Leaping for Joy -- A Message for December 24, 2023

 

I am sure everyone is super-aware that this is the morning of Christmas Eve. The way the stories fell in the worship calendar was a little odd this year. This morning, we focus on Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth. Tonight, we focus on the birth of her baby. So, over the course of this day, when we are out buying last minute gifts or gathering with friends and family, Mary will be figuratively speeding through her pregnancy….9 months condensed into one day.

          Let us revisit the story of Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth as we read from Luke 1:39-45…

At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 

where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 

When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 

In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 

But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 

As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 

Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

This is the word of God for the People of God. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Let us pray: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all of our hearts be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.

Message                       “Leaping for Joy”

          When Mary arrived at Elizabeth’s home and greeted her, Elizabeth said that the baby in her womb leaped for joy. Scientists who study pregnancy know that the babies can hear much of what the parents are doing while still in their mother’s womb. We are told to read books to our babies, to play music for them, to talk to them. Andy and I went to a graduation party while I was pregnant with Aida that had a loud DJ and we were worried that it was too noisy for the baby – not for us, but the for baby’s little ears. So, John leaping for joy in his mother’s womb is quite likely – even a little baby knew he was in the presence of the Messiah.

          Both Mary and Elizabeth had a lot to worry about while they were pregnant. Mary was at risk from the people in her community – to be pregnant and unmarried was shameful for women in her culture. She was at risk of the townspeople turning against her and stoning her.

          Elizabeth was described in our scriptures as being elderly. When the angel Gabriel told her husband that they were expecting a baby, Zachariah said: “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”  Elizabeth was one of the women in our Biblical narrative who was barren and then had a miraculous pregnancy when she was older. So, she experienced all of the normal medical risks of pregnancy and then the added risks that befall older moms – sounds familiar!

          Mary went to be with Elizabeth in order to be nurtured by a trusted relative. In Zachariah and Elizabeth’s home, Mary found comfort, care and compassion. We don’t read anything in our scriptures about Mary’s parents….we don’t know who they were, what their status in the community was, or what kind of parents they were to Mary. But, we do know that Mary turned to Elizabeth and Zachariah after she learned she was pregnant.  She trusted them and she went to them for help. It says later in Luke that Mary stayed with them for three months, and returned to Nazareth just before the Baby John was born. She returned to Nazareth to join Joseph and prepare for marriage and the birth of her child…she probably returned to Nazareth expecting that she would have her baby there. The Roman census caused her plan to be altered.

          When we are young people, it is always good to have trusted adults we can turn to when we are in crisis….trusted adults in addition to our parents or, for some of us, trusted adults we can turn to instead of our parents. In my life, I have been blessed with aunts – 5 regular aunts, many great-aunts, even a beloved great-great aunt. When I was a younger person, a teenager and a young adult, at times I turned to my aunts to help me through tough situations It is always helpful for young people to have trusted adults to turn to when times are hard and possibly when you need to get away from home to recover – Elizabeth lived far enough away from Mary that Mary could relax while she was and her home – relax and prepare for Jesus’ birth.

          In our lives, part of our work as people of faith is to become for other people’s kids trusted, nurturing adults. We are called to work to pay attention to the young people in our neighborhoods, in our families and in our church. We are called to be loving, kind and generous to them….even when they wear unusual clothing and listen to music we don’t understand and watch tv shows that make no sense to us.

          The last time Jesus left the earth, he put into place the seeds that would become the Christian Church – we are the people of that Church.   We are called to create in this place and among these people a loving, supportive environment where we together live out Jesus’ teachings. Together, we are called to care for the youngest members of our congregation and communities and work to lovingly support them in their tumultuous lives. We are called to be like Zachariah and Elizabeth, to provide a place for young people to safely land, rest, and be restored so that they can face life’s challenges knowing they are loved by us and they are loved by our God.

          May we do so with love in our hearts today and all days. Amen.