Fourth Sunday of Advent: The Great Change of Power Has Come

Today's Scripture Readings

2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16 (NRSV)

Now when the king was settled in his house, and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies around him, the king said to the prophet Nathan, "See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent." Nathan said to the king, "Go, do all that you have in mind; for the LORD is with you."

But that same night the word of the LORD came to Nathan: Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the LORD: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?" Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the LORD of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house. Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me; your throne shall be established forever.

Canticle 15 (BCP., p.91-92)


Romans 16:25-27 (NRSV)

Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith-- to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen.

Luke 1:26-38 (NRSV)

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you." But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" The angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." Then Mary said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.

Blog Reflection

Jason and I have a wonderful new parish home.  We have been attending St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church in St. Paul, Minnesota since All Saints Sunday.  We are enjoying it immensely.  The Liturgy, the music, the preaching and the community there are amazing.  

On the Subject of preaching, we heard a wonderful sermon about Mary last weekend.  The sermon which you can read here was given by The Rev. Barbara Mraz who is both a Deacon at St. John's and the Writer in Residence.  Among the many things I learned from her sermon is that the Magnificat (Canticle 15), has been banned in many countries throughout the world.  It was not uncommon in those countries, that the Magnificat was a direct challenge to oppressive power within the governments.  The words: "He has cast the mighty from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly" was considered the same as beginning a public protest against the dictatorial power.  It was not uncommon for protestors to write those words on posters and put them up all over the city.

I wonder if the police would respond to the words of the Magnificat put up in protest of racial discrimination with military style violence.  Would they take out their tear gas or pepper spray?  Would they put their police blockades up with shields, clubs and wear protective gear?

What kind of a response would church members get if they recited the words of the Magnificat in an effort to tell the leaders of our church to get their act together on a particular matter of social justice within the church?

On this Fourth Sunday of Advent we read in our Gospel and in the Magnificat, that God is changing things from the way they have been.  In the past, great leaders came from a line of wealthy men.  They were destined for immense power.  In the account of the Annunciation from St. Luke's Gospel, the Angel Gabriel informs Mary, a 16 year old girl that she is full of grace and has been chosen to bear the Savior Jesus in her womb.  Mary would not be with child from having sexual relations with any man, including her betrothed Joseph.  Mary hears the Angel tell her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God."  The hope of all humankind that would change the powers of this world, came through a woman by God's random act of grace.

Two things speak very profoundly.

1. Mary is a woman in a man's world.  In choosing Mary to bear Jesus, God has disregarded the dominant power of her society.  God clearly communicated through the Annunciation, that God wanted nothing to do with that.  All that God did was call Mary to accept God's call on her life to do something that would change the history of the world forever.  Not even the established law of Mary having relations before she would be married to Joseph was as important to God, as it was to call this young girl to her priestly vocation of and doing the very thing that the Holy Spirit was empowering her to do.

2.  St. Bernard of Clairvaux wrote:

"O blessed Virgin, your lips to praise, your womb to the Creator.  See, the desired of all nations is at your door, knocking to enter.  If he should pass by because of your delay, in sorrow you would begin to seek him afresh, the One whom your soul loves.  Arise in faith, hasten in devotion, open in praise and thanksgiving.  Behold, the handmaid of the Lord, she says, be it done to me according to your word" (Liturgy of the Hours: Volume I, Advent and Christmas Season., p.346).

God comes to and calls each of us to our particular vocation through God's random acts of grace.  The choice we have is to respond in obedience or to say no.   Perhaps we would say no because we are too self-centered.  The vocation God is calling us to will change the powers of this world once again and make us very unpopular.  It is likely that if we respond in obedience, we will be sacrificing our reputation, our popularity and even our whole lives to what God is calling us to.  We will be met with resistance.  We will face the prejudices of many who label us as second class citizens because of our race, gender, gender identity/expression, sexual orientation, immigration status, political party, religion, language and/or behavior.  There will be those who want to throw stones at us, because we have broken with the common tradition of our time.  We will be called to serve God and others because we are first and foremost daughters and sons of God; adopted by Jesus Christ.  Those labels others use to define us, are not in God's database.

May all of us have the humility and strength that was in Mary to accept God's random act of grace on our lives.   May we hear the Angel's words to Mary said to us, "Do not be afraid, you have found favor with God."  May we all pray for one another and for ourselves, that as we journey from here to Bethlehem; we may welcome God's Incarnate Word born for us in humility and love.  May all of us may know the depth and wonder of God's love for all of us.  No exceptions.

Amen.


Prayers

Purify our conscience, Almighty God, by your daily visitation,
that your Son Jesus Christ, at his coming, may find in us a
mansion prepared for himself; who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen.  (Collect for the Fourth Sunday of Advent.  The Book of Common Prayer, p.212).

