All human souls born into this world are images of God. Unfortunately they all arrive partially spoiled – except for one. There is one reflection of Himself into which God has poured all His artistry, and which He has not allowed to be damaged in any way.
In the Blessed Virgin Mary, God shows us what Eve was before the Fall. And this latter portrait of the New Eve even exceeds the earlier one in its perfection and loveliness. In her, the Creator has given us one unique exemplar of what humanity was originally intended to be, and what it is still destined to become.
In the Immaculate Conception of our blessed Lady, human perfection made a new appearance. Mary’s freedom from original sin gives us a new definition of what it means to be human. It also renews our hope of salvation. Our Lady’s Immaculate Conception led to her Assumption into heaven. Her Assumption shows where redemption is meant to lead all human beings.
The Immaculate Conception was the rewriting of the nuptial alliance between the Almighty and His wayward spouse, the human race. In the Immaculate Conception, the alliance that we had broken is gloriously renewed, and for ever.
That nuptial union, the new and everlasting Cana, is what we shall soon be celebrating at Christmas. We should be looking forward enthusiastically to the annual celebration of our nuptials. Christ the celestial Bridegroom comes down from heaven to claim His earthly spouse. In His divine presence, and under His conjugal embrace, the whole world becomes Cana, and every disciple is beloved.