SCRIPTURE COMMENTARY #12
And the angel being come in, said unto her: "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women." (Luke 1:28)
COMPARISON BETWEEN EVE AND MARY: Eve was the mother of all mankind, according to the flesh: Mary is the spiritual Mother of all the faithful. Both entered life without the stain of sin, and in a state of grace; but Eve lost grace, while Mary, on the contrary, preserved it and increased it by corresponding with it. Eve thoughtlessly allowed herself to be deceived by the devil, without asking herself whether it were a good or an evil spirit who spoke through the serpent; but Mary pondered, and asked herself whether the salutation of the angel came from God or not. Eve conversed with the devil, for the ruin of man: Mary with Gabriel, for the salvation of man. Eve sinned by unbelief: by pride, wishing to be as God: Mary was humble, calling herself the handmaid of the Lord. Eve was disobedient to God: Mary gave herself over entirely to His will. Eve consented to sin: Mary to God's will. Eve, by her pride, degraded herself, and brought sin and death on all mankind: Mary, by her humility, was herself exalted, and through her Divine Son gave grace and life to the world. As far as she could, Mary paid the debt owed by Eve to the human race. Eve was the mother of the curse: Mary of the blessing. She is the true Mother of the living, the new and better Eve. These striking contrasts are, of course, the result not of accident, but of the action of the mysterious wisdom and counsel of God, and they teach us to value God's merciful Providence.
[From 'A Practical Commentary on Holy Scripture' by Bishop Knecht, D.D.]
(1899 Douay-Rheims Bible)
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