like Peter recognized after the catch of fish that he was a sinner and told Jesus to go away (Luke 5:8), so too Mary recognized that she was a sinner and was afraid in the presence of a holy angel from God. The angel gave her the equivalent of an absolution from her sins telling her not to fear and that she had found favor with God.

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