Two Women -- 4th Sunday of Advent

I love the Magnificat, or "Mary's Song," as I prefer to call it. My first exposure to it came a whle back, during the few years that I spent as a member of the Legion of Mary, as a part of the prayer we shared during the meetings. I don't know why it is never included in the Church's regular Sunday Lectionary. Only on the daily Mass for December 22nd does it show up as part of the gospel -- in spite of the fact that it is far longer than all the rest of the Marian quotations added together. It also reveals Mary to be far more aware of social justice concerns, both from her own vantage point as a woman in an oppressed, patriarchal culture and from her understanding of our God as a liberator of the poor and powerless.

Hence, whenever we reach the gospel for the 4th Sunday of Advent in the C cycle, and encounter the Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth, rather than stopping after Elizabeth's words to Mary, I continue reading the gospel through the Magnificat, through to the logical end of the passage, when Mary returns home.

So, here is this past weekend's homily, based on that passage.


The other day, a parishioner forwarded a link to a website that had a lot of good suggestions for "ethical Christmas gifts." So I followed up the link, and found a lot of good gift suggestions for those in need all over the world. For instance, for about $50 you could buy a goat for a family in East Africa suffering from the drought over there. I thought that was a pretty good idea. And then, while I was on that page, I saw this other link to "Homilies." And so I clicked on this little button for the 4th Sunday of Advent. And right away, this little message flashed on the screen that said, "Please wait. Don't be impatient." So I waited a minute...and then two minutes... and thought to myself, 'Well, I can do something else while I'm waiting.' And I kept coming back every couple of minutes, but there wasn't anything happening, there was still that same message. Finally, after about 20 minutes of checking this message, it suddenly hit me...THAT was the homily: "Wait. Don't be impatient."

Well, that wasn't too bad for an all-around Advent message, but when we get here to the 4th Sunday of Advent, I think there is a little bit more to it than that. In fact, I really love this gospel passage today, because all the waiting and anticipation of Advent begins to burst out into expectant joy. In fact, many of the great midieval paintings of this scene show two women in kind of a mid-embrace dance. Just listen to the words: When Elizabeth hears Mary's greeting, the baby inside of her leaps for joy! Elizabeth herself is filled with the Holy Spirit. And Elizabeth cries out a joyful greeting in those words that we repeat in one of our most familiar prayers, Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And then Mary herself, filled with the Holy Spirit, bursts forth into that song of joy, which is the longest Marian quotation in all of the Bible.

Why does she sing? Because the two of them realize that they are living a story of God's love, faithfulness, and surprising victory -- and the two of them are filled with outrageous joy and delight in the face of the impossible. Just has the Holy Spirit had once brought forth all of creation out of nothingness long before, so had this very same Spirit brought Life to the emptiness inside of Elizabeth the sterile and Mary the virgin. And while they had no way of knowing all the great events to come, they did know themselves to be simple women without voices who lived in poverty, whose people endured occupation and sometimes even hard brutality under the Romans. But these two lowly women were nonetheless so filled with joy because they could sense the unimaginable beginning to happen in the coming births of their children, they could experience the workings of the Holy Spirit within them, within their world.

And so Mary sang, "The lowly will be lifted up. The mighty will be overthrown. The hungry will be fed." Right then and there, in the midst of their poverty and powerlessness, it was a time of salvation, a time of hope. "God is at work, even in our troubled times," is their message, "and we know because God is at work within us!"

That is why Mary sang.

And I tell you truly, that is why we too must sing, because even in our own chaotic times, the Holy Spirit is at work, within us.

Don't all of us remember the anticipation that we experienced as children, at Christmas time? Even if things were hectic and sometimes frantic, people seemed happier then than they did at other times of the year. Music filled the air, packages were under the tree, secrets were being whispered from person to person. Sometimes the excitement would build until you thought you were going to explode. It was such a magical time.

Most likely as adults we smile at that kind of anticipation when we see it in our children or grandchildren. "How wonderful to be a child." But I think that there is a very adult anticipation within this season which is very simple and childlike -- and it is the kind of anticipation we find in the joyful song we hear in the story of our two women in today's gospel. It is the joy-filled anticipation that God is about to break into the chaos of our world.

