“Rejoice” says the angel to Mary, “you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus” (Lk 1:28, 31). (…) What does she do? She responds thus: “Let it be to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38). “Let it be ” (“Fiat ”). But in the language in which the Gospel is written, it is not simply “let it be”. The verbal expression indicates a strong desire; it indicates the will that something happen. In other words, Mary does not say: “If it has to happen, let it happen..., if it cannot be otherwise…”. It is not resignation. She does not express a weak and submissive acceptance, but rather she expresses a strong desire, a sincere desire. She is not passive, she is active. She does not defer to God, she cleaves to God. She is a woman in love prepared to serve her Lord completely and immediately. (…) Mary invites us not to postpone, to say “yes”: “Do I have to pray? — Yes” — and I pray. “Do I have to help others? — Yes”. “How shall I do it?” — I do it. Without putting it off. Every “yes” costs something; every “yes” has its cost, but it still costs less than what that courageous “yes” cost her, that prompt “yes", that “let it be to me according to your word ”, which brought us salvation. (Pope Francis, 20 December 2020)