In today’s first reading, King David learns that honoring God can sometimes mask an attempt to put God in a box. If we substitute honoring for surrendering, it can become a form of idolatry.

The word for today is eternity. It’s not a word we mortals generally have much use for. We know all about beginnings and endings, birth and death, but we don’t know a whole lot about what comes before the start of things and what happens after the finale.

God sent the angel Gabriel to the Galilean village of Nazareth to a virgin engaged to be married to a man descended from David. His name was Joseph, and the virgin’s name, Mary.

Each year on our birthdays my mother would tell my sisters and me the story of our births. My dad, a traveling salesman during those years, was always out of town when my mom would start labor. But then by some miracle, he would get there before or just after each of us was born.

In his fine book The Works of Mercy: The Heart of Catholicism, James F. Keenan, S.J. recounts a time he gathered for a spirituality conference with a group of priests and nuns, most of whom were models of joy, love, fidelity, and service.

Our God is kind and faithful to us. We pray to show faithfulness to God and kindness to our neighbor.

Consider what a dignity is ours, and what a likeness there is between us and Mary. Mary conceived Christ in her womb, and we bear him about in our hearts.