Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
I’ve always liked camping. When I first learned that the literal translation of the verse before the gospel, “the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us” was actually “pitched his tent among us,” I was immediately taken by the image. It sounded as though the Annunciation and Incarnation was God deciding to go on a camping trip with the human race so that we could all enjoy ourselves.
What the line is also referencing, though, is how the Israelites wandered as pilgrims through the desert for forty years, living in tents. God is with us so that we may delight in one another’s company, but He has decided to stay by us as we wander as pilgrims through life. A little over a week ago, we saw what happens when God stays by us on our trip. Now, in the joy of Easter, we have a chance to see what happens when we stay by God on our trip together.
At the Easter Vigil, we got to see the beginnings of the trip. Watching the faces of those getting baptized was a chance to see the faces of people who were putting darkness of all sorts behind them, and delighting in new light. Jesus pitched His tent in some pretty rough conditions to be with them, and they decided to continue on the trip with him and experience a new joy. With the Annunciation in the Easter season, we can likewise reflect on how Jesus has pitched His tent to be with us, and the joy that trip can lead to.