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that she might be holy and without blemish.” 93 As the perfect image of the Father, 94 Christ
sacrificed himself for his Bride, a sacrifice that was free, total, faithful and fruitful, one that
became the ultimate expression of God’s gift of self-revelation in creation. Jesus’ sacrificial love
for the Church also became the embodiment of the spousal mystery as it was first begun in the
garden of Genesis and fulfilled in Christ’s death and Resurrection.
The united role of Jesus and Mary in the mystery of redemption reveals a profound depth
in the spousal mystery as God intended from the beginning. In her on-line article, Emma King
suggests that the mystery of the Agony in the Garden mirrors that of the Annunciation, the two
events being “two sides of the same coin.” 95 However, it seems more appropriate to view the
Annunciation as the mirror—or even as a window—through which the Agony in the Garden
takes on sharper focus. At the Annunciation, Mary becomes a “clean window,” as Thomas
93
Eph. 5:25-27.
Col. 1:15.
95
Emma King, “2 Sides of the Same Coin,” Ignitum Today, April 27, 2016, accessed May 27, 2018,
http://www.ignitumtoday.com/2016/04/27/2-sides-of-the-same-coin-the-annunciation-the-agony/.
94