Today we celebrate the Annunciation of Mary, the time when the angel Gabriel appears to Mary and tells her she is to be the Mother of God.
- Some things seem too simple to have made the difference they did. For
example, when Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone and then placed
it into use, there was the problem of what to say when answering the phone.
What should one say?
Mr. Bell had suggested that the phone be answered by saying, "Ahoy!" This sounds a bit strange, but perhaps it has never occurred to us that our simple, single-word greeting, "Hello," was not even a word in existence at the time. It was a fellow inventor Thomas Edison, who was then helping Bell, who came up with the word "Hello."
The word first appeared in literature in 1880. Mark Twain described the first telephone operators as "hello girls." Finally, in 1883, the word "hello" was put in a dictionary. Now, just over a hundred years later, it is one of the most recognized words in the world. (1)
We have all the time in the world on our hands. Hardly a one of us has to work as hard at living day to day as did Mary. Mary had no free time. No one did, but she did manage to find time to come to know the Lord and love Him. When Mary was approached by Gabriel, Luke tells us she was "greatly troubled." Some translators say she was "greatly confused." Mary heard the words of Gabriel, but Luke makes it clear to us that Mary had no idea what was being asked of her. All she knew was that God was asking something. As much as the simple word "hello" has changed our lives. Mary's simpler word, "yes," changed the course of the world. (1)
Mary was truly confused during the apparition of Gabriel. And when she could gather in her thoughts at what was being asked of her, she probably felt like responding as we did as kids in school.
Do you remember sitting in the classroom as a kid, when the teacher was calling on the students for an answer you weren't prepared to give? Do you recall the feeling? "Oh please...don't call on me! don't ask me...I'm not prepared!"
Our tradition is filled with stories of people being called on, being asked to do things they didn't want to do or feel equipped to do. Moses, for example, tried to squeeze out of the terrifying task of confronting Pharaoh with the excuse that he couldn't speak well enough. Jeremiah, called to be prophet in a nation gone astray, also responded: "I don't know how to speak... I'm too young!" An unmarried teen-aged Jewish girl, called to bear a child, responded: "How can this be? I'm a virgin."
But God has continued to call people to take on awesome responsibilities, perform tasks they hadn't anticipated or didn't feel equipped to do, and certainly wouldn't have chosen in a million years. The unexpectedness of the call and the reluctance to embrace it has elicited familiar responses: "Who, me? Why me?" "How can this be?" "I'm too young; too old." "I have a family to take care of."
...Today's readings tell us something really quite amazing as we prepare for this Christmas season. It's not that there wouldn't be any Christmas without God's empowering action (though that is true). The amazing thing is that there wouldn't be any Christmas without us--without that simple Jewish girl! The amazing thing is that what God wants for this human race will manage to get done through those willing to cooperate and be a part of the action. (2)
How did Mary react to the message Gabriel announced to her? The Scripture tells us. "She was deeply troubled by his words." And she put that trouble in her own words by asking, "How can this be, since I do not know man?" It is a revealing phrase; we do not use it now, unless it is modified--as when we speak of "carnal knowledge." It has been said that this generation is not afraid of sex but it's afraid of love, for anyone can give his or her body, but it's much more costly to give oneself. Mary hesitates, but then gives her body, herself, her life, to God's hidden purposes. Love in action can be, as Dostoevsky reminded us, "a harsh and dreadful thing." It can even lead to a cross. But she was not afraid of love. (3)
Mary was the best we humans could offer.
- There was an article in Newsweek last year about this time about researchers at Michigan State University who are trying to clone the perfect Christmas tree. Every once in a while these researchers come across a Platonic ideal of Christmas-treeness: a Douglas fir or Scotch pine with a straight trunk, thick needles that can hole ornaments, limbs slanted up at a perfect 45-degree angle, an ideal conical shape and strength. They then take a snippet from a bud and start to clone it through micro-propagation. This involves putting the tissue in a growth medium in a lab dish, waiting for the cells to divide and produce shoots, then transferring the tissue to another medium concocted to induce roots. (4)
Imperfection in the world speaks of grace. Christmas is all about imperfection. When God created the world, God could have created clones who would never have needed saving, who had been scripted to always act appropriately. But God allowed us to be unique and free. We can make our own decisions. And, if we choose, we can foul up our lives royally. But God has come into the dark well of our lives to tell us there is hope for us. There was a baby born long ago--a baby like no other baby--and he is our hope. Christmas is about the uniqueness of Christ. (5)
It's hard for us to realize what Mary went through in saying "yes" to becoming the Mother of God. As the saying goes, "You had to be there." Some husbands find out what their wives go through by "being there."
