Msgr. Roger J. Landry
National Director, The Pontifical Mission Societies
Daily Reflection for December 8, 2025
Here is the video of today’s reflection.
I’m Monsignor Roger Landry, national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies. Coming to you from the entrance of the Augustine Institute in St. Louis, where our Lady welcomes everybody who comes here today, December 8th, as the Solemnity of Her Immaculate Conception. We think about Her true greatness. What is the fittingness of the Immaculate Conception? So many of the early saints pondered it. The first was so that she would be free from sin, capable of saying an entire wholehearted yes to God on behalf of the human race. The second reason why it was so fitting for no stain of original sin to have touched Her from the first moment of Her existence was so that no sin would touch Jesus in Her womb because he was coming to free us from that sin. But it’s fitting that on Her Solemnity that we ponder in the second reading today that the Lord has created us like her to be holy and without blemish, immaculate in his sight. That doesn’t happen from the first moment of our conception, but it does happen through baptism in the life of the sacrament, which is the real life of the church of which Mary is the model.
And so missionaries take such great heart for Mary, conceived without original sin, who became the great queen of the apostles, the mother of the church’s mission. And we try to extend her maternity so that she will be what Jesus called her to be at Calvary, the mother of all the living. embracing all her sons and daughters under her immaculate heart. It’s not enough for us though just to venerate her on this day to sing beautiful hymns like Immaculate Mary. We’ve got to commit to live like Mary. Here you can see she’s pregnant in the statue. And I love the statues of the blessed mother. We know that as soon as she had conceived Jesus within, she went with haste to be able to bring him to her elderly cousin Elizabeth. She couldn’t keep Jesus to herself. And that’s one of the reasons why she is the great patroness of the missions. How can we keep Jesus to ourselves? The same Jesus she conceived in Nazareth and bore within her womb for nine months. We ourselves receive in Holy Communion. He just looks differently. She received the same Jesus in Holy Communion after His Ascension from the hands of the apostle St. John and probably St. Peter. She’s regularly going to try to bring her son to others. Throughout this Advent season, we remember Christ’s three-fold coming. His coming in history in Bethlehem, in mystery, in the sacraments, and in prayer, in majesty on the end of time. Mary shows us how to run forth with great eagerness and love to meet him in each of those three ways. And she’s the Great Magistra, not just mater, but the great teacher of the church in preparing us all how to do that. missionaries are her great students. We pray for them today through the Queen of the Apostles intercession. Oh Mary, conceived without original sin, pray for us whoever course to thee. God bless you.
The Gospel reading on which the reflection was based on:
Gospel
The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.