The Masterpiece in the Plan

When my younger son was in high school, he took a course in physics. In it, students were divided into teams for a Rube Goldberg competition.

These amusing inventions involve a chain reaction of multiple steps (known as "phases") to ultimately perform a single function. In my son's case, the teams had to develop a project that would begin with the dropping of a coin and end with the taking of a picture. Each phase had to incorporate some of the types of energy they had studied, such as mechanical, thermal, kinetic, chemical, and gravitational.

After months of planning, the students' projects were fantastic to watch. They were full of surprises. One piece would fall only to propel another upward.

The Divine Plan
The liturgical readings for Dec. 8, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, show us a much grander plan over a much broader period of time: God's great plan of salvation. God allowed the fall of man and of the world knowing ahead that He had set in motion all that was needed for our salvation.

A look at the second reading tells us how far back God's plan extends (emphasis added):

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him (Eph 1:3-4).


How does the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary fit into God's merciful plan for mankind? The dogma, proclaimed by Pope Pius IX in 1854, says:

The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin.


So Mary's unique privilege of being conceived without sin was not just for her own benefit. It was derived from God having chosen her as Mother of the Savior for us all (see Catechism of the Catholic Church, 490).

The Plan Comes Together
Before Mary Immaculate came into existence, many others from the Old Covenant prepared the way for her, beginning with Eve and her role in the fall of man. Some of them were chosen "against all human expectation" (see Catechism, 489).

Our Gospel for the Solemnity (Lk 1:26-38) brings us to the brink of salvation. It begins with the angel Gabriel being sent by God to Nazareth, to a virgin who is betrothed to a man from the house of David. Do you see all the steps working together? All the prophecies being fulfilled?

It all came down to this crucial part of the plan, God's masterpiece: Mary Immaculate. The obedient and humble Mary trusts in God and accepts His will. The Catechism says:

The Annunciation to Mary inaugurates "the fullness of time," the time of the fulfillment of God's promises and preparations. Mary was invited to conceive him in whom the "whole fullness of deity" would dwell "bodily" (484).


The Mercy and Mary Connection
Saints and theologians have considered the connection between God's mercy and the Immaculate Conception for centuries. We can, however, plainly see earthly connections. Right here. In Stockbridge, Massachusetts.

Look at the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception. They administer the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy, and they are the official promoters of the message of Divine Mercy - in particular as the publishers of the Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska (which records revelations about God's mercy).

The Marian Founder, St. Stanislaus Papczynski (1631-1701), frequently addressed this topic of mercy and Mary in his homilies and writings - some two centuries before the dogma of the Immaculate Conception would be proclaimed officially by the Church. He wrote, "I believe everything that the holy Roman Church believes ... but first of all I profess that the Most Holy Mother of God, Mary, was spotless from original sin, from the moment of her conception."

Saint Stanislaus recognized that Mary's redemption was the very masterpiece of God's merciful plan for the world.

Today, Marian priests continue to give parish missions and Mercy & Mary Retreats on this topic. They also write and publish materials through Marian Press in their efforts to spread the message of Divine Mercy and devotion to Mary Immaculate.

Nothing Is Too Much
In light of the connection between God's mercy and the Immaculate Conception, it's no surprise that St. Faustina had a special devotion to Our Lady's Immaculate Conception. She recorded:

It is with great zeal that I have prepared for the celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Mother of God. I have made an extra effort to keep recollected in spirit, and have meditated on that unique privilege of our Lady. And thus my heart was completely drowned in her, thanking God for having accorded this great privilege to Mary.

I prepared not only by means of the novena said in common by the whole community, but I also made a personal effort to salute her a thousand times each day, saying a thousand "Hail Marys" for nine days in her praise. ... Although I must admit that such a matter requires a good deal of attention and effort, nothing is too much when it comes to honoring the Immaculate Virgin (Diary, 1412 and 1413).


So, on this Solemnity, let's give thanks to God for Mary Immaculate who triumphed in her pivotal role, unique in the chain reaction of salvation history.

mbk

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