And whatever that chaos is in our life, whatever our troubles are, we should sing with that joyful anticipation, just as Mary sang. We can do this, can't we? I know that we can sing, as a parish, in the face of poverty and disease in Malawi, in the face of homelessness here in Seattle and illness right down the block at Children's Hospital. We can do this because we do know that the Holy Spirit has been working within us and within our friends in Namitembo, within the families we help at the Sacred Heart Shelter and those we visit at Children's. We are witnesses to the presence and working of the Holy Spirit in the times of those troubles -- let us never forget that. And that certain knowledge will even give us the courage and the power to sing with a joyful anticipation in the face of the chaos that is Iraq, and the genocide of Darfur, and the killings in Sri Lanka and the Congo and Lebanon and Palestine, singing in the face of the fears of terrorism anywhere -- singing in anticipation of a world of peace and justice.

Not only can we sing, but we must sing, songs of promise and hope, of the workings of the Spirit in the midst of troubled times. We sing to remind ourselves, but most of all we need to sing these songs for our children and for our children's children, because they are all too often afraid of the world that we leave them. They are so relentlessly exposed to the naked violence and senselessness of the world around us, and a culture that conjures for them the illusion that they must be stronger or faster or bigger or have more money. To our children we must sing songs of real hope, songs that reveal to them a Spirit who brings holiness out of chaos.

Mary could sing: My soul magnifies the Lord, my Spirit rejoices in God my savior, because God has looked upon me, the lowliest of the low, and oppressed woman from a tiny village in an oppressed land. God has looked upon ne, a lowly servant, with favor!!!

And if God could break with favor into the life of an unsophisticated, small-town peasant girl like Mary, God can and will do it in the lives of anyone who feels lonely, lowly, broken, or insignificant. God's mercy is for all those who will bow humbly before the Spirit. God has filled the hungry with Good Things, just as God will do once again today, as we who hunger for God prepare together to receive the Eucharist.

We may live in difficult times, but times no more difficult than Mary and Elizabeth's times -- these two simple, faithful women, who danced with joy together.

Advent Examination of Conscience

One of the special gifts of Fr. Marlin Connole to our parish here at St. Bridget has been his remarkable creativity when it comes to special liturgies; i.e., weddings, funerals, and communal celebrations of the sacrament of Reconciliation. Last night was a wonderful example of the latter. It was a quiet evening, with simple, easy-to-sing music, and as a community we gathered in the semi-darkness to meditate on our lives and together ask for forgiveness. "You hadta be there" to understand the dynamic of the evening...but one very moving piece was the Examination of Conscience, read very simply, without hurry, with short sung responses between the four sections. I have found this reflection piece to be very meaningful personally. I would love to hear any reactions, additions/corrections...

An Advent Examination of Conscience

For failings in our private life:
When we have abused or neglected the gifts of body or spirit God has given us:
When we have overindulged in food, alcohol, drugs, or other cravings
When we have allowed ourselves to become overtired
Whenever we have reached for the wrong things
Whenever we have become too complacent or self-satisfied
For ever being too afraid or lazy to do the right thing,
For any personal decisions, habits, or attitudes that keep us from being the child of God that we are called to be

For failings in our families:
When we have hurt or neglected our families
When we have withheld our love from those closest to us
When we have been too guarded or afraid to reach out
When we have withdrawn into our own pursuits
Whenever we have argued too easily
Whenever we have deliberately hurt
For ever failing to help when needed
For ever failing to say we were sorry
For ever failing to say we were wrong
For ever failing to be a sign of God’s love and grace to those we know we should love the most

For failures in our communities:
When we have hurt or neglected our communities – our friends and neighbors, our Church, our country, our world
When we have held back and let others do it
When we have said we would do our part and let it slide
When we have been a disruptive force because of our own ego
When we could have been a peacemaker but kept quiet
Whenever we have excluded others intentionally
Whenever we have taken more for ourselves when others went lacking
Whenever we have ignored others who were in need
For ever choosing to keep to ourselves and not wanting or trying to be in community with others
For any failing in being a neighbor to others

