Word to the Wise
Thursday, December 19, 2024 - December 19
[Judg 13:2-7, 24-25a and Luke 1:5-25]"A man of God came to me; he had the appearance of an angel of God, terrible indeed. I did not ask him where he came from, nor did he tell me his name. But he said to me, 'You will be with child and will bear a son. So take neither wine nor strong drink, and eat nothing unclean. For the boy shall be consecrated to God from the womb, until the day of his death." [Judges] "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall name him John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. " [Luke]
Pregnancy is being prominently featured today, following yesterday's annunciation to Joseph about Mary's pregnancy. Today we have the "annunciation" stories of Samson from the Old Testament and John the Baptist from the New Testament. There is even some good pre-natal advice against alcohol or other "strong drink" during pregnancy!
A common expression for pregnancy in English is to say, "She (or, to be inclusive, "they") is/are expecting!" Pregnancy is sometimes called "expectancy." The words "expect" and "expectation" "expectation" express hope and wishes. Of course, in the liturgical calendar, this is all designed to call attention to the annunciation to Mary and her pregnancy and how this all fits in with God's plan of salvation. Tomorrow (Dec. 20), Mary's story will be presented. It's a way of building suspense in the liturgical celebration of the birth of Jesus, the promised Messiah. Some places set up the nativity scene with every figure except Baby Jesus so that the empty manger becomes a way of building expectation!!
Two barren women who had lost hope of a child receive a restoration of hope. Can we restore hope to someone else in this season who may have lost hope? AMEN
[Liturgical note: The secular calendar and the liturgical calendar don't always work well together. Beginning Dec. 17, no matter which day of the Advent week, scriptures change to create a kind of "countdown" suspense.]