A Sermon by the Rev. Peter De Franco On the 4th Sunday of Advent
Luke 1:39-45 [46-55]
39In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, 40where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? 44For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. 45And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”[ 46And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. 50His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 51He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 52He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; 53he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. 54He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 55according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”]
Mary is a woman wrapped in mystery. The mystery begins with the visit of the angel Gabriel to her home in Nazareth, a town in the backwaters of Galilee, the hillbilly section of Israel. The angel discloses the mystery when Mary is told of the birth of her child, whom she will call Jesus.
The birth of every child involves mystery, much is unknown about a child, her future, his personality, her potential, his talents. This birth involves yet deeper mystery. The child has questionable origins. The mother is unmarried. Social sanctions against unwed mothers threaten them with execution by stoning. A teenaged girl from the country would understandably panic when faced with such life threatening possibilities.
When we hear that Mary, after hearing the message of the angel, goes with haste to visit her cousin, we could understand her sense of urgency. She is a desperate young lady searching for the wisdom of an older cousin to help her take the next steps in this unfamiliar land of birthing babies.
We seldom associate Mary with shame but shame may have been the primary reason she flees. She runs from the familiar and threatening gaze of her small town for the anonymity of Judah where Elizabeth lives. An unwed mother would bring shame on her and on her family and Mary needs to figure out how to manage this new situation. She undertakes a 100 mile journey, possibly alone, through unfamiliar territories, with the threat of robbery and rape creating fear, and the danger of an unknown reception by Elizabeth and her family.
Were you amazed that while Mary enters the house of Zechariah, her voice calls for Elizabeth? In a world dominated by the actions and voices of men, we begin to see a reversal of the order of the world. Joseph, throughout the gospel, does not say a word. Zechariah, because of his lack of faith, is struck dumb.
The women, Mary and Elizabeth, share center stage. The voices of the woman resonate. Perhaps the men in the congregation might not like this reversal of roles. Even though Mary is pregnant but weeks, John, in Elizabeth’s womb, leaps for joy at the presence of the fetal Jesus.
Elizabeth repeatedly calls Mary “Blessed.” Did Elizabeth sense Mary’s uncertainty in her voice, did her greeting come from a heart broken by humiliation? Does Elizabeth offer her the heart of an older and wiser woman who lived with the shame of being barren only to have that stigma reversed with the conception of John the Baptist. During the three months Mary stays with Elizabeth, perhaps we can imagine Mary not only attending to preparing Elizabeth’s home for a new child. Elizabeth is mentoring Mary so she can cope with shame, can navigate the treachery of gossip, can overcome the uncertainty of a world turned on its head.
Shame and stigma continue to creep into our society and undermine people who often find themselves on the edge. While our society has dissipated much of the shame surrounding breaches of traditional sexual boundaries, some of that shame lingers in the hearts of people in church communities. The same feelings arise with the stigma surrounding mental health, addiction in its various forms and the desperation of people who work in underground economies because of lack of proper documents, gender identity or homelessness.
Elizabeth lived most of her life under the shadow of disgrace because she was barren. People facing continued embarrassment develop strategies to understand others in the same situation and build networks of support and understanding. Most of us have read The Scarlet Letter, the story of Hester Prynn, found guilty of adultery yet silent about the father of her child. Nathaniel Hawthorne shows us how guilt acknowledged opens the heart while guilt concealed destroys the heart.
The mystery that lies at the center of today’s Gospel may be the opening of our hearts through the pain we endure. Pain has the capacity of closing us down or opening us up. Our willingness to live with the inevitability of always being vulnerable bring us a deep wisdom.
I am ever amazed at the deep wisdom I hear from so many of you who have endured deep loss and pain in your lives and continue to open your hearts to love and the creative power of love.
You manifest the deep wisdom of Elizabeth who can affirm the uncertainty of a Mary searching for hope in a desperate situation. During these days, when families gather, when friends come together, be on the look out for the Mary’s in your lives, the persons on the edge, the persons in pain, the persons unsure of what to do or where to go. They are searching for Elizabeth’s to comfort them, illumine a new way, and walk with them through the darkness. Help those in need, desperate for a mentor, to discover an Elizabeth in you. You, like Mary, the one wrapped in mystery, disclose that mystery of loving compassion, disclose the presence of our Incarnate God.