Reflections on renewal of vows by Fr. Richard McCullen, C.M., former Superior General (Taken from the collection of his writings “DEEP DOWN THINGS”24 March 1990
Paris, France
Mother Duzan, Father Lloret and my dear Sisters,
When the angels and saints in heaven celebrate the feast of the Annunciation of Our Lord, it is only natural that the Angel Gabriel should be a center of attention. Each year the celebration of the feast revives a rumor that the Angel Gabriel had a special difficulty with the commission that was given to him by the Most High. It seems that, when he was asked to go to the planet Earth to a town called Nazareth, he set out obediently and promptly. He went out into the great vastness of the universe which God had created. He traveled from one galaxy of stars to another but could not find the planet Earth. His angelic intelligence had never failed him before, but now it seemed to do so. At last he decided to return to heaven. “Could it be,” he asked himself, “that the planet Earth no longer exists”? Humbly–for angels esteem humility as the greatest wisdom–he spoke of his difficulty to the Most High. “Yes, indeed,” replied the Creator, “the planet Earth is scarcely visible in the universe. It is but a speck of dust. For my part, I know where it is from the sound of the beating of the human heart.”
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