FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT Cycle "C"

FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT

Cycle “C”: Luke 1, 39 – 45

That 15 year teenager, named Mary of Nazareth, suddenly became a mother-to-be. Like the average woman, she submitted to the miracle of pregnancy, to something that took its own course, irrespective of the mother, because, as in every pregnancy, it was monitored by a higher power. In Mary’s case, it was the Holy Spirit. St. Luke, himself a physician, tells us that Mary conceived the person of the God-Man Jesus from day one of her pregnancy. Luke then adds that right after the angel’s visit, Mary made a quickie trip to her cousin Elizabeth in Ain Karim about 90 miles away. The journey took a week plus. So, the young woman was pregnant about 10 days on arrival. Her amazement and sheer wonder at being chosen must have made her forget the difficulties of the travel, the brooks without bridges, the roads without ridges; the snakes, scorpions and dacoits. Those were the material dangers. This 14 year old had also weathered the moral dangers. In choosing to believe and accept the Angel Gabriel’s message, Mary knew that she was risking humiliation by a pre-marital pregnancy, denunciation and divorce by Joseph, social and religious ostracism, and even death by stoning for adultery, which any old rat could bring against her falsely. But Mary’s humble and obedient assent was full of great faith. She knew that God would do everything for her. And on reaching Elizabeth’s house, yet another thrill awaited her: Elizabeth already knew about Mary’s secret: “Blessed are you among women. And how am I visited by the mother of my Lord ?” The meeting between the all but barren lady and the fresh young sliver of a girl is a touching scene, captured in innumerable works of art. The feeling of joy, the sense of anticipation is so palpable that even the child in Elizabeth’s womb leaps for joy  -  the heartiest high jump done by a fetus, and with good reason. There is no mention of Mary telling Elizabeth her secret, the secret Joseph learned through an angel. All we have is her word of greeting, her “Shalom.” Here Mary’s greeting is the vehicle of the Holy Spirit who reveals the presence of the Messiah to the older woman. She responds in faith: “Blessed is the fruit of your womb.” And in great humility the elder bows to the younger. “Why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me ?” Elizabeth’s words were prophetic. Even before John the Baptist would be old enough to point out the Saviour, his mother already proclaimed the coming of the Lord !

Now what do you think of Mary’s word of greeting?  Did you ever consider that even before her Son Jesus would institute the sacraments, his mother’s word to Elizabeth was already a sacrament? A sacrament, after all, is an outward sign of inward grace. Here the outward sign was Mary’s word of greeting; and the inward grace was the Holy Spirit’s action that sanctified John the Baptist while yet in the womb. Again, how very peculiar that both the mothers, Elizabeth and Mary, beat their sons to it, anticipating their sons’ ministries by three decades. Mary was the minister of John’s sanctification by her simple word of greeting; and Elizabeth was the first proclaimer of the Messiah in the New Testament.

Worldly joy can be a brief and fleeting experience: mostly it illuminates moments of delight in our lives and quickly fades; but God wants us to experience his lasting joy, the way he gave it to Mary and Elizabeth   His joy has its source in a well spring from which we draw  -  the well spring is the deposit of faith in our hearts since baptism. If we take time at this joyful season to contemplate the meaning of the birth of Jesus we can be confident that God’s joy will be the fruit of that meditation. There are times when it is hard for us to emulate Mary’s joy. We may be ground down by work, depression, worries, and all the trials of life in this world. When this happens we must learn from Mary’s example and ponder the wonders God has done in history and in each of our own lives. He created us, he makes himself known through prayer, scripture and the teaching of the Church, and he continuously showers his blessings on us.

We are very nearly certain that the word that Mary pronounced in greeting was “SHALOM’ (peace). It’s the very same word we pronounce as we turn to each other during the great sacrament we celebrate called the Eucharist. With sincere hearts we invoke heaven’s peace upon our world, hoping to create thereby a ladder reaching from earth to heaven. Let this ladder be placed in every family, in every community, the ladder of prayer and consequent peace, so that there would no difference between earth and heaven.

We can be hopeful that the Holy Spirit wants to fill us with the same sense of joy and confident assurance. This joy cannot be purchased or fabricated, but is born from within: secure, durable, lasting. God will convince us that his truths are not cold and sterile statements, but something that imparts life and power. So give God yet another chance in your life and do not turn away, but welcome him as Elizabeth welcomed Mary, the mother of the Lord.

PRAYER  (Frank Colquhoun):

Our heavenly Father, as once again we prepare for Christmas, help us to find time in our busy lives for quiet reflection and prayer; that we may reflect upon the wonder of your love and allow the story of the Saviour’s birth to penetrate our hearts and minds. So may our joy be deeper, our worship more real, and our lives worthier of all that you have done for us through the coming of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.