Where the Wind…

…Opening To…

God’s glory, now, is kindled gentler than low candlelight
Under the rafters of a barn:
Eternal Peace is sleeping in the hay,
And Wisdom’s born in secret in a straw-roofed stable. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

In those days Caesar Augustus declared that everyone throughout the empire should be enrolled in the tax lists. This first enrollment occurred when Quirinius governed Syria. Everyone went to their own cities to be enrolled. Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea. (Luke 2:1-4; context)

…Filling Up…

We come to it at last: the story we hear every Christmas – the second chapter of Luke. We know the story so well that we can find it difficult to really enter into it. We tend to look at it as we view the Christmas pageant: a cute story filled with cute characters and barnyard animals. But does it really impact our lives?

But if we look at the way Luke starts the story – not the way the Christmas pageant does – we find an answer to that question. Yes, this story impacts us here and now because of the great stirring of the world there and then. Notice the particularity that Luke provides in giving us the details of time and place. The event of the Incarnation didn’t just happen during some ephemeral “once upon a time” or in some fairyland. This story happened when Quirinius was governor of Syria and in the city of David called Bethlehem.

By giving his readers these details, Luke lets us know that he is not telling a fable or a morality tale or an allegory He is telling the Gospel, the story of the life of Jesus Christ the Savior. Yes, this story might be miraculous. Yes, this story might include things that are difficult to believe because they sound far-fetched or outside the realm of day-to-day normality. But this story happened. This story is true.

…Praying For…

Dear God, your story has been happening since before you began speaking creation into being. Help me to enter into your story in my own time and place so that I can be a part of your good news. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, as living vessel for holding the light of your son, as was the manger on that holy night.

…Opening To…

Did not her eyes as grey as doves
Alight like the peace of a new world upon that house, upon miraculous Elizabeth?
Her salutation Sings in the stone valley like a Charterhouse bell:
And the unborn saint John Wakes in his mother’s body,
Bounds with the echoes of discovery. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

They said to her, “None of your relatives have that name.” Then they began gesturing to his father to see what he wanted to call him. After asking for a tablet, he surprised everyone by writing, “His name is John.” At that moment, Zechariah was able to speak again, and he began praising God. All their neighbors were filled with awe, and everyone throughout the Judean highlands talked about what had happened. All who heard about this considered it carefully. They said, “What then will this child be?” Indeed, the Lord’s power was with him. (Luke 1:61-66; context)

…Filling Up…

Yesterday’s reading ended with Elizabeth’s family and friends wanting to name her baby after his father, Zechariah. But she disappoints them saying, “No, his name will be John.” They don’t understand. The naming convention of the day directed parents to pick a family name, and John appears nowhere on their list. Zechariah (who, you recall, has been unable to speak since he sassed the angel at the beginning of the chapter) writes on a tablet: “His name is John.”

I don’t know if there is any significance to what I’m about to point out, but it’s there, so I’m going to say it anyway. Notice that Elizabeth uses the future tense (“his name will be”) and Zechariah the present (“his name is”). The future tense is a bit weaker – his name isn’t “John” yet, so there’s still room for discussion. I imagine that with this passage, Luke goes with the flow of his patriarchal times. When he uses the present tense, Zechariah in effect puts his foot down – “His name is John, end of discussion.” Who knows? Perhaps relatives and neighbors still wouldn’t have been satisfied. But at that moment, Zechariah begins to speak again. The first thing he does? You got it. He praises God. Everyone forgets their squabble about John’s name, and they wonder at how powerful this child will be.

Now compare this to Jesus’ naming ritual in the next chapter (2:21). Not a soul complains that he isn’t taking Joseph’s name. Is this because everyone knows that Joseph isn’t the child’s biological father? Perhaps the baby just didn’t look like a “Joseph.” Or perhaps no one makes a fuss because “Jesus” is not simply a name, but a mission statement – “God saves.”

**Next week, we will skip to the beginning of Luke 2. Sadly, we just don’t have time to tackle Zechariah’s song to his son, which concludes chapter 1, but I commend it to. Click the “context” link above to read it.**

…Praying For…

Dear God, in you I find my mission, my life, and my joy. Help me to live into the fullness and freedom of moving in concert with your continual creativity. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, with a song in my heart about the way you are reshaping this world in the image of your kingdom.