The driveway was icy that Christmas morning as they got into the car to drive to their parents. Picking up their son, she slipped. Both bones in her right shin were shattered. Instead of enjoying a cozy, leisurely holiday, they spent the day in the hospital.
"Some Christmas present," she said morosely
But that was just the beginning. Her leg had been so badly broken she was confined to bed at home. For her, it was like a prison sentence. For him, that meant becoming Mr. Mom--cooking meals, washing wheelbarrow loads of laundry, bathing a squirming, crying kid. He longed to get back to work and to school--which he was learning were painless by comparison.
It dawned on him one afternoon at the kitchen sink, scrubbing a particularly uncooperative pan. The window above the sink faced a field of black tree limbs against a cold sky. It was depressing. Then it dawned on him--she had been standing at that same sink for seven years. She had been scrubbing those same dishes, she had been lugging and washing those baskets of laundry every day, she had cared for their son when he was his least lovable.
Wow! he realized, she must really love me to do all this! He went to their bedroom, where she lay with her cast propped up on pillows. He sat on the bed and stroked her hair. "You really love me," he said.
She was not having realizations. She was watching a game show on television. "Of course I love you--scoot over, I can't see the TV."
"I just want you to know that I appreciate what you've done for me, for us. I never knew how much that was."
Stunned, she looked up. Then she smiled and patted his arm.
It was a turning point for them. (6)
- There is a legend from the ninth century when Alfred the Great was king of
the West Saxons in England. In Alfred's time, England was invaded by the
Danes. There were so many of the Danish invaders and they were so strong and
fierce, that for a long time they won almost every battle. After many
defeats, King Alfred's army was broken and scattered. In order to save
themselves, all of the soldiers, including the king, disguised themselves
and went into hiding. After several days of wandering, the king came to a
woodcutter's hut. The woodcutter's wife invited the king in, but since he
was in disguise she did not recognize him. The woman then said that she
would provide him with dinner if he would watch the cakes that were baking
on the fire so that they would not burn while she went out to milk the cow.
Yet as the king sat there next to the fire, his thoughts began to turn to
his troubles. How was he going to reassemble his army? How was he going to
drive out the Danes? The more he thought about it, though, the more hopeless
the future seemed.
A little while later, the woodcutter's wife returned and found her cakes burned to a crisp. She scolded the king for not doing his job of watching the cakes and angrily informed him that no one was going to be able to have dinner now. Just then the woodcutter came home. At once, he recognized the guest to be none other than the king. When the woman learned who the stranger was, she was horrified because of the ways he had spoken to him and begged the king to forgive her. But King Alfred told her to rise. He said, "You were right to scold me. I told you I would watch the cakes, and then I let them burn. I deserved what you said. Anyone who accepts a duty, whether it be large or small, should perform it faithfully. I have failed this time, but it will not happen again. My duties as king await me." Not many days later Alfred gathered his soldiers and soon drove the Danes out of England. (7)
How about us? Are we accepting our call as Mary did hers?
1) Fr. Edward Steiner, "Fourth Sunday of Advent," The Priest 55 (12): 29 (Our Sunday Visitor Publishing, 200 Noll Plaza, Huntington, IN 46750), Dec 1999.
2) Joan R. DeMerchant, "A word for all ages," Celebration 28 (12): 543 (Celebration, P.O. Box 419493, Kansas City MO 64141), Dec. 1999
3) "Preaching commentary," Good News 26 (12): 443-4 (Liturgical Publications Inc., 2875 South James Drive, New Berlin WI 53151), Dec. 1999.
4 )Richard Shenkman, Legends, Lies, and Cherished Myths (New York: William Morrow & Co., Inc., 1988) as quoted in "Stay calm, Jessica," Dynamic Preaching 14 (4): 66-67 (Seven Worlds, 310F Simmons Road, Knoxville TN 37922), Dec. 1999.
5) "Stay calm, Jessica," Dynamic Preaching 14 (4): 67 (Seven Worlds, 310F Simmons Road, Knoxville TN 37922), Dec. 1999.
6) From "A precious gift at Christmas disguised as disaster" by Paul Prather, Lexington Herald-Leader, December 22, 1988, as quoted in Connections "Fourth Sunday of Advent," (7 Lantern Lane, Londonderry, N.H. 03053-3905), Dec. 1999.
7) "Illustrating text and theme," Lectionaid 8 (1): 15-16 (LectionAid, Inc., P.O. Box 19229 Boulder 80308 - 2229) Jan 2000
(Comments to Jerry at padre@tri-lakes.net. Fr. Jerry's book, Stories For All Seasons, is available at a discount through the Homiletic Resource Center.)