We beseech thee, O Lord, pour thy grace into our hearts, that
we who have known the incarnation of thy Son Jesus Christ,
announced by an angel to the Virgin Mary, may by his cross
and passion be brought unto the glory of his resurrection;
who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy
Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Traditional Collect, The Annuciation.  The Book of Common Prayer, p.188).

Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so
move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the
people of this land], that barriers which divide us may
crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our
divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Social Justice.  The Book of Common Prayer, p.823). 

Fourth Sunday of Advent: God's Evolution and Revolution In Christ

Today's Scripture Readings

Micah 5: 2-5a (NRSV)

But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah,

who are one of the little clans of Judah,

from you shall come forth for me

one who is to rule in Israel,

whose origin is from of old,

from ancient days.

Therefore he shall give them up until the time

when she who is in labor has brought forth;

then the rest of his kindred shall return

to the people of Israel.

And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD,

in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God.

And they shall live secure, for now he shall be great

to the ends of the earth;

and he shall be the one of peace.

Magnificat (Canticle 15 BCP. p. 91)


Hebrews10: 5-10 (NRSV)

Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said,

"Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired,

but a body you have prepared for me;

in burnt offerings and sin offerings

you have taken no pleasure.

Then I said, 'See, God, I have come to do your will, O God'

(in the scroll of the book it is written of me)."

When he said above, "You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings" (these are offered according to the law), then he added, "See, I have come to do your will." He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. And it is by God's will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Luke 1: 39-55 (NRSV)

In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord."

And Mary said,

"My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.

Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

for the Mighty One has done great things for me,

and holy is his name.

His mercy is for those who fear him

from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm;

he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,

and lifted up the lowly;

he has filled the hungry with good things,

and sent the rich away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel,

in remembrance of his mercy,

according to the promise he made to our ancestors,

to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

Blog Reflection

If there were ever a Being in all the universe who can turn a world settled unto itself upside down, God would be the One.  It is a fact of life, that God does not leave us to our comfort zones without some way of moving us to become more faithful followers of Christ. 

In the coming of Christ, born of the Virgin Mary, God turned a world where the powerful were to dominate the weak with no recourse, into a world redeemed by the sacrifice of God's Son.  That sacrifice did not begin with the Cross, it began when God left the throne of heaven and came to us in Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh.  In 2 Corinthians 8: 9  Paul wrote: "For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich."   This is the very song of Mary in the Magnificat.

William Barclay in : The New Daily Study Bible The Gospel of Luke wrote: "When Joan of Arc knew that her time was short, she prayed, 'I shall only last a year; use me as  you can" (Page 17).

In the Magificat, Mary sings of how she is God's "lowly servant" yet, God used her to do mighty things, and therefore she proclaimed God's Name to be holy.   When we accept that God uses our prayers, though they may seem insignificant to us, great and mighty things happen.  Even if what happens is something we do not see for ourselves.  Mary received God's random act of grace, by being chosen as to give birth to God's Son, yet she recognizes God's great power in her life, and how it brings about an evolution of God revealed to human kind to begin what Barclay calls a "moral revolution," a "social revolution" and "an economic revolution" (Pages 19, 20).

A "moral revolution" that is the end of a pride that considers ourselves greater that God.  This idea fits very well into the first step of humility in the Rule of St. Benedict.   That first step being that we keep the consciousness of God always before our eyes.  This is a recognition that God is God and we are not.  It is a giving over of control and our own wills to that of God with a trust in God, even when our personal securities become unstable in an effort to help us to find our stability in God, through obedience and conversion of life.

A "social revolution" by which through Christ the helpless and vulnerable are those who inspire us to a radical conversion.   A reorganizing of our lives that recognizes Christ in those who are sick without health care, and the lesbian girl coming out to her parents.   The young gay man being harassed by the high school football team.  The LGBT people of Uganda fearful of a law passed that would put them in prison just for their sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression, or very possibly executed.  The social revolution of Christ born through Mary is our invitation to be the voice for the retired and disabled who could lose Social Security benefits to satisfy tax breaks for the wealthiest people, in a fiscal cliff resolution.  To care about the constant placing of the welfare of the poorest and most vulnerable of society as a chip, while giving the wealthy more power to own more and to exercise even more power.

A "social revolution" can be the beginning of an "economic revolution." 

Barclay writes: "A Christian society is a society where no one dares to have too much while others have too little , where everyone gets only to give away.

There is loveliness in the Magnificat but in that loveliness there is dynamite.  Christianity brings about a revolution in individuals and revolution in the world" (Page 20).

As we leave the Season of Advent and enter into the Christmas Season, we are all called to sing the Magnificat with Mary.   We sing that Christ will once again be born in us and in our world, to infuse our society and the Church with an environment of justice, equality and freedom from oppression and violence.  In Christ, our human nature is restored with God's grace by which God is randomly choosing and empowering us to be the change that we want to see in the world.