…Opening To…

Did not her eyes as grey as doves
Alight like the peace of a new world upon that house, upon miraculous Elizabeth?
Her salutation Sings in the stone valley like a Charterhouse bell:
And the unborn saint John Wakes in his mother’s body,
Bounds with the echoes of discovery. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months, and then returned to her home. When the time came for Elizabeth to have her child, she gave birth to a boy. Her neighbors and relatives celebrated with her because they had heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy. On the eighth day, it came time to circumcise the child. They wanted to name him Zechariah because that was his father’s name. But his mother replied, “No, his name will be John.” (Luke 1:56-60; context)

…Filling Up…

I love the detail about Mary staying with Elizabeth for three months. If we add that to the six months that Elizabeth was pregnant when the angel came to Mary, we arrive at John’s full gestation time. As John was coming to full term, Jesus was just starting to show up on the sonogram, distinguishable from the background noise by a large nascent head and tiny nose. Their mothers, one would imagine, shared every meal over the course of Mary’s visit, which means that the same nutrients nurtured both John and Jesus in the womb.

I imagine that Mary learned how to be pregnant by watching Elizabeth. (After all, What to Expect When You’re Expecting was still 1,984 years from publication.) I imagine that Elizabeth made a soothing herbal tea for Mary when the younger woman developed morning sickness. I imagine that Mary did Elizabeth’s chores when the elder woman’s back began to hurt in the later months. I imagine that they probably also wept and shouted and complained both to and at each other.

These two women carried within them our savior Jesus Christ and his herald John, who is called the Baptizer. And for those three overlapping months I think Mary and Elizabeth nurtured and supported one another, and held their hands on each other’s abdomens to feel the babies kicking. (John surely kicked more because he was bigger, and because that was his nature.) With their care of each other, these two unlikely women set up a pattern that assured that their infants came into a world of nurturing love. The world outside the family unit might have been dark and dangerous, but in the fold, there was joy.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you nurture me as a mother cares for her children. Help me to reach out my hands in love to support and nurture those that you place in my path. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, with a song in my heart about the way you are reshaping this world in the image of your kingdom.

…Opening To…

Did not her eyes as grey as doves
Alight like the peace of a new world upon that house, upon miraculous Elizabeth?
Her salutation Sings in the stone valley like a Charterhouse bell:
And the unborn saint John Wakes in his mother’s body,
Bounds with the echoes of discovery. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

“He has shown strength with his arm. He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations. He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones and lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty-handed. He has come to the aid of his servant Israel, remembering his mercy, just as he promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and to Abraham’s descendants forever.” (Luke 1:51-55; context)

…Filling Up…

Halfway through Mary’s song, which we began talking about yesterday, her tone shifts. She continues to praise God, but now she moves to concrete examples of why we should praise God. Her list takes the common assumptions of the world and turns them upside down. God lifts up the lowly; God fills the hungry with good things. At the same time, God sends the rich and powerful away. With these words, Mary speaks prophetically about what will happen due to the infant growing inside her.

Just so we don’t miss the fact that Mary is speaking about her son’s paradigm-shifting life (and death and resurrection, for that matter), she ends her song by recalling the promises that God has made throughout God’s relationship with the people of Israel. In effect, she says that God is trustworthy and that makes God praise-worthy.

In all of this, Mary’s song isn’t just plopped in the middle of the first chapter of Luke. Rather, by putting this song on Mary’s lips, Luke is able to comment on the story that is happening from within his own narrative. It’s quite masterful, really. In effect, through Mary’s words Luke says: “Lest we forget what this story is really about, here is what God is doing in all of this.”

Through the helpless infant and through the man who doesn’t fight back, God changes the game. Mary’s song praises God for this fundamental upheaval of the world’s systems. And we continue to sing her words because, through us, God is still working to bring about all of God’s promises.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you always fulfill your promises to your people. Help me to work with you in lifting up the lowly and bringing good things to the hungry. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, with a song in my heart about the way you are reshaping this world in the image of your kingdom.

…Opening To…

Did not her eyes as grey as doves
Alight like the peace of a new world upon that house, upon miraculous Elizabeth?
Her salutation sings in the stone valley like a Charterhouse bell:
And the unborn saint John wakes in his mother’s body,
Bounds with the echoes of discovery. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

Mary got up and hurried to a city in the Judean highlands. She entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. With a loud voice she blurted out, “God has blessed you above all women, and he has blessed the child you carry. Why do I have this honor, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. Happy is she who believed that the Lord would fulfill the promises he made to her.” (Luke 1:39-45; context)

…Filling Up…

Because of how we break up the first chapter of Luke in church services, you may not realize that Mary’s story continues. The last we saw of her at the end of last week, she said yes to the angel, who then leaves her alone. This is where we usually end the passage. But notice how today’s begins: “Mary got up and hurried to a city in the Judean highlands.” The story keeps right on going. And so shall we.

Mary demonstrates the most natural human response to an encounter with God. She goes to tell someone about it. It’s as if the encounter isn’t real until she’s spoken of it aloud. The angel mentioned her relative Elizabeth. Indeed, Gabriel hinted at the miraculous nature of Elizabeth’s own pregnancy, so she seems like the most appropriate person to go and see.

