Mother of God

18th December 2022

Mother of God

Luke 1:39-45

 

At the centre of this Bible passage is a question.

…at a get-together by two women of the same family.

 

Elizabeth asks a BIG question:

why has this happened to me,

that the mother of my Lord comes to me? (v43) 

 

Who is Elizabeth asking?

It’s not really a question to Mary.

It’s a question about God.

…about what God is doing.

 

It’s a question that reflects a human perspective.

And that’s our perspective too.

 

This question (from a human perspective) is similar to the ancient question asked by the psalm-writer…

 

What are human beings that you are mindful of them,

mortals that you care for them? (Psalm 8:4)

 

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars that you have established;
(Psalm 8:3)

 

When it comes to the stars – these days we know even more about them than those in ancient times.

 

I wonder whether this extra knowledge changes our perspective…?

Increasingly, we know about the immense, mind-blowing size of the cosmos.

The massive scale of outer space in contrast to the cherry-pip size of earth,

           …and the much tinier human creatures.

 

The James Webb telescope has provided a new perspective.

Looking much further than ever into outer space, this year it has sent astounding images back to us.

 

Things never seen before.

 

These images are available to most of us,

offering a perspective that is shared.

 

And we can watch documentaries on Netflix that acquaint us with the small scale of our planet within our own galaxy.

And that our galaxy of millions of suns is only one galaxy

among 10 billion galaxies.

 

 

What are human beings that you are mindful of them,

mortals that you care for them? (Psalm 8:4)

 

Today there are plenty of people who would quickly retort: “Nothing! Humanity is nothing.”

“If there is an mysterious Maker of all this vast cosmos, it’d be arrogant to expect it to show any interest in us on this planet.”

 

To such people our church songs about a God who knows our names and guides our footsteps, is egotistical nonsense.

 

We are just specks in the cosmos.

Let’s look at a clip form a Netflix documentary ‘A Trip to Infinity’…

 

Show What is the Purpose of Life Anyway? A Trip to Infinity (2002) Netflix

https://www.dropbox.com/s/kupng6qnnlho9m0/What%20is%20the%20Purpose%20of%20Life%20Anyway-%20A%20Trip%20to%20Infinity%20%282002%29%20Netflix-tmp.mp4?dl=0

 

 

If our perspective leads people to think we are only specks in the cosmos, our Advent and Christmas celebrations are the pathetic residue of primitive mythology.

 

To them, Christmas is a game we play once a year, to brighten up an insignificant existence.

 

If you are among those who have fallen into this way of thinking, then the Christian Church says to you:

“…let us tell you about the young woman

who was the mother of God.”

 

 

You see, the Cosmic Christmas Conception happened in a person

a young unmarried women called Mary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It remains a scandal.

It remains a scandal that the King has become a baby

 

You see, ours is not the first era to see a deep gulf between God and this earth, between the Divine and the human creature.

 

The early Church was immersed in Greek culture, which assumed divinity was so pure it could never mix with the material world.

Pure spirit could not be connected with human flesh.

 

Some well-meaning Christians tried to change the story of Jesus to fit with this Greek philosophy…

 

We laugh today at the heresies that took away the humanity of Jesus and made him a ‘phantom’…

·      Like the one that said Jesus’ feet never actually touched the dirty ground.

·      Like the one that said Jesus never blinked!

 

These were rejected as heresies by the Church, which remembers that the story of the Cosmic Christmas Conception happened in a person

…Mary, the cousin of Elizabeth.

 

The human woman Mary gave birth to the divine Child.

 

Fully human and fully divine meet in Jesus.

 

Flesh is not a fatal barrier to God.

A woman’s body is not an impossible (nor an unworthy) place

for God to be incarnate.

 

Mary is ‘Mother of God’.

 

 

Just as the Cosmic Christmas Conception happened in a person,

we too can birth God’s plans in our lives.

 

 

This story declares hope for humanity.

We are not far from God.

 

Astronomically speaking, we may seem just insignificant specks floating on a cherry pip planet in the vast cosmos.

 

But that perspective is limited.

There is more for us to see.

 

The biblical story tells us we can be God-bearers.

 

God has come to us, so we can share in the fullness of divine goodness.

 

As one early Christian put it:

“God became human (precisely) so that the human could become divine.”

 

(Church Office)