Preached by the Right Reverend Grant Lynn Ford at the Sunshine Cathedral on Sunday, December 24, 2006.
The grace of our Master Teacher — the love of God in the unity of Spirit — be with you all.
God of Wonders, You loved the world so much that you provided us with the miracle of Mary giving birth to your son. The miracle of this birth of Jesus opens our eyes to see that the gift of life in and of itself is the miracle of the ages and beyond.
Yet we are afraid to step out and live our lives to the fullest. Lord have mercy.
We forget that we can be a part of creating miracles for others. Christ have mercy.
Our eyes do not always see the miracle of life which is all around us. Lord have mercy.
Loving God, open our eyes so that we may truly see the beauty of creation as you see it. May we learn to love all of life with the same enthusiasm and dedication you demonstrated to us through the birth of your son Jesus, in whose name we pray. Amen.
The Fourth Advent Candle: LOVE
We experience love because God loves us. We experience love most fully when we allow the Christ-presence within to be expressed in all we think and say and do. The apostle John said:
“Let us love one another since love comes from God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. God is love, and anyone who lives in love lives in God and God lives in them.”
As the Apostle Paul prayed, so pray we. O God: give us the power of your Spirit to grow strong, so that Christ may live in our hearts through faith, and then, planted and built on love, we will grasp the fullness of the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge; we will be filled with all that you are. Amen.
Today we light the candle of Love—the Love that Jesus brings.
The third blue candle is lit.
Micah 5:2-4a
2 “O Bethlehem Ephrathah — one of the smallest village in Judea — you will be the birthplace of One who will have great power in Israel, someone whose ancestry goes back to ancient times.” 4This powerful one will rise as a shepherd, in the strength of the Almighty, in the majesty of the name of the Eternal One.
Philippians 4:4-7
4Be always filled with joy in God. I’ll put it in one word: Rejoice! 5Let your balance and harmony radiate from you. The Infinite One is present in every moment!
6Don’t worry; pray! With thanksgiving turn everything over to God, from the greatest circumstance to the least little irritation… everything! 7And the peace of God, which is beyond our wildest imagination, will fill you and surround you, keeping your thoughts and emotions centered on the Anointed One, Jesus.
Luke 1:46-55 (Magnificat)
Mary responded to the angel’s message by saying: “My soul magnifies the Eternal! 47My spirit leaps for joy in God my Savior, 48who has favorably looked upon this lowly servant girl. For all the ages to come they will call me blessed, 49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me.”
“O Holy One! 50What great mercy is extended to those who reverence God in each new generation! 51What mighty power, scattering those who imagine themselves to be so great! 52What justice, as the mighty are brought down and the humble are lifted up!”
53“T he Eternal has satisfied the hungry heart and has sent the self-satisfied away with empty hands. 54T he Almighty has offered a helping hand to servant Israel, not forgetting the promises of mercy 55made to Abraham and Sarah and their descendants for all time and eternity.”
I
kid you not! Once priced at $19.95, but now on sale on
Christianbook.com,
it’s the VeggieTales Nativity Set. It’s complete with fun lights and sounds!
On top of the stable sits Laura the angel, Mary and Joseph Gourds, Pa Grape,
Larry, Junior, Mr. Lunt, and Baby Carrot. It also includes the French Pea
Sheep and Jimmy and Jerry Gourd in a cute cow costume! The stable measures
11" by 9". Recommended for ages 3 and up.
Isn’t this what every Christian child writes to Santa about…a VeggieTales Nativity Set?
Here’s more news about the Nativity, almost as shocking as the original story?
On the 24th of November was the Grand Opening of The Nativity Story, featuring Keisha Castle-Hughes as Mary. It was held at the Vatican’s Paul Six Hall, which is used for Sunday masses when they are not held outside in St. Peter’s Square.
According to Screen Daily, Italian distributors Eagle Pictures said Catholic officials had approved the “faithful retelling of the Scriptures”.
“Nativity is an extraordinary event, a real message of hope, peace and love that unites all believers,” said Stefano Dammicco, chief executive officer of Eagle Pictures, the Italian distributor of the film.
The less-heralded news is that the 16-year-old Keisha really experienced some of the embarrassment and pain of the Mary who she portrayed in the film. It seems that Keisha is pregnant by her 19-year-old boyfriend, Bradley Hull.
What’s more difficult: being a 16-year-old girl who talks with angels and who gets pregnant by the Holy Spirit, or a 16-year-old actress playing the part of Mary who gets pregnant out-of-wedlock?
Neither part seems to be an easy role to play. Can you imagine saying, “I’m 16-years-old and I play the part of a 16-year-old Palestinian girl who gets pregnant by the Holy Spirit… and I’m pregnant, too.”
Pope Benedict XVI was unable to attend the Vatican’s premiere due to his visit to Turkey. A member for the Papal Council for Culture said the actress was expected to play her part well, not be a saint.
