Translating the Word: The Mystery of the Annunciation in the Art of Medieval England

Abstract

One of the most important events in the New Testament, related to the Gospel of Luke, occurs when the angel Gabriel descends to Galilee to announce to the Virgin Mary that she will be the mother of Christ. However, the salutation that marks Gabriel's arrival and the subsequent announcement that she will conceive really comprise only part of what has come to be known as the mystery of the Annunciation. Following Gabriel's announcement comes the important exchange in which he not only describes the considerable power that Christ will possess, but also explains the way in which the Virgin will conceive. Later in the Annunciation event is the Incarnation-- wherein the Virgin, exclaiming, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done unto me according to thy word," is infused by the Holy Spirit and conceives the Christ child. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, "The Annunciation is the beginning of Jesus in His human nature" and it is the Incarnation--the miracle of the Word of God made flesh--that is central to this event. This moment, where spirit and flesh become one in Christ, means the merging of the supernatural and the natural and demonstrates the extent of the power of God.