Finally, for our failures with our God:
When we have failed to put our relationship with God first
For the times when we chose to leave God out of our life
When we have failed to make time for regular private prayer
When we have failed to make time for worship with others
When we have made important choices in our life without listening for God’s voice speaking to us
For ever holding back when our God was calling us to be an instrument of grace
When others have been in need or in doubt and we have been too afraid to share the Good News of God’s presence in our lives
When we have failed to offer back to God gifts we have been given – our time, our talents, our treasures, our service, our lives
For those times when we were in need of grace from God but were too proud or afraid to ask

A Note from Namitembo

The area of Namitembo Mission is in southern Malawi, about 90 minutes drive from the town of Zomba. Not that many people have cars -- especially if you're from Namitembo. Some have bikes, though even riding a bike down the rutted dirt road plateau from Zomba is a harrowing experience.

Fr. Owen O'Donnell is a Montfort missionary priest, who has established a sister parish relationship between us here at St. Bridget and the people of Namitembo. What follows is a note he sent us, upon his arrival back at Namitembo a short time ago. Philip and Frank are priests who serve with him; Philip is a native Malawian, and Frank is a 90+ year old Montfort priest who has served in Malawi for 65 years. Rex is the Malawian Administrator for the Agriculture and Trade School which St. Bridget is helping to build. There's plenty more information on our St. Bridget web site.

Dear Denny,
Yes I am back and just about back in charge of the situation but it wasn't easy. I was back for only an hour when we lost power and were without for four days; everything in the freezer had to be condemned. At around the same time we had torrential rain (six inches) and an awful wind and the report from the Secondary School here that its roof had been blown off (three classes). I also started to receive reports from Frank, Phillip and Rex that we were continually without water: turned out that the water tank had rusted through. And when finally we did get the power back we found that our freezer had frazzled its motor and was causing the main power switch in the house to trip. What a welcome back! Phillip was delighted that it all happened after my return.
Anyway, we now have the freezer repaired and a new tank up on the tower and everything just about back to normal. We have salvaged many of the roofing sheets from the school. Its amazing how good the tinsmiths are here. We have had the bishop for the weekend where he blessed (after waiting almost twenty years) the Church at Luwezi. It was another five hour service and incredibly hot and humid as the rains have started. The previous Sunday, I failed to reach Mlambe outstation due to the heavy rains and came back to Namitembo where I said Mass with a congregation of ten people.
And still we have no e mail facility at the mission. The Company phoned me yesterday: they were doing a customer survey. I don't think they were too impressed with my answers! They continue to tell me that "soon" we will have the best service in Malawi. But when "soon" is they were unable to say.
We again have visitors; we have Erin's parents and brother plus our Provincial superior from the U.K. And for Christmas we will be entertaining five of Brian's family. It has certainly been a year for visitors. By my reckoning we will have hosted more than sixty this year alone.
Denny, thanks for the funds. That were credited to our account on the 22nd Nov. Rex was delighted as he was operating on an overdraft. Happily this overdraft was with me and so there were no service charges involved.
Today we are celebrating Frank's 65th anniversary of his priestly ordination. I have bought in a few bottles of nice wine for the occasion and tomorrow we are all planning on having lunch up on the plateau. But what an example he is to us all.
Denny my regards to all. Take care and God Bless,
Owen

A Sense of Urgency...

I've always appreciated the figure of John the Baptist. He's always been able to push me out of my comfort zone, to get me to look at myself. That was what was driving this homily:

2nd Sunday of Advent, 2006

I’ve always loved this particular gospel today, from the 3rd chapter of Luke. It follows immediately after the birth and childhood stories of Jesus, and it begins by situating us in history: the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar … when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea… and Herod the tetrarch of Galilee… in the high priesthood of Caiaphas and Annas – and then “The Word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the desert.”

Today we again encounter the Advent figure of John the Baptist, a man almost crazy with a passion. He’s a man with a mission and a message, a man driven with a compelling sense of urgency. The word of God came to him in the desert, and he proclaimed a baptism of repentance. Why? “The Kingdom of God is at hand.” He’s the voice crying out in the desert: “Reform your lives, prepare the way of the Lord.” He’s like an alarm bell going off.