It least Keisha gets a pass from the Vatican. It wasn’t that easy for the BVM, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Yes, she got to wear beautiful blue for the pageant, but everything was pretty miserable. Can you imagine what the neighbors thought? “A virgin getting pregnant by the Holy Spirit? Why am I finding that hard to believe?”
At least one family member believed her. Elizabeth had grown quite beyond the child-bearing age, and here she was, pregnant as could be. But then again, she did have a husband to play is part in the miracle.
Mary had to defend the angel’s, “Hail, Mary!” Elizabeth believed her experience with an angel. After all, hadn’t her husband had a chat with an angel, one that left him speechless?
But here’s where the BVM—the Blessed Virgin Mary—gets a bit out of character, at least as defined by Hallmark. I’m sure Mary told Elizabeth about her response to the angel. And this is where BVM gets a new definition—the Blessed Valorous Mary.
She gets excited by Elizabeth’s greeting: “Hail, Mary. Blessed are you among women.” She responds: “My soul magnifies the Eternal! My spirit leaps for joy in God my Savior, who has favorably looked upon this lowly servant girl.”
Why is she so excited? Well, for one thing: “For all the ages to come they will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me.”
That’s cool, but does she realize what she’s going to go through when people find out that she’s pregnant, and not quite yet married? Does she know what happens to girls like that? This is the end of her life as she has known it up to now.
But she shows great courage, saying, “O Holy One! What great mercy is extended to those who reverence God in each new generation! What mighty power, scattering those who imagine themselves to be so great! What justice, as the mighty are brought down and the humble are lifted up!”
In this month’s Christianity Today, a leading evangelical magazine, we read: “There are two Marys. One wears a Carolina blue robe, exudes piety from a somber face, often holds her baby son in her arms, and barely makes eye contact with us. This is the familiar Blessed Virgin Mary, and she leads us to a Christmas celebration of quiet reflection.”
The article continues: “Another Mary—the Blessed Valorous Mary—wears ordinary clothing and exudes hope from a confident face. This Mary utters poetry fit for a political rally, goes toe-to-toe with Herod the Great, musters her motherliness to reprimand her Messiah-son for dallying at the temple, follows her faith to ask him to address a flagging wine supply at a wedding, and then finds the feistiness to take her children to Capernaum to rescue Jesus from death threats. This Mary followed Jesus all the way to the Cross—not just as a mother, but as a disciple, even after his closest followers deserted him.”
Now the article gives us an entirely new image of the BVM: “She leads us to a Christmas marked by a yearning for justice and the courage to fight for it. Like other women of her time, she may have worn a robe and a veil, but I suspect her sleeves were rolled up and her veil askew more often than not.”
This is the Blessed Valorous Mary who said: “The Eternal has satisfied the hungry heart and has sent the self-satisfied away with empty hands.”
Even as a 16-year-old girl, betrothed to an older man, she was convinced that God was at work, and she wanted to be a part of that work. Scot McKnight, author of the above-mentioned article, points out: “If we read the Magnificat as the heartfelt release of a woman yearning for what God was—finally!—about to do in Israel and in historical context, we see it as a call to subvert unjust leaders. To turn this song into simple spirituality strips it of its meaning and leaves injustices—personified by Caesar Augustus and Herod the Great—on the throne.”
Mary knew, and we all will benefit if we recognize this truth, as stated by Edmund Burke: “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing.”
The Mahatma Gandhi made this the basis for his faith in freedom: “Remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible but in the end, they always fall—think of it, always.”
Mary knew that when she said: “The Almighty has offered a helping hand to servant Israel, not forgetting the promises of mercy made to Abraham and Sarah and their descendants for all time and eternity.”
And when we dedicate ourselves to the Good, rejecting the work of so-called Evil, we give strength to the faith of Mary, the Matahma Gandhi, Martin Luther and Martin Luther King, Jr.
I know that Oscar Wilde, in his love of satire, said: “Hear no evil, speak no evil—and you'll never be invited to a party.”
Dr. King disagrees, saying, “One who condones evils is just as guilty as the one who perpetrates it.”
The great Greek philosopher Seneca echoes that sentiment, saying: “Shall I tell you what the real evil is? To cringe to the things that are called evils, to surrender to them our freedom, in defiance of which we ought to face any suffering.”
So the BVM—the Blessed Valorous Mary—says in her answer to the angel’s message: “I am the Lord’s servant! Let it happen as you have said.”
We are also invited to be part of the plan of God’s redemption when we say, “Thy will be done,” and get to work making this planet a better place to be.
Remember what Jesus told us: “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing, [and] will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:12 NIV
We are called to do as Mary did, to accept our role in bringing about Divine Liberty and Justice for all. And when we do, the world may not call us blessed, but God will know and will be so grateful, as to say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
And that’s the truth!
I am God’s blessed one.
I am blessed with strength and health,
abundance and goodness,
and freedom from all fear.
I share these blessing with others,
and work for the good of all.
I am doing my ‘greater things’
and I like it like that.
And so it is! Amen!
It was Albert Einstein who said: “The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing.” Let the Good News of the birth of Jesus inspire you to resist the negative and share the positive.
