Terry Paul Choyce
December 18, 2005, Brunswick Street United Church
Close your eyes. Now imagine, if you can, that you are a young girl, probably 14 years old, and you are living two thousand years ago in the Roman occupied country of Israel. You have been raised in the Jewish faith, and you have a strong belief in God, and in the rules which guide all of the descendants of Abraham.
Your father has arranged for you to marry a man named Joseph. He is about 10 years older than you, and he is a carpenter. From when you are betrothed, you must wait a year until you are officially married, but in the eyes of the community you are bound to one another as soon as you are betrothed. But, if a child is born during that year, or shortly after that year, it is a huge disgrace. If the man claims that the child is not his, he can insist that the woman be put to death.
Your eyes are still closed. You are Mary, going about your daily routine. Perhaps you are drawing water from the community well. You are alone. Suddenly an angel appears before you. You have never experienced an angel before. As far as you know, no one you know ever has. This is not supposed to happen to a normal, young woman. Then the angel tells you that you will become pregnant by the Holy Spirit, and you will bear the son of God. How does this make you feel? Are you scared? Are you honoured? How will this affect your life, and your future marriage? Why did God choose you? What should you do? What do you say to an angel anyway?
Now you can open your eyes. We all know what Mary said. She said "I am the Lord's servant. May it be to me as you have said." I'm not sure that would have been my reaction. I think I would need more information than what she got. I'd need more convincing, even if the message came from an angel. This was going to turn my life upside down. This was going to jeopardize my wedding. In fact, this could get me killed. Would I have enough faith in God to go along with this insane scenario? Mary did.
Mary must have felt much better once she went to see her Aunt Elizabeth, and found out that an angel had appeared to her husband Zechariah. The angel told him that they would be the parents of the man who would make people ready for the coming of the son of God. Elizabeth was probably my age, which is much too old to be having a baby. This was a miracle child, just as the baby in Mary's womb was a miracle. In addition, Zechariah had been struck mute by the angel. At least Mary was still able to speak. Mary spent the next three months with her relatives. While she was there she said this:
My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me--holy is his name His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers."
Now, what about Joseph. The Gospel of Luke leaves him out until they are on their way to Bethlehem. Matthew tells us more, as Shazza read to us today. In a dream an angel comes to Joseph and tells him not to desert Mary, because her child was conceived by the Holy Spirit and they were to call the child Immanuel, which means "God is with us." Now, we do not know if the angel appeared before or after Mary went to visit Elizabeth. If it was after, Joseph would have been a very upset man having his bride gone for 3 months, and then coming home pregnant, with the story that she was still a virgin, and that the Holy Spirit had impregnated her. I hope the angel came to him right after he talked to Mary. Still, they were left in a very unacceptable position in the eyes of the community. It was a scandal and a sacrilege for Mary to be pregnant before they were married. You have to admire Joseph for believing Mary, and for believing in a dream angel.
So what are the messages you and I can get from this for our own lives? For one, do not judge someone else, because you may not know all of the circumstances that have lead them to do what you do not like, or think are morally wrong. Matthew 7:1 and 2 says "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." By Jewish law, Joseph should have left Mary, or even had her killed. I am sure he took lots of flack by protecting and supporting her. He had courage, and faith, and true love for Mary.
Then there is the message of faith, and how sometimes our faith calls us to do things we normally would not want to do. This can manifest in many ways, from having to take care of a disabled brother, as Hazel did for many years; to taking in the children of the family next door when the parents are having severe marital problems, which I know several of you here have done; to helping out at our Mission at times when you have way too much to do already in your own life. And sometimes your faith may make you have career changes, relationship changes, or you may have to move away from your loved ones to follow a calling in another place. Faith is not always easy, or understandable. Thank goodness Mary and Joseph had lots of faith.
And there is the message of the disguised gift. The conception of Jesus caused many problems for Mary and Joseph, but the gift of God's son was worth all of their pain and turmoil. Sometimes, in all of our lives, things come up which seem to be awful, but in the long run, they can be real assets and joys. Even illnesses and accidents sometimes have the end results of making our lives better, because they make our hearts bigger. Sometimes losing what we have makes us love what is left, even more. And our greatest lesson is to love. And GodŐs greatest gift to us was Jesus, who, from his conception, has taught us how to love.
