Word to the Wise
Sunday, December 22, 2024 - 4th Sunday of Advent - C
[Mic 5:1-4a; Heb 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-45]You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel...He shall stand firm and shepherd his flock by the strength of the Lord, in the majestic name of the Lord, his God; and they shall remain, for now his greatness shall reach to the ends of the earth; he shall be peace. [Micah] "Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled." [Luke]
The gospel scripture for this Sunday is identical to the one the day before. It is the same story of what we call THE VISITATION in the joyful mysteries of the rosary! Two unexpectedly pregnant women in a scene of reunion and hope are presented to us. I really feel the only ones qualified to truly understand the passage would be women who have been pregnant, especially if they had been told their chances of pregnancy were small!! I know some! But the story was recounted by the evangelist Luke for a reason - a theological reason. Mary's child would be superior to Elizabeth's, but Elizabeth's child would be the herald for Mary's.
Yes, the theological message is important, but it should not rob us of the poignance of the scene - the two joyful women. No matter the significance of their unborn sons, they share in the mystery of new life forming within their bodies, and they would face the experience of giving birth, which Ezekiel 16:4 describes somewhat and Jesus refers to in John 16:21. It was the business of women alone not just to be pregnant and give birth but also to attend as midwives. And the circumstances in Bethlehem and the hill country would not be the elaborate labor and delivery rooms of modern hospitals. Even now, giving birth can be dangerous and infant mortality in Jesus' time would have been appalling by modern standards. The joy of being unexpectedly pregnant would be replaced by the joy of delivering a child alive and surviving the experience!!!
All of this can bring our Advent expectations down to earth and to human experience. The two male children who would grow up to be significant figures in our faith had to first be born of joyful and strong women. Today's gospel scene can serve to remind us that Christmas is an incarnational event for Mary and Elizabeth, for Jesus and John, and for us who celebrate the triumph of the safe delivery. AMEN
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