“How can this be?” Mary’s question to the angel is one we have all asked in our own way. In a world which responds to power, how can it be that God wants us to show compassion. In a world where the rich get rich and the poor get poorer, how can it be that God wants the hungry to be fed and the homeless to be housed? In a world where we are told to look out for number one and devil take the hindmost, how can it be that God expects us to be humble and to think of others? Human history seems to run clean contrary to the gospel message of love and mercy. How does God expect us to live according to divine values instead of the harsh realities of the world? Won’t we get chewed up? The answers to these questions are similar to the answer the angel gave to Mary — the Holy Spirit of God is at work. Like the seed coming to life in the ground the Holy Spirit is warming our world to bring forth a harvest of justice and charity. It takes time — nine months in Mary’s case — but God never fails.
