Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception • St. Augustine first taught about original sin. He said that our first parents passed the infection of sin on to all their children. Humans have been all been born with this original sin. Except Mary, whom the Archangel Gabriel calls, "kekaritomene", or "the one who is fully blessed or gracious". She is completely free from the infection of sin even from the first moment of her conception.

When we look deep into our hearts, we see a desire for communion. We were made for communion with God, with one another, with ourselves and even with Creation. Communion means we want to dwell in God and have God dwell in us. Mary started from within God and then received God inside of her. We have the opposite experience: We start by welcoming God into us, and then he draws us into communion within himself.

(9 Dec 2024)

Going Deeper: When have you experienced the joy of communion?

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