If we watch or read enough news it is easy to fall into a state of depression. The picture which is often painted is that the world is a corrupt place. It would be easy to believe that there is no hope and that we are powerless against all of these negatives.
Yes, we are a culture who does not value the sanctity of human life. Yes, we lack understanding concerning marriage being between a male and a female and its permanence. Yes, there is a lot of corrupt things which are coming from Church hierarchy. And yes, this list goes on and on.
Despite all of this we come to celebrate today the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. Hopefully this great celebration can lift our spirits which might be plunged into the very depths of despair. If we go back to the book of Genesis we would encounter Adam and Eve and their fall from grace. It would seem here that all hope would be lost and yet we are told “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
As we see reveled in Revelation 12: “The dragon was angry with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and bear testimony to Jesus.” From Revelation 12 we come to see that Mary is the new Eve. It was Eve who ushered in sin and death into the world’s existence, but it was Mary who lifted us out of this sin and death.
We thus often see her depicted as crushing the serpent with her heel. She crushes this serpent for she was conceived without the stain sin upon her soul, she crushes the serpent for she never gave into the grasp of sin, she crushes the serpent through her “yes” given to the angel Gabriel which ushered in God made Flesh who died upon the cross in order that we may be redeemed and the gates of Heaven may be opened once again.
There is a lot within this world which can lead us into a spirit of depression, but our celebration of the Immaculate Conception should lift us out of these feelings. This celebration is a shining light in the midst of darkness which shows us that there is hope for each and everyone of us. May we foster true devotion to our Blessed Mother and be willing to follow after her in order to be drawn into a deeper relationship with her Son.
