Virgin Mary teaches the role of obedience

"For behold, all generations will call me blessed."
Imagine a girl of about 12 years of age sitting in her room, when, suddenly, an angel appears to her and praises her saying, "Rejoice highly favored one, the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women." (Luke 1:28)
The young girl becomes scared and troubled. She questions why the angel has appeared to her and why he has greeted her with such a greeting. "Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear forth a Son, and shall call his name Jesus." (Luke 1:30-31)
Can you imagine what was running through the mind of this girl? Did she realize that the entire future of mankind rested on the decision she was about to make? Just think, if this little girl, the young Virgin Mary, had replied "No" to the Archangel Gabriel, what would have happened? There would have been no virgin birth and God would not have come to earth incarnate. Mankind would not have salvation, and overall, life would be very different from how we know it today.
Fortunately, however, the young virgin responded positively by saying, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it become according to your word."
A celebration
In the Orthodox Church, the feast of the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary was celebrated March 25.
It is considered one of the greatest feasts celebrated by the church. The word annunciation means "good news" or "joyful tidings." It is the good news that gives men emancipation from sin and eternal death.
For 2,000 years, the church has preserved the memory of the Virgin Mary as a prototype of all of mankind. During her life, she served and honored her son, became a mother to all of the apostles and demonstrated to us what it means to be true Christians. Furthermore, she is considered the greatest of all Christians because she gave birth to the Savior, and yet remained a virgin for her entire life. She is the human being most intimate with Christ on earth. If you observe the architecture of the Orthodox Church, you will see that the icon of the Virgin Mary is placed in the highest honor of all the saints.
Time for reflection
The Annunciation almost always falls during the Lenten period, also known as the "Great Fast." It is an opportune time for us to pause and reflect as we celebrate this feast day by first dwelling upon her life and teachings, and then considering ourselves in our sinfulness, and attempting to become better Christians.
The Feast of the Annunciation is the beginning of God's redemption act for man. The Virgin Mary is often compared to Eve. When God created man, he gave us life with the ability to choose. In essence, we are all given the choice whether to follow God's divine plan. When Eve ate of the apple, she disobeyed God. Thus through Eve, sin entered the world.
The Virgin Mary, in the same way, was given a choice, yet she humbly accepted to follow God's divine plan. This is why she is sometimes referred to as the second Eve. As a result of the Virgin Mary's obedience to God, the Orthodox Church has in turn honored this woman with feasts and hymns.
Our Lord is all encompassing and his plan is complete. Even though sin entered into the world through a woman, Eve, God also brought redemption to the world through a woman, the Virgin Mary.
When this feast is celebrated, we give glory to God. It is through his love for us that we can honor his holy church, his saints, holy angels and especially his holy mother, the Virgin Mary.
The Rev. Thomas M. Constantine is pastor of St. John the Forerunner Greek Orthodox Church, Boardman.