Good morning Friars. My name is Julia Schumm of the Class of 2025. Today we are celebrating the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Immaculate Conception is a Catholic belief that Mary, Mother of Jesus, was conceived without original sin, making her pure and sinless from the very moment of her conception. This belief highlights the power of God's grace and His plan to bring salvation to the world through Jesus, while also honoring Mary’s cooperation with that plan. Through the Immaculate Conception, Mary was chosen and given a special grace from God. Comparatively, in baptism Christians are graced and called by God too.

Today’s Gospel tells an account of the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel visited Mary in Nazareth when she was roughly 14 years old, and told her that she would conceive a child by the Holy Spirit who would be the Son of God. Not only is this moment extremely important to the history of our faith, but I also think that we can learn a lot from Mary’s response to this situation. Although her initial reaction is to question the angel, she considers where God may be guiding her by pausing and opening her heart for guidance. Once doing this she states, "May it be done to me according to your word." Mary understands what she is about to endure, yet she remains compliant and confident in the path that God is leading her on.

Now how can we relate to this? Almost everyone in this room is older than Mary was when this event happened and none of us could ever even imagine being put into her position. So, rather than trying to picture the angel Gabriel in front of you, I challenge you to picture God’s presence in your life and to understand God’s intentions for you. What does it mean to trust God in your daily life? How can we actualize this trust? Now I am aware this is much easier said than done. It is hard to just understand God’s plans for us when you fail a test, get into an argument, have a bad game, or lose someone important in your life. It is difficult to just snap your fingers to have complete confidence that everything will work out in accordance with God’s plan. It’s normal to question or doubt God when things get hard. However, trust in God’s plan becomes easier the more you put your faith in God himself.

A few weekends ago, my dad and I attended mass as we routinely do, and the homily at this particular mass really stuck out to me. The Priest began by commenting on how followers of Christ in the early church had faith in Jesus’  word and actions. He then shifted his focus to one simple question: “Who do you follow?” Before I could answer the obvious “Jesus Christ” in my head, the priest began to answer his own question out loud. I soon came to realize that although every single parishioner in the church follows the same Jesus Christ on paper, we all view and relate with Christ in our own unique way. Connecting something intangible like your faith to your beliefs allows you to conceptualize your relationship with God and understand how it can transform your outlook on the world. We can’t quite understand our faith until we put our trust in God. I challenge everyone one of you to spend time with God either today or sometime this week to truly understand how your faith is structured. And remember, your relationship with God is uniquely your own. Only when you allow your true self to connect with God can you allow your faith to grow and develop in strength and love.

Life will continue to throw constant obstacles in your direction, so the best thing to do is to trust as Mary did in your personalized faith in God, and God’s personalized plan for you. As you continue on with the rest of your day and for the rest of your life, remember the quote from today’s Gospel: “For nothing will be impossible for God”. With God by your side you will be capable of getting through even the toughest challenges.

Read more reflections from Fenwick student preachers.