A Time of Waiting Unique in World History (I)

While the Blessed Virgin was on earth, all Israel was awaiting "the One to come" When she was a little child, the Virgin Mary waited, in the midst of her people Israel, for the coming of the Messiah, who had been heralded not just by only one prophet, but by a long succession of men who, as time went by over the centuries, foretold and kept adding to previous prophecies. She waited in the midst of a small nation, tossed by history, which had survived every confrontation with the empires surrounding it and which was to remain the only nation that was able to resist the break-up of the ancient world and to preserve its identity intact. Israel always held on to the unshakeable knowledge that it was destined to be the instrument of divine providence and have a global significance. The time of the Messiah's coming, clearly yet mysteriously heralded by the prophets, was constantly sought. And this period of expectancy and fulfillment had become so clearly defined and precise at this particular moment in history, that more than 100 Messianic candidates had been identified by the historians. "As the people were in expectation" (Lk 3:15) when John the Baptist appeared, they all asked him, "Are you He who is to come, or shall we look for another?" (Lk 7:19). This was an absolutely unique period in history, and, according to many experts, this singular aspect of Christianity is, of itself, sufficient to set it apart in the religious history of the world.