JOACHIM & ANN

            What tremendous consolation we should find in today's reading  from St Paul: "We know that God makes all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to His decree."  

            We live in a society where the God given values of marriage, children and family are becoming more and more out of vogue.  Today, there is much talk of love but, if it is love, it is expressed in a way that is contrary to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Pre-marital sex is just about taken for granted.  Then, there is the phenomenon of people "living together."  It was only a few years ago that this kind of a thing would completely offend Christian ears.  Now it is just shrugged off as a fact of life.  As our society becomes more and more pagan in its life-style, the more acceptable these things seem to become.

            As we know, these kinds of things are totally displeasing to Almighty God.  It is by the will of God that man and woman should live together in a stable union called matrimony.  God, and God alone is the author of matrimony and it is subject to His all holy laws.  It is only in obeying God's laws that His blessings will come, and they will come in abundance.  This week the liturgy gave us a glowing example of how God blesses "those who love Him."  On Thursday we celebrated the feast of Sts. Joachim and Ann.

            Sts. Joachim and Ann are the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  We find them mentioned no where in the scriptures.  But remember, the Word of God is not only the scripture but also the Tradition of the Church.  Joachim and Ann are known to us only through the Tradition of the Church.  Outside of their identity and the fact that they lived saintly lives, nothing else is recorded.  So it is with the eye of our imagination that we find a venerable old couple, steeped in the love of God.  As true Israelites, they always obeyed the law of Moses.  There would have been no way that they could have know that their daughter, Mary, was Immaculately Conceived or that she was to be the Mother of the Messiah.  Yes, because they themselves were saints, so they could see her true virtue and saintly life, her love of God and practice of virtue.  But little did they know what a great privilege God had in store for them.

            Joachim and Ann were ordinary people who lived ordinary lives.  But they always put God first above all else.  They were true saints.  Too often we think of the saints as people who do extra-ordinary things, work miracles, convert nations and the like.  Yes, some of them, did.  But they were the exceptions.  Most of the saints lived ordinary lives in an ordinary way.  The only exception was that their sanctity was extra-ordinary.  They avoided sin at all costs.  They practiced the virtues to a heroic degree.  They lived their lives according to God's will and not their own.  Recall the word's of Our lady herself as she responded to the angel: "Be it done unto me according to thy will."  This is what we are all capable of doing, the will of God.  Putting His will before our own.  This is how the venerable couple Joachim and Ann lived their lives and, look at how God rewarded them.  Their daughter, Mary who was indeed the apple of the eye of the heavenly Father, was chosen to be the Mother of the Lord.  And she was the child of Joachim and Ann.  Mary, our Blessed Mother, is the highest honor of our race.  She is the Queen of heaven and earth.  But most incredible of all, she is the Mother of God!  What an indescribable blessing, God gave to Joachim and Ann.  See how God indeed :"Makes all things work together for the good of those who love him."

            The blessings given to Joachim and Ann were unique.  But God will bless all of us if we truly love Him, follow His laws and live our lives in accord with our most holy religion.  Let us pray to Sts. Joachim and Ann to shower their blessings upon us from heaven.  They will because their daughter Mary is Mother of God and Our Blessed Mother.