Advent Meditation for Wednesday, December 22, 2021

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David.  The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said: “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”  Luke 1: 26-28Mary is the only person who was present at all three of the most important events of Jesus’ life: his birth, his death, and his resurrection.  For a long time, Mary was the only person who knew who Jesus was, and who he was.  Yet Protestant theologians have kept us at a distance from Mary, who as Jesus’ mother, had a profound influence on his spiritual formation.  As the woman God chose to be the mother of the one who was to be called “holy”, Mary is deserving of our respect.  She experienced Jesus’ birth as a participant and faced this death as personal loss, rather than an event to be studied from afar.  Many have missed out on any kind of relationship with Mary, even though she was the first Christian, and the first able to answer the question Jesus puts to all his disciples – who do you say that I am?   Our relationship with Jesus as Messiah remains incomplete without addressing what role Mary can play in our discipleship.Our heavenly Father, even as we try to understand Jesus’ relationship with you, help us better understand his relationship with his earthly mother, Mary.  AMEN.  CV