Luke tells the story of the birth of Jesus as a message of hope; when we think there is no turning around, keep going. When the angel Gabriel appears to Zacharias, he questions it. When the angel appears to Mary, she is willing and simply asks, "What must I do?"
Mary and Joseph represent what must change for a new shift to take place. They went through great hardships because of Jesus---they were cast out of their tribe, lost their privileges, and were rejected. Like Mary, we are all pregnant with the Christ, and we can choose to have faith and hope and be willing to go through some darkness in order to experience the new radiance.
