Reading:
Luke 1:26-38:
“Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her, ‘Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!’ But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. Then the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.’ Then Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I do not know a man?’ And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible.’ Then Mary said, ‘Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.’ And the angel departed from her.”
Reflection:
Into the Unknown and Unseen by David Morrison
Biblical commentaries often compare Zachariah’s encounter with Gabriel (Luke 1:5-22) with Mary’s. The comparison is usually framed as Zachariah’s doubt vs. Mary’s faith. Zachariah asked Gabriel, “How shall I know this? (if this is true)?” while Mary asked, “How is this to be done?” The different responses are subtle. I would like to stretch the possibility of the “faith vs. doubt” narrative to one of two different, but valid approaches to spirituality. In my experience, much of our lives are pushed forward by our own willfulness. This is how we set goals, make plans, and build the identity of our lives. Most of the time, this exertion of our wills works well in the pragmatic things of life. However, the “Zachariah-how-can-I-know-this” approach fails us with the deeper things of the heart: relationships, making peace with our lives, and truly showing up in them. In following Christ into the depths of the heart of all life, willfulness often cannot take the journey. It’s here that a “new heart” or approach needs to occur—like Mary’s willingness. There is a subtle, but major difference between willfulness and willingness. The angel struck Zachariah with silence for a time. This is usually seen as a punishment, but from a contemplative point of view, it is that aspect of us that needs to go into the silence of God in order to foster a willingness in our hearts. Willfulness makes demands upon reality. Willingness accepts reality and makes the needed changes. Willfulness is stone. Willingness is water. Gerald May, in his book, Will and Spirit writes: “The paradox of spiritual surrender is that in giving oneself fully, one finds not passivity but intimate involvement, not restrictiveness but endless freedom, not blameless quietude but the deepest possible sense of responsibility.”
Popular Christianity tends to foster willful minds through group-identity, dogma, scriptural interpretations, and culture wars at the expense of developing “willing” hearts (Psalm 51). The entire Advent/Christmas story seems to focus on this willingness—especially Mary’s response to the angel: “Let it be done as you’ve said.” It’s repeated in Joseph’s response to the dream to take Mary in and protect the child, and most of all, it foreshadows Jesus’s prayer the night before his crucifixion: “Not my will, but yours be done.” A “yes” in our spirits pushes us further into the depths of God’s heart much further than any external device can. A final elaboration from Richard Rohr: “Mary’s ‘yes” was said in the darkness of faith. She was not certain, nor assured by any Scripture quote, doctrine, or pope. She just heard what she heard and did what God asked her to do, accepting the consequences. She had enough inner authority to not need a lot of outer authority.”
Prayer:
Prayer for lighting the candles each evening:
O Key of David, Jesus Christ,
the gates of heaven open at your command,
come and show us the way to salvation
A Blessing for Choices by David Morrison
When you come face to face with all that’s unknown and unseen; instead of making a stand against it (out of fear); may you find the grace to fall furiously into faith, hope, and love. When you come to a crossroad in your life between what’s good and what’s God: may your listening ear be opened to the voice that comes in your deepest dreams and intuitions.
Amen.
Study for the Annunciation (Henry Ossawa Tanner, ca 1898)