However, I think it’s safe to say that most of us have a hard time feeling John’s sense of urgency. Probably the most urgent feeling most of us have this time of the year is to get everything checked off our Christmas list. That’s pretty natural, I guess, but I think the biggest reason we might have trouble feeling John’s sense of urgency is because his message is “Jesus is coming…now!” And I think that most of us hear that and say, “That’s right, Jesus came…then,” in the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar.

That reminds me of a story that I know I’ve told before, but I think it’s a good one. You know, not long ago, down in hell, there was a staff meeting called by Satan. And at the top of the agenda was what to do about the people of St. Bridget parish. In fact, a lot of familiar names came up in that meeting. It seems Satan wasn’t very happy about how things were going, and he was looking for some fresh ideas on how to throw things off track. And one of the devils said, “Well, let’s try the idea that there’s no God. No God. That will dull their sense of conscience because there’s no ultimate meaning.” And Satan said, “Well, that would work with some people, who might be prone to vanity, or a sense of intellectual superiority, but we really worked that idea pretty hard during the days of communism, and in the end it didn’t really work.” And a second devil said, “Well, we could try the idea that there’s no hell – No hell -- that God’s so perfectly loving and forgiving that they don’t really need to change their lives.” And Satan said, “Well, that will work with some people too, but those people at St. Bridget are smart enough to know the difference between right and wrong, and they know that there’s a difference between terrorists and people like Mother Teresa.” And finally, one sly devil said, “I’ve got it! Let’s just convince them … that there’s no hurry.” And Satan got this absolutely devilish look in his eyes… “Ah, no hurry!”

So this morning we hear John the Baptist speak with urgency: “Make ready the way of the Lord – clear a straight path!” And he prods us to examine what baggage we have gathered over the last year or years – what’s the clutter in our life that gets in the way, the stuff that distracts us, that breaks our concentration, that keeps us from focusing clearly on the Lord, that keeps us from making more time for God. John tells us to clear it out, make a straight path!

But then we hear this other voice inside… “Wow, there’s a lot of baggage in my life. House, property, job, bills, relationships, I should probably get things organized first, make a couple of lists. Meanwhile I’ve got so many other things I just have to do right now. I can’t take on everything at once… I can’t deal with all that right now… Besides, that can wait a little while -- there’s no hurry.

And John the Baptist urgently tells us, “Every valley shall be filled, every mountain and hill made low” – the valleys in our lives, where our souls are eroded by a lack of virtue: those kind words left unspoken, deeds of compassion left undone, bread not shared with the hungry, service to others withheld, prayers neglected, urgings of the Spirit ignored. Fill those low spots! And those mountains and hills – the obstacles of pride, or arrogance, or self-centeredness, or ambition … the mountains of our own ego – those mountains must give way to a quieter, truer, more humble way. Ah, but we all know that correcting our faults is embarrassing; and it’s hard work. And virtue, wow, that’s even harder.

Well, it’s a long range project. We’ll get to it. Most of us are pretty much OK anyway. There’s no hurry.

And John urgently says to make the winding road straight, and the rough ways smooth. John challenges us to look at the crooked paths inside of ourselves, the self-deceptions we live with, the rationalizations, the manipulative or conniving sides of ourselves that too often characterize how we relate to others…which leave us unprepared to welcome or even recognize the God of integrity and authenticity. John calls us to examine our rough sides of anger, impatience, intolerance, prejudice, favoritism – anything that causes frictions to arise, that alienate us one from another, that makes us unprepared to meet a Prince of Peace.

But none of us is perfect, right? We’re all products of our upbringing, or our environment. And you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs, right? So what’s the hurry?


Our gospel today poses us this critical question: how do we hear the passionate voice of John the Baptist today, when he urgently tells us that our Lord is coming -- not then, two millennia ago, but now – in this day and age – in the year of the Lord 2006?

Well, that’s a good question. But it’s such a big question. Maybe we should all just… sleep on it.