Amen.


Prayers

Purify our conscience, Almighty God, by your daily visitation,
that your Son Jesus Christ, at his coming, may find in us a
mansion prepared for himself; who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen. (Collect for the Fourth Sunday of Advent, Book of Common Prayer, p. 212).

Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so
move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the
people of this land], that barriers which divide us may
crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our
divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Social Justice, Book of Common Prayer, p. 823).

The Annunciation of our Lord Jesus Christ: The First Female Priest Says YES!

Today's Scripture Readings

Isaiah 7:10-14 (NRSV)

Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying, Ask a sign of the LORD your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, and I will not put the LORD to the test. Then Isaiah said: "Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary mortals, that you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.

Hebrews 10:4-10 (NRSV)

It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said,

"Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired,

but a body you have prepared for me;

in burnt offerings and sin offerings

you have taken no pleasure.

Then I said, 'See, God, I have come to do your will, O God'

(in the scroll of the book it is written of me)."

When he said above, "You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings" (these are offered according to the law), then he added, "See, I have come to do your will." He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. And it is by God's will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Luke 1:26-38  (NRSV)

 

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you." But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" The angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." Then Mary said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.

Blog Reflection

Who was the first Christian disciple to exercise the roll of a Priest?  It was Mary.

Mary was chosen by a random act of God's grace to be the mother of the Incarnate Word.  She was a simple woman, probably 16 years old. Yet, Mary experienced the fullness of God's favor, for this once in a life time opportunity that would change not only her life, but the history of the entire world.  By her surrendering herself to God's will, offering herself completely to God's purpose, she became the bearer of God, through whom God gained a human form.

Among the many duties of a Priest, is to give oneself up to the will of God.  Also, a Priest serves the common good of others, and gives birth to Faith through not only their duties, but by their life example.  Even when faced with the greatest of personal suffering, a Priest still surrenders her/himself to what is best in God's eyes, totally trusting that all will be well.   Mary did all of this, in her acceptance of God's call on her life.

Mary sang her Magnificat in Luke 1: 46-55 of how God changed the dynamics of those who were thought to be powerful, now giving way to the lowly, the servant and the hungry.   Through Mary's acceptance of God's plan for her life, God came to us as one like us, to show us that God relates to us where we are.  As we face our Lenten practices of self-denial, fasting and prayer, God comes to us through the yes of Mary, to identify with our human experience.  "The Lord is with you" is said by Gabriel to Mary, but is said to all of us too.  God does not abandon us, but is in the midst of our sufferings and tribulations.

Mary doesn't wait around for some Church council to decide the doctrine of the Incarnation. She accepts God's will, even though she has her own fears and uncertainty about what all of this might mean.  Through the humility of Mary, God shows humility as Jesus becomes the greatest example of what it means to be earthed, by serving the marginalized and releasing those oppressed by social, religious and political suppression.  

As we see the injustices of racism, sexism, heterosexism, class discrimination and a total disregard for the dignity of every human being in our politics and even in our churches, we are reminded that our God has been there in the Person of God's Son.   Just because Jesus was different in so many ways, he was "despised and rejected, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief." (Isaiah 53: 3).  Jesus shows us how to trust in God in the midst of the most horrific of circumstances and still comes out the victor of life over the imminent powers of death.  

All of this happened, because the first female Priest, said "Yes."

In what ways are we being called to say our yes to God's will?

How might we answer God's call in our lives?

What are some places where we are clinging to our own will, because of fear and uncertainty?

Each one of us, must answer these questions between ourselves and God, as we discern where and how God might be calling us.  Among the things we can be very sure about, is that if God is calling us, it is because God loves us, and sees in us something wonderful that God wants to use.  God wants to use us to make a positive impact in our world where as long as you have all the money, you can get by.  In a time when as long as you are well known and prestigious you can do anything you want, God calls those of us who remain hidden in prayer and solitude, to be a positive influence on changing the world for all of God's people.


Prayers

Pour your grace into our hearts, O Lord, that we who have
known the incarnation of your Son Jesus Christ, announced
by an angel to the Virgin Mary, may by his cross and passion
be brought to the glory of his resurrection; who lives and
reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now
and for ever. Amen.  (Collect for the Annunciation, Book of Common Prayer, p. 240).

Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have
made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and
make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily
lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness,
may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission
and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.  (Collect for Ash Wednesday, Book of Common Prayer, p. 217).

Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn
but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the
strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that
all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of
Peace, as children of one Father; to whom be dominion and
glory, now and for ever. Amen.  (Collect for Peace, Book of Common Prayer, p. 815).