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Micah 5:2-4, Hebrews 10:4-10, Luke 1:39-56
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, West Valley City, UT
The Rev'd W. Lee Shaw
Today we light the fourth candle of Advent as we look with anticipation to the coming of Christ into our lives and the life of the world, and we wonder: will we really be able to get everything done that yet needs to be done with less than 24 hours to go. This day we really do take seriously looking at things done and things left undone.
The Fourth Sunday of Advent is traditionally known as Mary Sunday
with the readings focused on her and her unique role in salvation
history. Liturgical years A and B recount the Annunciation to Mary,
Gabriel's visit to announce her upcoming pregnancy. This year we
have the wonderful story of her trip to visit her cousin Elizabeth,
the expectant mother of John the Baptist. The Visitation has a
special place in my heart because I was ordained to the Diaconate
on the Feast Day of the Visitation, May 31.
Our Gospel reading ended with what is called the Song of Mary
or Magnificat.
This is one of the most beautiful Canticles
or poems in Scripture and is a regular part of the Office of Evening
Prayer. I love this Canticle for it sums up so elegantly the
humility and faith of Mary.
You notice in this Gospel reading Mary is called blessed
three times. Hence the term we often use for the Mother of our
Lord, The Blessed Virgin Mary.
It is her faith, her obedience,
and her courage that crowns her as blessed among all women and why
she holds a very unique and honored place among the saints in light.
I do not believe her visit to her cousin Elizabeth was just a social outing of getting together and having tea and cookies. I have a sense that Mary went there to seek support and counsel from her older cousin who was now also unexpectedly pregnant. Both women, pregnant at inconvenient times: Mary as an unmarried teenager and Elizabeth as an older woman. Yet out of their differences they found much in common. They each recognized in the other the workings of God to bring about great things through them.
This time of year is all too often wrapped up in the soft focus of sentimentality and romanticism. These two women point to the hard realities of their world as they seek the support and company of one another in their surprising pregnancies. I am sure they had much to talk about, share tears over, and dream about as they visited with each other for three months. There is a poignancy to their greetings that foreshadows an uncertain future. Elizabeth will undoubtedly die before she sees her son reach adulthood and become the well known preacher and rabble rouser we know as John the Baptist. While on a darkened Friday afternoon, Mary will look up from the foot of the cross as her son is slowly tortured to death by Imperial Rome. The life and ministries of their sons, foreshadowed for them and known to us, puts the edge of a hard reality to the coming together of these two cousins.
The Epistle to the Hebrews points to this hard edge of the Nativity:
And it is by God's will that we have been sanctified through the
offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
The Nativity
stories, the life of Jesus, call us to acknowledge the shadow of the
cross in the manger, the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once
and for all.
This season is not just about Christmas trees and
familiar carols. It is about the meaning of the life of the babe
in the manger and his offering on the cross. It is about what
difference any of this makes in our lives. Mary and Elizabeth knew
they were called to make a difference, even as they were unclear
as to what would be expected of them in years to come. Their
lives, their faith, and their courage point us to the reality of
the Christmas story. Now what does it mean for us and what are we
going to do about it? For that meaning, I turn to one of my favorite
poets:
If there is no cross in the manger,
there is no Christmas.
If the Babe doesn't become the Adult,
there is no Bethlehem star.
If there is no commitment in us,
there are no Wise Men searching.
If we offer no cup of cold water,
there is no gold, no frankincense, no myrrh.
If there is no praising God's name,
there are no angels singing.
If there is no spirit of alleluia,
there are no shepherds watching.
If there is no standing up, no speaking out, no risk,
there is no Herod, no flight into Egypt
If there is no room in our inn,
then Merry Christmas
mocks the Christ Child,
and the Holy Family is just a holiday card,
and God will loathe our feasts and festivals.
For if there is no reconciliation,
we cannot call Christ Prince of Peace.
If there is no goodwill toward others,
it can all be packed away in boxes for another year.
If there is no forgiveness in us,
there is no cause of celebration.
If we cannot go now even unto Golgotha,
there is no Christmas in us.
If Christmas is not now,
if Christ is not born into the everyday present,
then what is all the noise about?
(Ann Weems, Kneeling in Bethlehem)