2 Samuel 7:1-11,16
Luke 1:26-38
This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
Reflection:
“I have been with you wherever you went. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house and your house and kingdom shall be made sure forever, your throne shall be established forever”. These are the words spoken by God to David through the prophet Nathan. The essential point being, that King David’s dynasty will last forever. In reality it was to last for about 400 years before the Babylonians invaded. And as a result, the people believed that God’s promise to David, would be fulfilled at some time in the future, when David’s line would be restored. This was the origin of the hope for a Messiah, a hope that would come to fruition, nearly a thousand years later with the birth of Jesus. We hear of this fulfilment of God’s promise in our reading from Luke’s gospel today. The angel Gabriel tells Mary that she will conceive and bear a son named Jesus who will be called the Son of the Most High and to him, God will give the throne of his ancestor David.
Whenever I read this gospel, I am always astounded by Mary. This young Palestinian woman would have been 12-14 years of age, betrothed to marry Joseph, who we are told is of the house of David. I guess like any young woman of that age and time, she would be both excited and uncertain of the life that lay ahead. In terms of being married and what that entailed, leaving her family to make a new home with different responsibilities and family members to relate to, but also, facing life in a politically unsafe and unstable period and place.
Mary is visited by an angel. Now although we might assume that angel visitations are pleasant experiences, this reading suggests that angels can be somewhat frightening and fiery as opposed to quiet, gentle creatures. In this encounter, as in others in the bible, Gabriel says to Mary “…do not be afraid” – why would he say that? When the angel Gabriel visited Zechariah, the angels that visited the women at the tomb and in other places in the bible – people are described as terrified – so I think angels must appear as pretty powerful and imposing and hence they quickly reassure those that they visit.
Mary remains calm and composed but is perplexed and pondering in response to Gabriel’s greeting “…favoured one, the lord is with you”.
What was she pondering? Maybe it was ‘why am I favoured?’ ‘Why is this heavenly being speaking to me from God?’ ‘Who am I to be special, to deserve this attention?’
I cannot imagine what went through Mary’s mind to be told that she is chosen by God to have child that is holy and will be conceived without having sexual relations. Mary would have known what was required to conceive and bear a child. When she asks how this can happen, the angel tells her that anything is possible with God.
God’s power is not contained by our human understanding and Mary, is a woman of great faith because her response was “here I am, let it be according to your word”.
Mary was so much more than what we might first think, she was an amazing young woman of faith and courage. Women in Mary’s day and culture didn’t speak up for themselves yet here she responds to God’s call upon her with “here I am” echoing the responses of great people and prophets before her – Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Samuel, Isaiah. She too felt inadequate and ill equipped but trusting God implicitly, simply said yes with her life and her body. This young Jewish girl from a small rural community, a person of no great importance or status, with no power or privilege is chosen by God to bear God’s Son. The One who the Hebrew people had been waiting for, for centuries – with hope for freedom and for peace.
God keeps his promises; God’s love is steadfast. The promised Messiah was to be born from the womb of Mary. The word for womb in Hebrew is re-chem. The word for mercy and compassion is ra-cha-mim (pronounced ra-ja-mim) and this word is derived from re-chem, womb. Mercy and compassion are founded in the mother’s womb. The house of God was once a tent and tabernacle but Mary becomes the house of God; the God of mercy, compassion and love enters our world through a mother’s womb.
At this sacred time of waiting for the coming of the Christ into the world, we are reminded that God calls people to participate in God’s work in the world. It is God who calls us and it is God who knows us – each intimately. Even through the struggles, the losses, the fears, the feelings of not being good enough or strong enough – God does not abandon us and does not leave us without what we each need for the human journey ahead. We have all that we need in God and in the gift of grace.
Do you hear the voice of God in your life, in your heart? Do you feel the love of God’s presence? Do you say ‘here I am”?
In this time of Advent let us wait with the excitement and sincere faith of Mary, filled with hope for the coming of God. Amen.