Advent 2014 (4th Sunday)

Over the past few weeks of the Advent season, and despite all the busyness and preparations for Christmas, I hope that we have all been able to find even a little time for reflection, preparation, and making ourselves ready to recall again the birth of Our Lord.

In church we have done it by looking through the eyes of patriarchs, noting the words of prophets, and last week heeding the message of John the Baptist, the forerunner, who spoke of the need for us to prepare properly to greet Our Lord.

This week, we take a more in-depth look at the response of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  Before we do though, a thought for us all to consider.

I don’t know about you, but I’m not a great lover of surprises.  I suppose I could qualify that by saying it depends on what the surprise is.  For example, European football for West Ham at the end of the season would be a wonderful surprise (just a minute, did I actually say that?), but I don’t think it will happen.

The type of surprise I don’t like is the one that catches me out, where there is no time to consider a reaction but where a decision must be taken quickly. There is no time to prepare.

I wonder then how Mary must have felt on receiving the news from the Angel Gabriel that she was to bear a son, which we hear about in our Gospel reading this morning?

Initially, Mary’s reaction is probably exactly as you would expect.  To keep things in perspective here, we have to remember that Mary herself is still young and is not yet married.

She is puzzled, and little wonder. How can she possibly be having a child as she is still a virgin? This is also reflected in her question to Gabriel:

“How can this be, since I am a virgin?”

Another reason for her puzzled and, one might say, even fearful question is that depending upon Joseph’s reaction, she could potentially find herself in trouble.

Under the Jewish law of the time, Mary could have been put to death as the penalty for adultery, though this was rare. However, we know that Joseph’s reaction was to accept the situation and take Mary as his wife.

Gabriel tries to reassure her, saying:

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.”

Despite all of the potential problems and outcomes she is now presented with, Mary’s reaction is a positive one, one of acceptance. She replies:

“Here am I, the servant of the Lord. Let it be with me according to your word.”

Mary then praises God in the words we heard in our Psalm this morning, which is also referred to as the “Song of Mary” or the “Magnificat”. The words of this hymn of praise have proved to be a great inspiration for so many, including numerous great composers who have set the words to music.  Notable names (no pun intended) have included Bach, Vivaldi and Pergolesi to name but three.  There are so many more.

In the Magnificat, Mary first praises God for the good things which He has done for her.

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, who has looked with favour on his lowly servant.”

In some translations, we may hear the term “lowly servant” replaced by the term “hand maiden”, meaning “slave girl”.

But Mary’s praise of God does not stop there. She goes on to speak about how the Lord has done good things for the poor, lifting up the lowly, filling the hungry with good things and sending the rich away empty.

Here then is perhaps one of the first examples of the world being turned on its head. Social convention of the time dictated that the rich received most of life’s good things, whilst the poor were cast aside. Here things are very different. The lowly are recognised, the poor and hungry are cared for and provided for. Justice and equality is at hand.

As we hear again the familiar words of our Scripture readings this morning, what is the message we can take from them? Perhaps the most important thing is the reaction of Mary herself.  Upon receiving the angel’s message, she shows great willingness and humility by accepting the task and the responsibility set before her, unexpected though it is. Her answer is an emphatic “YES”.

And as we prepare to recall again the birth of Our Lord, we too must show the humility of Mary and answer “YES”.

We must also follow the example of her willingness, being prepared to open our hearts and minds as Our Lord comes to us. We must be ready to greet Him, and commit ourselves to Him in acts of love and service.

As Advent draws to its close and Christmas time draws near, my hope is that Advent has been truly holy for all of us. I hope that we have had time to reflect, to pray and to make ourselves ready.

I also hope that our focus on the various groups and individuals over the past few weeks, culminating in Mary today, will help us to realise exactly what the approaching season means to us. 

As we are all individuals, the meaning of Christmas will differ for each of us.  The one thing it will have in common for all of us is recalling the birth of Our Lord. I hope that this time of preparation will make the approaching Christmas season all the more meaningful for each of us in our own way. And as we prepare to welcome Jesus into our lives this Christmastide, may we give thanks to God for all the wonderful gifts He has given to us, not least of which is the gift of His only Son.

 AMEN