Mary, by her humility, became the mother of her creator

God, having determined to manifest to the world His immense goodness, by humbling Himself so far as to become Man, to redeem lost man, and having to choose a virgin Mother, sought amongst virgins the one who was most humble. He found that the Blessed Virgin Mary surpassed all others in humility, as greatly as she surpassed them in sanctity, and therefore chose her for His Mother. He hath regarded the humility of his handmaid. "She did not say," remarks St. Laurence Justinian, "He hath regarded the virginity, or the innocence, but only the humility of His handmaid." And before him St. Jerome had said, that "God chose her to be His Mother more on account of her humility than of all her other sublime virtues."

Now we understand that Mary was the one who was spoken of in the sacred Canticles under the name of spikenard, a small and lowly plant, which, by its sweet odour, drew the King of Heaven, the Eternal Word, from the bosom of His Father, into her womb, there to clothe Himself with human flesh: While the king was at his repose, my spikenard sent forth the odour thereof (Cant. i. 11), which St. Antoninus thus explains: "Spikenard, from its being a small and lowly herb, was a type of Mary, who in the highest degree gave forth the sweet odour of her humility." Before him St. Bernard had said: "She was indeed worthy to be looked upon by the Lord, whose beauty the King so greatly desired, and by whose most sweet odour He was drawn from the eternal repose of His Father's bosom." So that God, attracted by the humility of the Blessed Virgin, when He became Man for the redemption of man, chose her for His Mother. He would not, however, for the greater glory and merit of His Mother, become her Son without her consent. "He would not take flesh from her," says the Abbot William, "unless she gave it." Behold, whilst this humble little virgin was in her poor cottage sighing and entreating the Lord, as it was revealed to St. Elizabeth of Hungary, that He would send the world its Redeemer, the Archangel Gabriel came, as the bearer on the part of God, of the great embassy, and saluted her: Hail, full of grace; the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women. (Luke i., 28). Hail, O Mary full of grace; for thou art rich in that grace which surpasses the grace given to all men and Angels. The Lord is with thee, and always was with thee, assisting thee with His grace. Thou art blessed amongst all women for all others fell under the curse of sin; but thou, as the Mother of the Blessed One, wast preserved from every stain; and always wast, and always wilt be blessed.

What answer does the humble Mary give to a salutation so full of praises? She does not reply; but, astonished at it, she is confounded and troubled: who having heard was troubled at his saying, and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be. (Luke, i 29). Why was she troubled? Was it that she feared an illusion? No, for she was sure that it was a celestial spirit who spoke to her. Her modesty was perhaps troubled at the sight of an Angel under human form, as some have thought? No, the text is clear, she was troubled at his saying: to which Eusebius Emissenu adds, "not at his appearance, but at what he said." This trouble, then, proceeded entirely from her humility and was caused by the great praises, which were far from her own humble estimate of herself. Hence the more she heard herself praised, the more deeply did she enter into the depth of her own nothingness. St. Bernardine of Sienna writes, that "had the Angel said, 'O Mary, thou art the greatest sinner in the world,' her astonishment would not have been so great; the sound of such high praises filled her with fear."