Sharing an encounter with God is the best way to make it real for yourself. But more than that, it is the best way to encourage others to be on the lookout for their own encounters with God. We see this happen immediately. I love this translation: Elizabeth “blurts out.” She just can’t contain her excitement about what is happening to Mary. And because the infant in her womb jumps for joy, she encounters the nascent Christ in Mary’s own womb.

How has God encountered you? And how have you shared these encounters?

…Praying For…

Dear God, your presence makes me jump for joy. Fill me with the Holy Spirit that I may recognize your movement in my life. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, with a song in my heart about the way you are reshaping this world in the image of your kingdom.

…Opening To…

Speech of an angel shines in the waters of her thought like diamonds,
Rides like a sunburst on the hillsides of her heart.
And is brought home like harvests,
Hid in her house, and stored
Like the sweet summer’s riches in our peaceful barns. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

“Look, even in her old age, your relative Elizabeth has conceived a son. This woman who was labeled ‘unable to conceive’ is now six months pregnant. Nothing is impossible for God.” Then Mary said, “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be with me just as you have said.” Then the angel left her. (Luke 1:36-38; context)

…Filling Up…

Unlike Zechariah, Mary doesn’t ask for evidence of God’s power. She was confused by Gabriel’s greeting. Her question was about the mechanics of pregnancy. But she doesn’t seem to need proof to corroborate what the angel is telling her. However, Gabriel provides some anyway: “Elizabeth wasn’t supposed to be able to have children, and look, she’s starting her third trimester!”

I wonder if this proof of the following statement, “Nothing is impossible for God,” sways Mary. In fact, I wonder at what stage of the conversation she makes her decision. Is it the moment the angel mentions the baby? Is it after hearing of his kingdom? Is it when her cousin’s pregnancy comes up? Part of me says that Mary is just waiting for Gabriel to stop speaking so she can say yes. The other part says that Mary takes a moment when Gabriel is done. Perhaps she asks the angel to pray with her. In the next chapter, we find that Mary “ponders things in her heart,” so perhaps she does that now.

She could never have known what she was signing up for. Not really. My wife and I are thinking about having children, and even the thought of normal babies makes the future so unclear – exciting, yes, but unclear. Imagine being told that your baby is to be the Son of God – that his very name will mean “God saves!” I can’t help but think that Mary finishes pondering with no answers as to what her decision will mean for her life or her family’s lives. All she has is faith. Faith and the courage to trust that nothing is impossible for God, not even the act of sustaining Mary through what will surely be a hard (exciting, yes, but hard) life.

Today, I pray for the faith and the courage to answer God with her words. I invite you to do the same. In whatever God is calling you to do, let go of the need to know the outcome of your decision, and say with Mary: “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be with me just as you have said.”

…Praying For…

Dear God, for you everything is possible for your creative imagination is without limits. Help me to trust that you will guide my feet upon right pathways all the days of my life. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that I, too, am a player in the continued narrative of the Good News of your Son Jesus Christ.

…Opening To…

Speech of an angel shines in the waters of her thought like diamonds,
Rides like a sunburst on the hillsides of her heart.
And is brought home like harvests,
Hid in her house, and stored
Like the sweet summer’s riches in our peaceful barns. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

Then Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen since I haven’t had sexual relations with a man?” The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come over you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the one who is to be born will be holy. He will be called God’s Son.” (Luke 1:34-35; context)

…Filling Up…

In all of the wondrous things the angel tells Mary about her son, Mary hangs on to the one thing that is most immediate – the process of becoming pregnant. I can see her mind’s eye filling with images of her son sitting on a throne in Jerusalem; influencing the movers and shakers in the empire; battling Israel’s oppressors; perhaps being killed in the line of duty. I know that my own mother didn’t let me play football because she was afraid I would get hurt. Imagine Mary looking into Jesus’ future, based on Gabriel’s message, and seeing the kinds of danger that come from having the power that Jesus would have.

It’s no wonder, then, that Mary latches onto the immediate problem of becoming pregnant. Holding onto to this keeps her, I think, from becoming overwhelmed with the life that the angel describes to her. Of course, Gabriel’s answer to her question about pregnancy reveals even more wonders. Apparently, it’s that kind of day for Mary.

But notice again what Luke is doing with the way he constructs his dialogue. Mary’s question reaches for normality after hearing an overwhelming proclamation about her son. Then, after her attempt to steady herself, Gabriel launches back into his speech about the wondrous manner, in which she will become pregnant.

The pregnancy is the key here. Mary’s pregnancy is miraculous, yes, because the child is conceived from the Holy Spirit. But at the same time, the act of being pregnant is one of the most normal things a woman can do. Indeed, women’s bodies are designed to carry children. In the birth of Jesus, the miraculous and ordinary interweave.

