December 4, 2005 11:57 AM
Christmas: Meditations on Mary
In our quest for authentic prayer and worship Evangelicals have marginalized many vibrant and wonderful aspects of our faith and traditions. The de-emphasis of Advent and Lent are examples. The relegation of Mary to a place of unimportance is another.
While in the beginning, I went along with the program, now as a mother of 12, how can I not see Mary as a very special person - as special as the male heroes of the Bible?
Until the Annunciation - the visit by Archangel Gabriel to tell her she would conceive by the Holy Spirit and bear the long-awaited Messiah - she was an ordinary person in an ordinary time and place. Now, in an instant, she was being entrusted with a task that would in the beginning bring her judgment and shame.
She was only 13. She could have wallowed in her emotions and cried "Why me, Lord? Why me?" She could have called her closest friends and wept and wailed at the tremendous burden she would carry. She could have pulled the covers up over her head and shook in fear at what people would think and say and do.
Instead she said simply: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word." Luke 38)
And then the angel left and she was on her own - just her and God and the promise she had made to him.
Later, when she visited Elisabeth, somehow Elisabeth grasped what was truly going on - "Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Luke 42-43)
And what tumbled from Mary's lips was one of the most incredibly beautiful prayers of worship the world has ever known - known as The Magnificat:
My soul doth magnify the Lord,
And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.
And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.
He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.
He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.
He hath helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy;
As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.
Mary reminds me of obedience, service, and sacrifice. I don't worship her, though I do think she should be given a measure of honor as the mother of Jesus.
Her commitment to God's will, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word," is something I will spend my life trying to emulate as well.
Whatever it is you ask of me, and whatever it costs, Lord, I am here.
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Comments
I appreciate that you don't dishonor Mary the way I have seen some protestants do. Which I think is inspired more by anti-catholic sentiment than by any scriptural evidence.
If you don't mind though, I want to defend catholicism a bit. Our definition of worship is a little different. I understand that singing praise songs and praying to, etc are all forms of worship in protestant theology. For catholics though they are only forms of honour. Actual worship is practiced through sacramental rites; such as baptism, confession, communion. Hence you won't ever hear a baptism done in the name of Father, Son, Holy Spirit and Mary; and a prieset won't ever tell you that Mary forgives you in the confessional, and a priest will never say "This is Marys body which was given up for you" at the moment of consecration in a mass. In the catholic mind, we don't worship mary by any stretch of the imagination and Christ is definitaly the center of our road to salvation.
Posted by: paige | December 4, 2005 3:34 PM
Thanks, paige, for these insights.
Because of my very strong pro-life views, I am actually very sympathetic to Catholicism, which is the only religion that has what it truly takes to be "pro-life" and not just anti-abortion.
And I enjoy visiting Catholic churches and feeling the presence of God - which is very definitely there, in my opinion.
Posted by: barbaracurtis | December 4, 2005 4:14 PM
Thanks for the lovely post, Mrs. Barbara. I have always admired Mary for her courage and faith. During my teen years I deeply envyed her because she was already promised to a good man and she got to be a mom so early plus she was given the opportunity to show her faith in God so clearly. For me waiting til I was 28 to become a mother was as hard as waiting til I was 26 to become a wife!
My parents were always careful to focus only on what the Bible says and not avoid doing anthing because some group we don't agree with happens to do it or emphasizes something that is actually biblical. I am VERY thankful to them for this.
I'm still working on my dh to show him that things like Advent, women's headcovering, and Mary and Joseph are ours too!
Posted by: Cheri | December 15, 2005 6:36 AM
