Luke 1:26-38

In the gospel of Luke the angel says to Mary: "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus." In the gospel of Luke the angel Gabriel comes to Mary to tell her that she will bear a son, who will be called "the Son of the Most High" and "the Son of God." (v. 35) 

This story is only related by the gospel of Luke. In the gospel of Matthew the angel comes to Joseph to announce the coming of a special son. One of the most distinctive differences between the four gospels is the way they begin. Only the gospels of Matthew and Luke have birth stories. The shepherds are in the gospel of Luke, and the wise men are in the gospel of Matthew. The gospel of Mark begins with the ministry of Jesus, and the gospel of John begins with a philosophical prologue.  

The wonderful story in the gospel of Luke of two women, Elizabeth and Mary, who bear special sons, John and Jesus, reminds us that women were leaders in the churches organized by Paul. In these Greek-speaking congregations women who owned property and who had a measure of independence, because they enjoyed certain rights under Roman law, found in the church an opportunity to respond to God's love. 

Mary, the mother of Jesus, has symbolized that response through the ages in the life of the church, as the Virgin and Mother of God to whom many Christians have offered their prayers. But whether we pray to Mary or simply delight in her story, we remember her with love as the mother of Jesus.  

Grace and peace...Bob