When Mary was a teenager, she said to the Lord: "Let it be done unto me" (Lk 1:38). At this, she became the mother of God and seemingly an adulteress expecting execution. Mary's "it" meant "that." Next, her "it" meant having her baby in a stable (see Lk 2:7). Soon her "it" meant traveling with Joseph and the baby Jesus in the middle of the night to Egypt (see Mt 2:14). Twelve years later, Mary's "it" meant losing Jesus at the Passover in Jerusalem (see Lk 2:44-46). This prefigured a Passover about twenty years later when Jesus would become the slain Passover Lamb. At the foot of the cross, Mary would witness His being slain. Mary's "it" also meant the first Christian Pentecost, her assumption into heaven, and her crowning as the queen of heaven and earth.

The purpose of each human being's life is to say with Mary: "I am the servant of the Lord. Let it be done unto me according to God's word" (see Lk 1:38). Then when we find out the details of this total commitment, we must accept God's grace to be like Mary and to be faithful to our unconditional commitment to the Lord. Consecrate your life to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through the intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Then never turn back (see Lk 9:62).

Nihil Obstat:  Reverend Robert A. Stricker, December 13, 2003

Imprimatur:  †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, December 18, 2003