The story of the birth of Jesus is a story with many layers of meaning.
According to the Gospels, the story is initiated by God who set the story in motion.
“Not that we first loved God, but that God first loved us, sinful though we are.”
The heroine of the first chapters of St. Luke’s Gospel is surely Mary of Nazareth, the blessed mother of Jesus.
She puts aside her fear of the unknown,
and whatever may have been her own agenda,
and she wholeheartedly allows herself to be the instrument of God’s plan.
I am not sure of the context, but when asked the question,
“Whom should you respect?”
the founder of another religion is said to have answered,
“Respect first your mother, and then your mother and then your mother.”
Indeed, respect for mothers is always in season.
And there is no better time than Christmas to respect Mary,
the mother of Jesus,
the woman who carried Jesus in her womb for nine months,
and carried him in her heart for the rest of her life.
An ancient tradition sees a forerunner of Mary of Nazareth
in the valiant woman of the Book of Proverbs chapter 31.
“She extends her hand to the poor,
And she stretches out her hands to the needy.”
Truly, we can easily see that empathy and strength of character in the words of the poetic and prophetic prayer that Mary prays in Luke’s account of the events preceding Jesus’ birth where she praises God for putting the mighty down from their seats and lifting up the lowly.
In medieval times, Mary the mother of Jesus was loved and honored not only as the mother of the Saviour,
but as the great intercessor whose influence could even soften Divine justice.
What is the spiritual gift you seek this Christmas time?
What is to prevent you from silently asking Mary to join her prayer to yours?
Lord Kenneth Clark, the art historian, described Mary’s role in this way,
“Mary was the supreme protectress of civilization.
She had taught a race of tough and ruthless barbarians the virtues of tenderness and compassion.
The great cathedrals of the Middle Ages were her dwelling places upon earth.
In the renaissance, while remaining the Queen of Heaven, she became also
the human mother in whom everyone could recognize her qualities of warmth, love and approachability.
Certainly during the Christmas season we could re-learn the lessons of Mary’s virtues of tenderness and compassion.
The year 2009 is growing old. There are just a few days remaining until we cross into 2010.
Rampant commercialism and empty revelry, can make us feel old and cynical.
We need to resist that temptation.
Economist John Kenneth Galbraith lived to be a wise old gentleman.
He is quoted as saying,
“If wrinkles must be written upon our brows,
let them not be written upon the heart.
The spirit should never grow old.”
May your heart have no wrinkles this Christmas.
May it be a place where tenderness and compassion have a home
and where warmth and love and approachability
make it easy for others to find comfort and joy.
Fr John Burger SSC is currently on the General Council of the Columban Fathers.