Feast of the Annunciation Message

Beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ,  

Chronia Polla!  Happy Nameday to everyone, especially those named Evangelia or Evangelos!

I apologize that our internet was not working this morning.  We fixed the problem, but after the Liturgy was completed.

I was thinking amidst all that we have to deal with concerning the COVID-19 Virus, that we are constantly waiting for announcements: announcements from the CDC, announcements from the President, announcements from the Congress, announcements from the Governor, announcements from celebrities to tell us how they are coping (because that is so germane to us), etc.  It is true that some of these announcements will have important information for us.  But in an age of 24-hour news coverage, of which nearly all is centered on one topic, how much of this news, how many of these announcements, are really helping us in any meaningful way?  We know what we have to do to stay as healthy as possible, the grocery stores are still open, the gas stations are operational, and we still can find out what important things the Kardashians are up to!

Today, however, the Church declares the 2nd most important announcement of all time: that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ would be born of the Virgin Mary through the action of the Holy Spirit.

Do we really understand how important this announcement truly is?  This means the Lord loves us so much that in order to bring us to Him, He took on the flesh He created, to make us Holy and free from the terrible results of sin.  This means that Jesus knows everything about being human that we experience ourselves (outside of sin).  This means that instead of speaking as thunder from the top of the mountain, He decided to take clay into His own hands, and with His own spittle, personally put a holy salve on the eyes of the blind man to heal him.  This means that instead of watching us from afar, He runs to the prodigal, is thronged by the crowds, visits the sinners, and allows all to approach Him.

There is no God like our God and no God so personally connected to us through His boundless love like Christ!

In this time of anxious waiting for the next big announcement, remember the 2nd most important announcement of all time: that because of His endless love for us, God would become Man to heal us from the scourge of sin.
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God bless,
+Fr. Nick