In both the First Reading and the Gospel, we have a theme of preparing a house for God. David is anxious to do something for the Lord. He feels something truly beautiful, “I am living in a fancy place and the Lord dwells in a tent. “ He feels that this is wrong but is told that he will not be the one to build a temple, he has shed too much blood, it will be his son, the peaceful one, who does that. David accepts the Lord’s command and gathers up supplies for the temple. He makes way for it. It seems like he is doing a good thing, to make a temple for the Lord, however, the Lord tells David that He will make a name for him. We see that it is more like Mary that God desires, and even David’s son Solomon who builds the temple, who do not do things but more lets them happen. Solomon gains his kingdom through the intercession of his mother. He gets the wisdom through God acting on him. He builds the temple with the supplies that his father left for him. He acts by being acted upon.
In today’s Gospel, we have the most excellent example of being acted upon in Mary who is chosen to be a fitting place for the Lord. The angel calls her, “full of grace,” which means that God had made her that way and she was open to it. Mary could have sinned but she used the grace and did not. Mary is such a counter cultural person, especially in our day, because she did not do but accepted what was given. So many times we want glory. We want to be the one that shines or stands in the spot light and say, “I did this.” How different was Mary who simply and humbly allowed God to do things to her and said yes. Mary trusted God, trusted that He loved her and had a plan. When we build desire to make a fitting place for the Lord in this season, we need to be reminded that it is our submission to God that actually builds the place. We say to God, like Mary, “Let it be done to me.” Look at all the different Sacraments – we really say, “Let it be done to me, Lord.” We do not deserve them or can we even purchase them, we can only accept them.
When we explore the question, “Can we build a place for God, a temple?” the answer is no, you and I cannot. We can have all the desires, as David did, but we simply cannot do it unless we let the Master Builder work in our lives. Have you ever started a project and didn’t quite know how to finish it? This is what our temple is like. You and I don’t know how to build it, to make it look as it should, however, there is someone else who does. That is God and He is happy to work with us to complete this project of holiness. He is hoping to make us a fit temple for Himself and His grace. This is why you and I have to come like Mary and David and say, “Lord, how are you going to make this temple? What is it supposed to look like? What can I do to be open to your word?” Look at what is coming to us in Communion. If we simply say, “Let it be done to me according to your word,” in this Holy Communion, I wonder the great works that would happen in our lives, our parish, our city and country. Mary is the master at this. She teaches us how to build a temple to God, how to make a fitting place. May we say, “Let it be done to me according to your word.”