A stigma to embrace

Since it is almost Christmas, I have been thinking a lot about the predicament Mary found herself in after she, without skipping a beat, accepted to play the role of the Mother of our Lord. I imagine how she broke the news to Joseph and how he may have initially responded. 

The Christmas story reveals that he acted as a man who knew the rules of his faith, but that he did not want to follow them to the letter. Instead of having Mary stoned to death for being unfaithful as the law required, he chose to quietly divorce her before the town found out what was going on. 

Fortunately, since he would play a key role in the plan of salvation, the Angel of God explained to him his beloved’s new role. He became convinced that she was carrying the Lord. The two married and he became the earthly father and protector of the baby Jesus. Good man.

Surely the town found out about this development and tongues began to wag about this “hussy” and that “illegitimate” pregnancy. She, Joseph, and all the family were probably looked down upon by those who enjoyed the feeling of superiority when “sharing” with others this “sad” news. 

“Oh, those poor, poor, parents.  How they must feel having spent all their years trying to raise a good girl, and now look at her.”   “Tisk, tisk, it’s such a shame, and blah, blah, blah...”

Because scripture says that Mary pondered everything in her heart, I believe she never told anyone, except her family, about the angelic visitation, or the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit, or all the miraculous events thereafter. She kept all to herself at the cost of losing her reputation and maybe some of her family and friends. 

I bet the stigma of this pregnancy was attached to her her whole life.  And I bet when Jesus took his ministry to his hometown, thirty years later, a lot of that stigma found its voice and judgement and fueled the townspeople with desire to push him off the cliff outside of town after he made the audacious comparison between them and two Gentiles of the Written Torah whom God favored. Luke 4: 21-30 

Even though Mary knew that she would be treated most unfairly, looked down upon, and become the gossip of the town for years to come, she did not hesitate to accept the Lord’s plan for her life.  Let us do the same.

Can you help me?

Recently I read an account from a mother of a toddler who wrote about her conversation with the little girl.  “Mom, can you do me a favor?” “Sure,” the mother responded.  The little girl asked, “Can you help me clean up?”

How cute is that?  The little girl was imitating her mother who has probably asked her that question ever since she could toddle. 

In the universe of a child, Mom is the sun and Dad is the moon.  The child always wants to be near Mom and wants to imitate everything she does.  Eventually he or she will switch the celestial orbs and Dad will become the sun and Mom the moon, but in those beginning months and years, Mom is the center of a child’s everything.

Jesus told his disciples that in order to enter the Kingdom of God, all must become like little children. To long to be near the Lord and to imitate all that He has done is to enter the Kingdom. 

Jesus also said that the Kingdom of God is within us and to do as this toddler manifests the Kingdom for us and to others.

If we all who profess to be Christians truly acted like her in our actions and in our wills we would experience what Jesus longs us to experience. It would be peaceful and heavenly.

We would not have the in-house fighting, the church splits, the back stabbing, and all the things disgruntled, bad children do to each other.  

In this Christmas season can we turn our attention to the lowly stable where Jesus’ mother and Joseph cradle the Kingdom of God in their arms? Can we put down the sharp words and the knives and instead imitate the Lord who will ask us in love, Can you do me a favor, can you help me clean up?”

We will

There is so many warm fuzzies to look forward to during the Christmas season.  The food, the visits with family, the office parties... The reason for Christmas is a respite from the rest of the year’s worries and I love it. 

Today I read in Luke that we Christians have other things to look forward to that are not warm fuzzies but cold pricklies. These things are sure to touch each of us in varying degrees, and Jesus predicts these things for us so that we will not be surprised when they happen.

He says in the book of Luke:  “...you will be seized and persecuted; you will be handed over to the synagogues and to imprisonment, and brought before kings and governors for the sake of my name and that will be your opportunity to bear witness.  Make up your minds not to prepare your defense, because I myself shall give you an eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict.  You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends; and some of you will be put to death. You will be hated universally on account of my name, but not a hair of your head will be lost. Your perseverance will win you your lives.” Luke 21:12-19

The words “will” and “shall” are used ten times in this short paragraph. We will be seized, persecuted, handed over to secular courts, and imprisoned by the actions of family and friends.  But these events will be our opportunity to wax eloquent with the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, and by persevering we will win our lives. 

I hope when we experience things along these lines we really will be ready to meet the challenge and not be taken aback with disbelief.  

Thomas A Kempis wrote in The Imitation of Christ: “If you have Christ, you are rich indeed, for only He can fill all your needs.  He will be you provider and defender and your faithful helper in every need, so that you need not trust in any other.

"How quickly people change and fail us; but Christ abides forever and remains at our side to the end.

No confidence is to be placed in mortal human beings, no matter how helpful they may be or how dear to us, for we are all frail. Neither should you be downcast if one day they are on your side and the next day they are against you; for humans are changeable like the wind.

"Therefore, put your complete trust in God and let Him be the center of your love and fear.  He will answer for you and will do what He sees best for you.”

I don’t think any of us look forward to the predictions in Luke’s book, but we can look forward to having our Lord stand next to us defending us in our time of trouble.