Faculty Blog | Call and Response

Call & Response

As our monthly email for April is announcing the opening of summer registration, I thought it would be fitting to contribute a blog post on the solemnity we celebrated on the 8th; namely, the Annunciation.

It can be illuminating to contrast the Annunciation of Jesus to Mary with another announcement from St. Luke’s Gospel; i.e., that of John the Baptist to his father, Zechariah. While he is burning incense in the temple, the priest Zechariah is visited by the angel Gabiel. Zechariah “was troubled […] and fear fell upon him” (Lk 1:12). Gabriel then says: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer is heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call him John” (v. 13). Zechariah, responding to the “good news,” says: “‘How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years?’” Gabriel then strikes Zechariah mute until the birth of the baby because he “did not believe [Gabriel’s] words” (v. 20). Contrast this with the Annunciation. Gabriel appears to Mary and says the words “‘Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!’” (v. 28). Mary was “greatly troubled at the saying and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be” (v. 29). Like with Zechariah, Gabriel assures Mary, saying, “‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus’” (vv. 30-1). Mary’s response to Gabriel is “‘How can this be, since I have no husband?’” (v. 34). But, Gabriel says, “‘with God nothing will be impossible’” (v. 37). And the scene closes with Mary’s famous fiat (i.e., ‘let it be’): “‘Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word’” (v. 38).

The two scenes are very similar in many ways: the appearance of the angel Gabriel, his communication of the good news of coming births, and his providing the names and destinies of each of these figures. But the reactions of Zechariah and Mary – though they too appear similar – couldn’t be more different. Zechariah, noticing the angel before Gabriel speaks, is struck with fear. Mary, on the other hand, only notices the angel after Gabriel greets her, and what troubles her is his salutation. In other words, she’s more confused and curious than fearful, and the very presence of an angel is not what’s bothering her. Secondly, in response to Gabriel’s announcement of the conception of John the Baptist – an event that doesn’t seem likely, but is not impossible – Zechariah asks “‘How shall I know this?’” In other words: “‘How can I be sure?’” There is an implicit expression of doubt in Zechariah’s reply. Mary, on the other hand, in response to Gabriel’s announcement of the virginal conception of Jesus – an event that is impossible except for divine intervention – asks “‘How can this be?’” She does not doubt God’s capacity to work the miraculous, she simply asks how God is going to make the impossible possible. There is no seed of doubt, and upon Gabriel’s explanation she utters those words which are the very paradigm of Christian discipleship: “‘Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word’” (v. 38). Especially at Eastertide, it’s good to remember Mary’s fiat and that, in times of joy, or fear, or confusion, every Christian’s response should echo those of Mary.