Advent is a time of waiting in some new way for Christmas. It’s difficult because so many traditions promote old ways. Some of them literally come out of storage boxes: the family nativity scene, tree ornaments and Grandmother’s recipes. It can be difficult to live into this season of possibility. Yet, I want to. I must.
I think of awestruck Mary after she has been offered a special, somewhat terrifying destiny. Called to bear in her womb the divine child, amazingly, she said yes. So it is that I, and millions of others, will sing this Christmas, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given.”
Mary sang a song, too. In the Gospel reading* this week, her pregnant relative, Elizabeth, recognizes and affirms how blessed Mary is and Mary’s first words in response are, “My soul magnifies the Lord.“ Next she bursts into an astonishing song of revolution about the merciful One bringing down the proud and the powerful for generations to come, feeding the hungry and lifting up the poor.
Mary is given a radical call and vision. Momentous magnification utterly changed her life. And it changed the world. How I wish for more knowledge of Mary’s story of living into her call and vision. There are stunning, however bare, facts of her motherhood — annunciation, birth, refugee, child-raising, and presence at various events including her son’s death. This must be enough.
Divine Presence, in and through her presence, stirs me. Mary’s soul magnified the Lord and she knew it. The Spirit came upon her and overshadowed her. She was opened utterly. Flooded with passion and courage, she was empowered to say yes to this pregnancy. Mary said yes to carrying, and birthing, and standing by, the revolutionary son of God. Right at the start, she glimpsed what her yes meant for the world.
This is a radical yes and it is ongoing. I see similarities in my own experience. I remember a dramatic time on silent retreat of being overshadowed by the Spirit, receiving a new call and vision. I remember stunned awe, fiery passion, wondering questions… and courage rising. It was another kind of pregnancy, also requiring faithful prayer and commitment.
After that first consent, so much more was needed. And given. It always is,
because the One calling is a faithful giver and carries the full vision for all time. As Elizabeth said to Mary, nothing is impossible with God. How we need authentic community for affirmation and support!
I am not recommending throwing out all the boxes for celebrating this season of comfort and joy. But I am recommending that we re-read this text in Luke over and over again. Let us listen deeply to Mary’s song of revolution and consider how it harmonizes with the notes of our own songs. Let us make spaces in the busy season for listening for how the fulfillment of God’s promises might shape our lives in new ways.
-Ann Dean, Dayspring Retreat Mission Group
*Luke 1:39-55
Reflection Questions
- How can you make extra space this week for prayer as listening?
- Do you have any sense of an inner beckoning to new social action?
- What can you share with your community for affirmation and support?
