These reflections are a result of more than 40 years of ministry as a Roman Catholic priest. Most of these years I spent in the Diocese of Charlotte which covers Western North Carolina. Now I am retired, and live in Medellín, Colombia where I continue to serve as a priest in the Archdiocese of Medellín.

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY—December 8

The man called his wife Eve,
because she became the mother of all the living.
(Gen 3:20)

And coming to her, the angel said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
(Lk 1:28)

The ancient Fathers and Mothers of the church made a great deal out of these two verses from the scriptures. In Latin the play on words is interesting: Eve=Eva, Hail=Ave. What is most important is God’s plan of salvation. As Saint Paul says: when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman (Gal 4:4). As we prepare to celebrate his coming among us, we contemplate how God’s mysterious plan is fulfilled in the Virgin Mary. The link is to the Ave Maria sung in the African language Igbo by Nnamdi Azikiwe University Choir in Nigeria.