Why the Feast of the Annunciation on March 25 is important to Daughters of Charity.

1. F E A S T O F T H E A N N U N C I AT I O N &
V O W S A S A D A U G H T E R O F C H A R I T Y

2. The Feast of the Annunciation celebrates
the moment in which Jesus became human
and entered the world as one of us. It was,
at one time, known as the Feast of the
Incarnation because it highlights the
humanity which Jesus shares with us.
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3. In our Vincentian tradition, the
incarnation is important as we
see the face of God in others,
especially people in need.
A Daughter of Charity embraces
one of the children at St. Vincent de
Paul School in Alexandria, Egypt.
"One" magazine, December 2017
photo: Roger Anis

4. Of course, it is also a feast which celebrates Mary as the
model of discipleship for us. In the parallel accounts of
prophecy to Zechariah and Mary in the first chapel of
Luke's gospel, we learn some important elements
of what it means to be a good disciple. Zechariah
hears the prophecy of the angel about the
birth of John and is fearful and troubled. His
first question is centered on himself and
he asked, "How can I know this?" He
has trouble truly hearing the words of
the prophecy given to him and is,
therefore, struck dumb--perhaps
not as a punishment, but an
opportunity given to him so
that he must listen and
take in the gift that God
has given him.
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5. Mary's response, in contrast,
gives us a different view of
how to be a disciple. When
Mary encounters the angel,
she is also troubled, but she
listens to the words of the
angel. She raises an objection
which is really her searching for
understanding. She doesn't
receive an explanation, but is
given an assurance that God
will be with her.
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6. Her response, however, is
her unqualified YES. She, a
young woman in a society
in which being either of
those rendered one
powerless, gives a YES
which affirms her identity
and trust in God. Mary
gives this YES because she
has been listening to the
voice of God and has faith
that God will be with her,
no matter what happens.
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7. For Daughters of Charity, this day
is a special day because it is the
day that we make our vows for
another year. We make our life
commitment as Daughters of
Charity before we ever make
vows, but the vows reflect that
commitment. Each year, we are
graced with the opportunity to
reflect upon and renew our
commitment to God and to the
service of people living in
poverty. I am grateful for this time
each year to stop and consider
how I am living the vows. Each
year, it seems a different vow is
my focus as I have yet another
lesson to learn about how to live
each vow better. I take great
consolation from being in this
long line of women who have
been saying these words each
year since the time of St. Louise.

8. T H E S P I R I T O F C H A R I T Y B L O G
W R I T T E N B Y S I S T E R T H E R E S E H AY W O O D , D . C . ,
P R O V I N C E O F A U S T R A L I A
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