And this reminds us that in our lives, we really shouldn’t attempt to separate the mundanity from the majesty as readily as we do.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you weave through every moment of my life, both the momentous and the monotonous. Help me to train my eyes to see that movement and to open my heart to receive your presence. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that I, too, am a player in the continued narrative of the Good News of your Son Jesus Christ.

…Opening To…

Speech of an angel shines in the waters of her thought like diamonds,
Rides like a sunburst on the hillsides of her heart.
And is brought home like harvests,
Hid in her house, and stored
Like the sweet summer’s riches in our peaceful barns. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

The angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Mary. God is honoring you. Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and he will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father. He will rule over Jacob’s house forever, and there will be no end to his kingdom.” (Luke 1:30-33; context)

…Filling Up…

The past-present-future nature of the narrative, which we discussed yesterday, carries through Gabriel’s message today. Once again, the mention of David links to the past. Gabriel’s assertion that God is honoring Mary happens in the present. And the speech about the eternity of Jesus’ kingdom point to the future. Within this framework, Gabriel tells Mary what God is asking her to do: conceive and bear a son, who will be called the Son of the Most High.

But notice what Gabriel says before the message about Mary’s impending pregnancy and about Jesus’ life. First, the angel says the standard line used by all of God’s messengers: “Don’t be afraid.” Gabriel said this to Zechariah as well, and an angel will say it the shepherds in the next chapter. In these other two encounters, the angels lead with “Don’t be afraid.” But in Mary’s encounter, it is the second thing Gabriel says, as if he forgot the order of his speech. Perhaps, Gabriel was so excited about the content of his message that he forgot to allay Mary’s fear at the outset. Or maybe the idea of rejoicing in God’s favor trumps the idea of fear.

Indeed, the sentence about fear falls in between “The Lord is with you” and “God is honoring you.” Taken in this order, Gabriel’s message surrounds the idea of fear with the idea of God being in relationship with Mary. Mary has no need to fear because the Lord is with her and God is honoring her. And if this isn’t enough to show that God’s relationship with Mary trumps fear, the angel does something that is always powerful in the Gospel. Gabriel says Mary’s name: “Don’t be afraid, Mary.”

In this opening message Gabriel establishes God’s intimate relationship with Mary, a connection that drives out fear. So I invite you today to listen for the words of God that speak each day into our hearts: “The Lord is with you. Don’t be afraid even if God gives you a daunting task because God honors you with such work, and God will see you through.”

…Praying For…

Dear God, you take my fear and triumph over it with your love. Help me to listen for and accept the call you speak in my life. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that I, too, am a player in the continued narrative of the Good News of your Son Jesus Christ.

…Opening To…

Speech of an angel shines in the waters of her thought like diamonds,
Rides like a sunburst on the hillsides of her heart.
And is brought home like harvests,
Hid in her house, and stored
Like the sweet summer’s riches in our peaceful barns. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

When Elizabeth was six months pregnant, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a city in Galilee, to a virgin who was engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David’s house. The virgin’s name was Mary. When the angel came to her, he said, “Rejoice, favored one! The Lord is with you!” She was confused by these words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. (Luke 1:26-29; context)

…Filling Up…

Alright. Over a week into our slow walk through Luke’s birth narrative, we finally meet one of the major players. Notice all the things we learn about Mary in these few short verses. We know she has some connection to Elizabeth, or else why would Luke mention Elizabeth’s pregnancy. Mary lives in Nazareth. She’s engaged to be married. She’s never been married before, nor done a certain activity that married people do. She is going to marry into the house of David, which is pretty cool because he was king a long time ago. And we know from Gabriel’s greeting that she’s a favorite of God’s and that the Lord is with her. These are the pertinent details that Luke decides we need to know.

Notice also that within these details, Luke provides us with a moment in time that captures the past, the present, and the future. Joseph is descended from the house of David; in this lineage, we link to the past. Elizabeth is six months pregnant and soon she will give birth to John; in this progeny, we link to the future. When Gabriel tells Mary that the “Lord is with you,” the angel brings us to the present.

It’s as if Luke chooses these details to show that, in the decision that Mary makes a few verses later, the long stretch history, the moment of the present, and the possibility of the future all converge in her womb. And, of course, that’s exactly what happens when she becomes pregnant with the Son of God. Pretty cool, huh?

One last thing: I’ve been wondering about Mary’s “confusion” concerning Gabriel’s greeting. When Gabriel met Zechariah, the first words out of the angel’s mouth were: “Don’t be afraid.” Gabriel will say the same to Mary in the next verse, but that’s not the angel’s opening greeting. No, I think that Mary was a humble soul and was confused because she would never have considered herself “favored.” And that’s probably what made her so.

…Praying For…

Dear God, from your hand all of time and space spring. Help me to discern your movement in my past, to hope for a closer walk with you in my future, and to find you in the present. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that I, too, am a player in the continued narrative of the Good News of your Son Jesus Christ.