Address delivered at St John’s Church, Winterslow -
Mothers’ Union Service during Advent
– Wednesday 5th December
2018
Isaiah 11:1-5, 10; Luke 1:26-28; Matthew 1:18-24
May
I speak in the name of the Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen
What joyous words we read in these pieces of scripture
which we have heard today. First of all, Isaiah’s prophecy in our Old Testament
reading heralding the coming of a saviour to the Jewish people – words of
comfort to those Jews in Babylonian captivity. Those first Jews who heard this
prophecy must have been delighted for they had had a fairly rough time of it –
God’s chosen people exiled from the Promised Land who felt that God’s wrath had
placed them where they were with a bleak future ahead of them. Then Isaiah
proclaims the coming of a descendant of King David (the shoot that shall come
from the stock of Jesse). This Messiah
will put all things right because he shall have the spirit of the living God,
Yahweh, upon him.
We have to fast forward another five hundred years to a
different scenario for our two New Testament readings – yet the message is the
same. A young girl, Mary, in a small
insignificant village on the shores of Lake Galilee A vision – the angel
Gabriel sent to the young girl as a messenger from the same Yahweh. What an incredible experience. Gabriel greets
her with the enigmatic words “Greeting favoured one!” What on earth can it mean?
The message he brings is that she is pregnant and the father is the Holy Spirit.
No wonder her fiancée, as we read in Matthew, is well
upset and confused. Yeah right, pregnant by whom, did you say?, God in the form
of the Holy Spirit! Pull the other one. Do you take me for a fool? It almost seems like a scene from modern day
Coronation Street! Even if Joseph could
believe what he was being told it
certainly wouldn’t do his own reputation amongst his peers any good; a cuckold,
a patsy, a weak man. As we read, Joseph
concluded that the best way to deal with this problem was to quietly dismiss
Mary; break off the engagement, let her deal with her own shame and humiliation
away from prying neighbours.
But we read that this wasn’t the way it was to be. Joseph
received a message in a dream to stand by Mary, marry her and support her in
her amazing role; so all ended happily at that point.
As a man, I still ponder what Joseph must have felt like
after that revelation. We know little of Joseph’s life after the fleeing to
Egypt although surmise that he continued his carpenter’s career with Jesus as
his apprentice. What we do know is that Joseph was descended directly from Boaz
and hence through Jesse giving credence to Isaiah’s prophecy that Jesus would
come from the shoot of Jesse.
Jesus, born of a woman, becoming God incarnate, who has
come to save God’s people. Today we are
celebrating the Annunciation which has been represented in some of the most
beautiful art in the world. I can still vividly recall the moment when I
arrived at the top of a flight of stairs in the Monastery of San Marco in
Florence and saw right in front of me the wonderful fresco of the Annunciation
by Fra Angelico. It was an amazing and
unforgettable moment. Here was one of
the most famous paintings here before my own eyes in its original form.
For those of you who know it I am sure you are also
struck by the serenity on the face of the young Mary as she listens intently to
what the angel is saying – imparting such life changing news – life changing
not just to this young girl but as we know to the whole world. It is a face of
engagement and obedience. I wonder how
many of us would have been so composed.
This role of a mother is so important and complex. Everybody on earth today has or has had a
mother. It is pivotal for the
continuance of our human species. This
advent as we wait for the coming of Jesus let us spare a thought for Mary as
she went through all those emotions of pregnancy – the highs and lows, the
worries and anxieties – no NHS or scans for her.
I can, to some extent reflect on her situation myself. In
about six weeks’ time my daughter-in-law is expected to deliver twins – our
first grandchildren – and I am getting really excited at this event – although
being called a grandparent does shatter my self-delusions of youth! It will be, for me, one of the most wonderful
events since the birth of my own children.
Being a mother means safety, security, comfort, understanding.
I recall a mother
once setting out a job description for herself when a rather unthinking person
talked of her putting “unemployed” on
a form.
Do you really think I am unemployed? Well let me tell you that I have
several jobs – nurse, chef, teacher, counsellor, housekeeper, maid, coach,
taxi-driver, story-teller, planner, organiser, best friend, worst friend,
photographer, cleaner. I can’t get sick,
don’t take holidays but get paid in hugs and kisses.
We use the word “mother” often to describe a safe place –
our mother land, a mother ship and so on. Even on the Cross, Jesus recognised
the need for every person to have a mother when he pointed to the young
disciple John and then his mother saying “John,
here is your mother” .
Think of that young mother’s job description again.
Doesn’t it bear many similarities with Jesus’s own job description – “healer of
the sick, teacher, counsellor, friend”?
Celebrating the Feast of the Annunciation therefore is to
celebrate something incredibly wonderful – a celebration of the importance of
motherhood. I stand here before so many
mothers. I salute you all. To be a good mother is to be Christ-like. To give
unconditional love, to love, comfort, nurse, heal, teach without counting the
cost. To forgive and embrace those who sometimes may hurt you.
May God bless you and keep you forever in his love.
Amen
MFB/03.12.2018
