Day 12: Reciting the Angelus.

Twelve days into Lent and our twelfth resolution is Reciting the Angelus at 6 AM, 12 PM, and 6 PM. This beautiful Marian prayer, rooted in the mystery of the Incarnation, invites us three times each day to pause, remember the moment when the Word became flesh, and unite ourselves to Mary's “yes” to God. As we reflect on the significance of the number “forty” in Scripture and in our Lenten journey, the Angelus becomes a powerful anchor calling us back to the Incarnation that makes our entire desert pilgrimage possible.

“Forty” is a significant number with clear symbolic meaning. Jesus’ forty days in the desert remind us of the forty days that Moses spent on Mount Sinai when he saw God “face to face” and received the Ten Commandments, the basis for the covenant of the Old Law. The Old Law was but a prefiguration of the New Law of truth and grace that Jesus came to institute. Thus, during these forty days, Jesus becomes the New Moses on Mount Sinai, preparing to present to God’s people the fulfillment of the Ten Commandments, and giving them the grace needed to be faithful.

These forty days in the desert also remind us of the forty years that the Israelites wandered through the desert on their journey to the Promised Land. Recall that the Promised Land was to be one “flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8, NABRE), a paradise on earth.

During their forty-year journey in the desert, God provided for their needs. He gave them water, manna in the morning, and quail in the evening. This bread and flesh on which they lived symbolized the new sustenance that Jesus would give in the Holy Eucharist. The forty years of wandering in the desert also symbolize the journey of our entire lives toward Heaven. Earthly life is one of “wandering,” being provided for by God, and anticipating the great reward of our perseverance.

Since Jesus’ forty days in the desert was a new living out of the Israelites’ time in the desert, we should also see it as a symbol of our journeys through life. This life we live is one of struggle, deprivation of the glories that God promises to bestow upon us, and a time during which we must always keep our eyes on the goal of our journey: Heaven.

As soon as the Israelites completed their journey, they were rewarded with the Promised Land. As soon as Jesus completed His forty days in the desert, He emerged saying, “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand” (Mark 1:15, NABRE). Those who conclude their journeys through the desert of this life with fidelity to the will of God, and are purged from every sin and attachment to sin, will receive the promised superabundant life of Heaven.

As you ponder the meaning of “forty,” see it as God calling you to persevere. Do not quit the journey before the finish line. Persevere and have hope that “the time of fulfillment” awaits. For now, we remain on our journeys and must press on to the end. We must endure the hardships of the desert of this life, relying upon God’s providence, being fed by the new manna and quail in the Eucharist, and remaining sustained by the spring of Living Water given to us at Baptism. During this journey, we must remain faithful to the Old Law, now elevated and fulfilled by the New Law of Jesus’ teachings and the gift of grace, as our commitment to the new Covenant God has offered to us. If we are faithful to the journey, God will be faithful in bestowing the reward.

The Angelus, prayed faithfully at 6 AM, 12 PM, and 6 PM, serves as a daily reminder of this very journey. Each time we pray it, we recall the angel's announcement to Mary and her humble fiat; “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done unto me according to thy word” (Luke 1:38, NABRE)—which made possible the Incarnation, the source of all our hope in the desert. In the midst of our own “forty” days (and the longer “forty years” of life), the Angelus pauses us three times daily to:

🔹Acknowledge God's nearness in the ordinary hours of the day, just as He entered human history in the ordinary moment of the Annunciation.

🔹Unite ourselves to Mary's obedience, asking for the grace to say our own “yes” to God's will amid temptations and hardships.

🔹Rejoice in the Word made flesh, who accompanies us in our desert wanderings and sustains us until we reach the true Promised Land of Heaven.

By committing to the Angelus at these set times, we sanctify the rhythm of our day, morning, midday and evening keeping our eyes fixed on the goal: the Kingdom announced by Christ after His desert victory. The prayer becomes a small but powerful act of perseverance, echoing the Israelites' reliance on daily manna and quail, and reminding us that God provides what we need at every stage of the journey.

My persevering Lord, You remained faithful to Your mission of fasting and praying for forty days. You pressed on to the end of that time and endured much. When You emerged, You announced that the time of fulfillment had arrived. Please give me Your strength and grace to persevere through the desert of this life. Give me hope for all that awaits in the glories of Heaven. Through the daily recitation of the Angelus, help me to stay united to the mystery of Your Incarnation, to imitate Mary's faithful “yes,” and to keep my heart fixed on the Promised Land of eternal life. May these three daily pauses draw me closer to You and renew my resolve to press on until the end. Jesus, I trust in You.