"Fiat voluntas tua... Let it happen to me..."

A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

The `fiat' of Mary, Mother of the Lord gives us great insight in this humble girl, where she places herself totally at the disposal of God. She did not ask herself if it was convenient, or if she even understood it all, but she said "Yes Lord" from the very first word from the Angel. That's unconditional self-surrender. It is faith, hope and love, it is total obedience to God.

As we read in the Gospel of Luke (1:26-38), "In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
 
"Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."
 
"But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?" And the angel said to her in reply, "The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God."
 
"Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her."

May it be done according to your word = Let it happen to me ... Fiat voluntas tua

As we get closer to Christmas, we realize that Mary's "Fiat" brought profound changes into the world - we were given a Baby, a very precious Child, a Man sent by the Father in Heaven, a Man, the Son of God. A Man who could lead us to eternal Salvation through His Fiat on a Cross amid unspeakable suffering, He completed his Fiat "My Father, if it is not possible that this cup pass without my drinking it, your will be done!"

Now we celebrate His birth, the beginning of Jesus' humanity, where he was like us in every way but sin. Jesus felt our pain, our sin, the source of his suffering. If the human species had never wronged or never sinned nor would sin again, there would not be a reason for Jesus' Birth. We all know that there was a reason, and we are all a part of that reason. Maybe we are just weak, or weak sometimes, perhaps we are ill-willed, and we do not care to lighten His Cross, but whatever the reason, we are WRONG - we are sinners, each and everyone of us, including this writer.

This great amount of Wrong is now coming to fruition in these times, the 21st Century. Will it get worse? Probably. Will it all end soon? Definitely, but no one knows when. So let us all prepare as John the Baptist told us, prepare to bring our souls to forgiveness, and to begin again to love God as we ought.

The message of Christmas is all about love, the love of God to prepare us for the hereafter. The love of God so those who follow Him all the days of our lives, may have a Fiat too: "My God and My All!"

Fred Schaeffer, OFS
December 1, 2023