Before we reach Christ's
birth in Luke's gospel we are already well aware of how special Mary is. The
angel Gabriel calls her "most highly favored" and her cousin
Elizabeth exclaims how she is "most blessed". She is the one in whom
the blessings spoken of by God to Moses are to be fulfilled. Yet she has no
claims to greatness. She is a maiden betrothed to a man named Joseph in an
insignificant village in the unimportant region of Galilee. Luke traces the
genealogy of Jesus through his foster-father, Joseph. Mary herself, in her
great hymn of praise on her visit to Elizabeth, will speak of her own lowliness
and marvel at how God has chosen the weak and poor to confound the rich and
powerful.
In this sense the shepherds
are Mary's natural companions. They too are looked down upon. Mary is great not
through any social connections or natural talents but because God has blessed
her and chosen her. She becomes the model for the many characters in Luke's
gospel who will turn social expectations upside down: the Good Samaritan, the
woman who was a sinner, Zacchaeus and the Prodigal Son, to name but a few. She
is the one who, with the Spirit living in her heart, is able to cry "Abba,
Father". She becomes the first of those freed from slavery, the first heir
among the children of God.
How she accepts God's
blessing and choice is important. In a phrase Luke will repeat, Mary is
reported as treasuring all these things and pondering them in her heart. She is
the model of prayerful reflection, the one who allows the Spirit to speak and
inspire. The result of her reflection is in this case transposed onto the
shepherds. They go back glorifying and praising God for all they have heard and
seen. In the Magnificat it is Mary herself who glorifies and praises God for
all he has done.
Mary is a wonderful model for
us as we being this New Year. I wish you every blessing, happiness and health
throughout 2017. May our parish and parishioners continue to be blessed!
