Today, and for the next three Sundays, we are going to be considering the life of Mary, the mother of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Mary , known as the Theotokos, or God bearer, is an important figure in Christianity. She is revered as the mother of God. She is the only person in the New Testament who was present at the birth of Jesus, at his crucifixion, and also at Pentecost.
This week we’ll talk about the annunciation, the visitation, the Magnificat, and taking a look at Mary’s Jewish heritage, and other women in the Bible whose stories connect with hers.
Next week, we’ll take a look at what was going on in the Greco-Roman world at the time of the birth of Jesus and why God had an appointed time for this birth.
The third week, we’ll talk about Mary’s and Joseph’s flight into Egypt and explore its meaning.
And the fourth week, we’ll talk about preparing our own hearts and minds for Christmas Day.
Before we go on, do any of you have things you want to know about Mary that we should cover in the next four weeks? Let’s take a minute to jot down those questions so we can make sure to get to them during our time together.
Here are some depictions of the Annunciation—The Angel Gabriel comes to Mary and tells her that she will bear a son who will be holy, the Son of God. (Luke 1:16-38). The Medieval church developed the song Ave Maria partly from this passage.
The Angel Gabriel from Russian Icon Book
Harper Collins Bible Dictionary-page 617
Illustrated Life of Jesus from National Gallery of Art, pages 10-11
Four Gospels Samuel Kress Collection
Henry Tanner card
Elizabeth—Elizabeth is the wife of Zechariah and the mother of John the Baptist. She comes from a priestly family. Bible Dictionary—“Her long period of barrenness connects her with earlier women in Israel such as Sarah (mother of Isaac) and Hannah, who gave birth to children who would be important for new eras in Israel’s history.”
Sarah (princess) Genesis 17:16 I will bless her and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.
After Elizabeth had been pregnant for five months, Mary found out that she would bear a child at the annunciation. Mary then visited Elizabeth for three months. Mary was honored by Elizabeth’s prophecy that she would be the mother of the Lord.
Visitation pictures
The one from Israel
Word—Kollwitz
Illustrated Life of Jesus
Janknegt
Mary’s sings a song, which we know as the Magnificat,at the beginning of her visit with Elizabeth. You can find it in the Bible in Luke’s gospel, Luke 1:46-55. And it’s also in the BCP on page 91.
Let’s read it together. (Read Magnificat.)
Tell out my soul and My Soul Gives Glory to My God
What do you notice about this song? What stands out for you?
One important theme in the Magnificat is the theme of deliverance.
And here, it’s useful to take a look at Mary’s Jewish heritage. As you know, the theme God’s deliverance of God’s people runs throughout the Bible.
And we can find several precedents for this outpouring from Mary in the Old Testament.
Read Exodus 15:20-21.
“The the prophet Miriam, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand; and all the women went out after her with tambourines and with dancing. And Miriam sang to them: “Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; horse and rider he has thrown into the sea.”
Miriam was the sister of Moses and Aaron. According to The Harper Collins Bible Dictionary, Miriam was the sister of Moses who watched as her little brother Moses floated down the Nile in a basket made from reeds and when the Pharoah’s daughter discovered the baby, this sister offered to find a woman to nurse the baby—the mother of Moses. After the Exodus, Miriam had a prominent place among the women because she leads this victory song after the crossing of the Red Sea. Later, “she considered her prophesy equal to that of Moses when she and Aaron complained about the marriage of Moses to a Cushite woman (Num 12); for that she was struck down with leprosy and was healed a week later after Aaron asked Moses to intercede for her. Miriam died and was buried at Kadesh. In later Biblical tradition the leprosy of Miriam was presented as a caution to Israel (Deut 24:9) and Miriam was remembered together with Moses and Aaron as leaders sent by God (Micah 6:4). In posbiblical Jewish legends the prophecy of Miriam is stressed, and she was considered to have foretold the birth of Moses as savior of his people.”
And then there’s Hannah. The name Hannah means “grace.”
The Harper Collins Bible Dictionary says that “on an annual pilgrimage to God’s shrine at Shiloh, Hannah vowed that if she bore a son, she would dedicate him to God. This granted she named him Samuel, and when she had weaned him, she fulfilled her vow. To Hannah is attributed a song of praise to God, who metes out justice to all the world in accordance with his unique wisdom: abasement of the mighty and exaltation of the lowly, God alone dispenses death and life; his enemies are doomed, but his faithful ones are protected. The them, the reversal of human fortunes, is encountered in other Psalms and in Wisdom literature (Ps 113:5-9, Eccles. 10:5-7 and of course, Luke 1:51-53.)
First Samuel, Chapter 2. Find similarities between Hannah’s song and Mary’s song.
Discussion—talk about similarities between Hannah’s song and Mary’s song.
Here’s what Jesus says when he shows up at the beginning of his ministry at the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth. (Read Luke 4:18-19)
“The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
In all of these scriptures, what themes of deliverance and liberation do you see?
In today’s world, who needs to be delivered and liberated?
And what about you? Where do you need deliverance and liberation in your own life?
Discussion
God came to both Mary and Elizabeth in unexpected ways. How has God come to you in some unexpected way?
“Mary saw her pregnancy as part of God’s plan of salvation for the world. An ordinary girl, living an ordinary life, contributing to the extraordinary. How does your life contribute to the extraordinary grace of God in the world?