3 Advent 2013

3 Advent 2013

The 3^rd Sunday of Advent is traditionally called “Rose Sunday,” and it’s the Sunday in Advent when we honor Mary, the Mother of Jesus.

For many people, Mary has come to be known as an almost strictly Roman Catholic personage. In fact, people often ask if we as Episcopalians ‘have Mary,’ as if she were a kind of affectation to Christian tradition. Likewise, there is regular surprise from people when they realize that Mary is even mentioned in our liturgies. And, probably, much of this sort of reaction is because of our Protestant heritage. Apparently we’re not expected to have any kind of veneration for Mary—and that, I think, is just unfortunate.

Now, obviously, I will admit that in some cases, Marian devotion has taken on an almost cultish expression. Historically, this can be linked to some attempts made by missionaries who were bringing the Gospel to cultures where feminine deities were worshipped. Unfortunately, in the attempts to try to create some cultural relevance, the message that the missionaries were trying to communicate became misconstrued. As a result, then, we see various aspects of Mary, which take on some markedly pagan attributes.

Likewise, we learn from Church History that in the Dark Ages, it was believed the reason everything in Europe was falling apart was because God was judging the world. Inevitably, the Church began to teach that because of the holy, separateness of God, and Jesus, that our only Mediator and Advocate to Jesus was his Mother, Mary.

Well, with all of these things muddying the already dusky waters of faith and devotion for the common person—it’s no wonder that the Protestant Reformation happened. And even though the original reformers (Martin Luther included) were not ready to throw Mary out completely—what we eventually see is the importance of Mary becoming progressively diminished in Protestant circles. And, for those of you who may be carrying some negative baggage from the Roman Church, you can probably understand why…

However, no matter how hard people may try to ignore Mary, she obviously will not be easily forgotten. Whether it is because of some of the sentimental imagery that her motherhood evokes, or her importance to the conversations regarding the roles of women in the Church; Mary is tough to dismiss.

In Luke’s Gospel, where we get most of our information about the birth narrative, Mary is a young, faithful woman who is betrothed to a respectable man. We assume, contextually that she doesn’t come from a wealthy family, but tradition tells us she comes from a religious family. At the Annunciation, we see that she is a young woman who has great trust in God’s Providence—even when she hides away at her cousin Elizabeth’s house, she continues to maintain her faith in what would probably be a very difficult situation. And, of course, from the Nativity story, we gather this image of Mary, the mother meek and mild.

However, there is another side to Mary as well—a side that is less meek and mild, and more like what we’d expect from a strong mother. Not only can we guess that Mary gave Jesus an earful when he disappeared from their group of pilgrims, only to turn up in the Temple—but my favorite moment happens at the Wedding Feast at Cana.

You’ll remember that Mary, Jesus and the disciples all went to a wedding in Cana, and while they were there, the wine ran out at the feast. Well, in response to this, Mary tells Jesus that he needs to do something. And, in spite of Jesus saying that it wasn’t his place to do anything; Mary (probably holding her hand to Jesus’ face) simply says to the servants: “Do whatever he tells you…” So, there’s not even a moment where Mary doesn’t have some influence with Jesus.

However, probably the most profound example of Mary’s courage, resolve and love is in the Passion story. Here we’re told that she follows with Jesus for every agonizing step along the way to the cross. Not only does she suffer as someone who loves Jesus as the Christ; but as his mother, and knows and loves him more intimately than anyone else could.

We find Mary not only present then for the Ascension of Jesus, but she is also present with the disciples in the upper room praying and waiting for the Holy Spirit. So, here we find her not only remaining with other believers, but we see her at the very birth of the Church.

Yet, beyond the Scripture, we can also draw a number of other ways in which Mary holds an important place in our faith tradition.

As St. Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians, that Jesus is a kind of Last Adam, who perfects the humanity that was damaged in the fall of Adam in the Garden. In a way, then, Mary, by her willingness and “Yes” to God’s invitation to bear Jesus likewise represents humanity’s own “Yes” to God, and counters the curse of humanity’s original rebellion.

In John’s Gospel, Mary is entrusted to the Beloved Disciple, and John is likewise entrusted to Mary. For theologians and scholars going back to Polycarp, this moment was considered to be Jesus giving his mother to the whole Church, and the Church being given to Mary. This is why one of the earliest Marian hymns include the words “sub tuum praesidium,” which translates as “beneath your protection.”

The places in which I find Mary intersecting our faith tradition have most to do with sacramental ministry. Where some in the clerical, priestly role think of the ministry as standing in the place of Christ as the presider at the sacraments—we may also say that we stand in the place of Mary, who is the only one who has brought Jesus into the world in a way that is not hidden the way his Presence is hidden in the sacraments.

Icons of Mary, we find, regularly have Mary pointing us to Jesus—in the same way that the meditations of the Rosary are supposed to point us to him.

The point of all of this, is that while Jesus is the model for all our lives, we are also given Mary as an example of humility, discipleship, courage and love. In her we find not only the example of faithful and committed life that we find in all of the saints—but we also find one who reflects the kind of love and adoration that can be seen best in the relationship between mother and child. And because she has been given to the Church, and (I believe continues to pray for us), we can claim her as our own—without feeling like we will break into Protestant hives every time she’s mentioned. Because, in the end, the lesson that she offers to us, by her life and example, can be summed up in her words to the servants about Jesus at the wedding feast at Cana—words which undoubtedly should shape our own lives today. She says simply, “Do whatever he tells you.”