Saturday, June 5, 2021

Emmanuel Hatzidakis (EO) on Mary Using her Free-Will to Say "Yes" to God and to Bring Jesus into the World

 

 

Among all of God’s creation, the most holy Virgin is the supreme example of synergy or cooperation between the purpose of God and its accomplishment in man. God, who always respects human liberty, did not wish to become incarnate without the free consent of her who through her virtue and by God’s grace was chosen to be His mother. He waited for her voluntary response: “Behold the handmaiden of the Lord: be it to me according to your word” (Lk. 1:38). The most holy Virgin could have refused (and we are not going to speculate what would have happened had she refused). (Emmanuel Hatzidakis, Jesus Fallen? The Human Nature of Christ Examined from an Eastern Orthodox Perspective [Clearwater, Fla.: Orthodox Witness, 2013], 128)