Page 8 - Revista Paisiana Nr 13 Martie 2025

Archpriest Georges Florovsky (1893-1979)

Behold the maidservant of the Lord!

Let it be to me according to your word.

gain, the Annunciation is „the beginning 22, 34). This conception was traditional, especially in
of our salvation and the revelation of the the catechetical teaching, both in the East and in the
mystery which is from eternity: the Son of West. „It is a great sacrament [magnum sacramen-
God becometh the Son of the Virgin, and Gabriel pro- tum] that, whereas through woman death became our
claimeth good tidings of grace” (Troparion of the portion, so life was born to us by woman,” says
Feast of the Annunciation). The divine will has been Augustine (De Agone Christ., 24, in another place he
declared and proclaimed by the archangel. But the Vir- is simply quoting Irenaeus). „Death by Eve, life by
gin was not silent. She responded to the divine call, Mary,” declares Jerome (Epist. 22). Let me quote also
responded in humility and faith. „Behold the han- an admirable and concise passage from one of the ser-
dmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy mons of the Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow (1782-
word.” Divine will is accepted 1867). He was preaching on the
and responded to. And this day of the Annunciation. „Du-
human response is highly re- ring the days of the creation of
levant at this point. The obe- the world, when God uttered his
dience of Mary living and mighty words: „Let
counterbalances the disobe- there be,” the Creator’s words
dience of Eve. In this sense brought creatures into existence.
the Virgin Mary is the Second But on the day, unique in the
Eve, as her Son is the Second existence of the world, when
Adam. Holy Mary uttered her humble
This parallel was and obedient Let it be, I would
drawn quite early. The earliest hardly dare to express what took
witness is St. Justin (Dialo- place then, the word of the crea-
gue, 100), and in St. Irenaeus ture caused the Creator to des-
we find already an elaborate cend into the world. God uttered
conception, organically con- his word here also: You will con-
nected with his basic idea of ceive in your womb and bear a
the recapitulation. „As Eve by son... he will be great... and he
the speech of an [fallen] will reign over the house of
angel was seduced, so as to Jacob for ever.” But again that
flee God, transgressing His which is divine and incompre-
word, so also Mary received hensible occurs, the Word of
the good tidings by means of God itself defers its action, allo-
the angel’s speech, so as to wing itself to be delayed by the
bear God within her, being word of Mary: How can this be?
obedient to His word. And, though the one has diso- Her humble Let it be was necessary for the realization
beyed God, yet the other was drawn to obey God; that of God’s mighty Let it be. What secret power is thus
of the virgin Eve the Virgin Mary might become the contained in these simple words: „Behold, I am the
advocate. And, as by a virgin the human race had been handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your
bound to death, by a virgin it is saved, the balance will” that it produces an effect so extraordinary? This
being preserved, a virgin’s disobedience by a virgin’s marvelous power is Mary’s pure and perfect self-de-
obedience” (5, 19, 1). And again: „And so the knot of dication to God, a dedication of her will, of her
Eve’s disobedience received its unloosing through the thought, of her soul, of her entire being, of all her fa-
obedience of Mary; for what Eve, a virgin, bound by culties, of all her actions, of all her hopes and expec-
incredulity, that Mary, a virgin, unloosed by faith” (3, tations.”
sursa ilustratiilor:
8 https://orthodoxwiki.org PAISIANA nr. 3 / martie / 2025