December 20, 2020
“Entering the Story”
2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16
Luke 1:26-38
Luke 1:46b-55
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God, our strength and our redeemer. Amen.
So, it was just a short walk from the guest house where I was staying in Nazareth five years ago to the Church of the Annunciation – a beautiful basilica built over the spot in the village of Nazareth that many believe to be the location of the childhood home of Mary, and thus the place where Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel when she was a young teen.
There is a very unique and extraordinary feature of the Church of the Annunciation that I want to share with you in a moment, but first I want to talk about the scripture passages for today because Mary, the mother of Jesus, figures prominently in the passages we just heard from Luke.
On this fourth Sunday of Advent, it seems only appropriate that we focus on Mary as we await the birth of Jesus once again, as the story of Jesus’ birth really begins with her.
Obviously, Mary is special and sacred in the role she plays in the birth story – but in many ways, Mary is also like all of us. She gives each one of us a way to enter the story. Let me try to explain what I mean.
In the passage from Luke in which the angel Gabriel visits Mary, we see an ordinary young woman from the small village of Nazareth who is called to do a most extraordinary thing. She will conceive and deliver the Savior of the world.
And how does she react? After a brief moment of questioning, feeling perplexed, and exclaiming, “How can this be?” she quickly embraces her identity, proclaiming, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”
And then, after learning that her elderly relative Elizabeth is also expecting a baby, Mary travels to visit Elizabeth, and it is in that context that our second passage from Luke comes in – the Magnificat – a song of praise to God, delivered by Mary.
So, here’s the thing with the Magnificat. While it is a beautiful and poetic tribute to God, its words are also extremely significant in that they inaugurate a great transformation.
Mary begins with the beautiful words, “My soul magnifies the Lord,” and she continues by describing the ways in which God has blessed her and all generations to come.
But then she goes on to proclaim a rather startling transformation which involves a reversal of the accepted order of things.
She proclaims that God has “brought down the powerful” and “lifted up the lowly.”
God has “filled the hungry” and “sent the rich away empty.”
There is going to be a new order of things with the coming of the Christ child. And Mary is the one setting all of that in motion.
So, I mentioned a moment ago that I believe Mary gives each of us a way to enter the story of Christ’s birth. Let me explain what I mean.
First, Mary models for us what it looks like to see beyond our earthly selves and not get too caught up in our own importance. Mary never says, “Look how great I am,” but instead gives God all the praise and glory saying, “My soul magnifies the Lord.”
Secondly, Mary gives us a way to enter the story simply by being who she is.
She is a young, inexperienced girl from a small village – an unlikely person to be chosen to play such an extraordinary role. In other words, Mary was ordinary – she was one of us – and yet the role she played changed the course of history.
Sometimes it is the least among us – those to whom we can personally relate – that are chosen to do the most extraordinary things. We should never discount the impact our lives may potentially have on the lives of others.
And so, I want to go back for just a moment to the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth.
There is a gallery of mosaics on display within the church, and also in the surrounding courtyard, that contain dozens of portraits of Mary – and what is unique and special about these mosaics is that each was contributed by a different country from around the world – and so each of the mosaics portrays Mary through the eyes of that particular culture.
So, for example, in the mosaics from Asian countries, or from South American countries, each portray Mary with the physical characteristics and dress and culture of that particular country.
In that way, Mary is not only one of us, she is ALL of us.
Through Mary we can enter the story and get a glimpse of how the impossible becomes possible and how hope can be born in the most unlikely of times and places.
Wishing you all hope born anew as we anticipate the transformative power of the Christ child coming into the world once again.
AMEN