Fourth Sunday of Advent
LK 1:39-45
December 23, 2018
I am certainly looking forward to tomorrow evening…CHRISTMAS EVE! But, as I reflect on the Gospel proclaimed on this final Sunday of Advent 2018, I find myself looking back…not all that far, really. The powerful story of The Visitation, The Second Joyful Mystery of the Rosary, reported by Luke sends me back a mere two weeks to the Second Sunday of Advent.
As I prayerfully imagined the encounter between these two pregnant women, Mary and Elizabeth, I remembered the Psalm that was sung at Mass in my parish. When the cantor stepped up to the ambo and introduced the refrain, I sensed a current running through the church. The tune was especially upbeat…truly joyful…”catchy.” I could see folks “perk up.” And, although he did his usual excellent job singing the verses, it seemed like everyone was almost impatient to join in. I was, anyway. In fact, even though two weeks have passed, I still catch myself singing/praying…
THE LORD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS FOR US…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY!
I remember that when he finally lifted his arms, signaling the community to “join in”…join in we did! From the presider’s chair, looking out over the community, I could see just about everyone’s lips moving…and the church was filled with those words…
THE LORD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS FOR US…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY!
It was great.
While the message was powerful and the tune “catchy,” I don’t think that is what has me looking back to Psalm 126 and the Second Sunday of Advent, when just about everybody else in the world is most likely looking forward to Christmas Eve. There was something else about that Sunday celebration that has raised that memory in my mind and in my heart as we close this Advent Season.
As I was singing along with the community, enjoying a moment of full, active, and conscious participation in the Eucharist, which the Psalm ignited, I noticed a young woman in the front row. She was just a few feet away from me, so I had a good view of her. Like everyone else, she was singing. And, like everyone else, she had a look of happiness on her face, as we filled the church with that proclamation of faith:
THE LORD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS FOR US…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY!
But what made her particularly unique and caused her to stand out in the crowd was what might be thought of as her “prayer posture.” Obviously pregnant, the young woman had her hands placed on either side of her “baby bump.” It was if she was cradling her unborn child. That gesture seemed entirely fitting at that time and place, and gave special meaning to those words:
THE LORD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS FOR US…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY!
The memory of that young woman came to my mind as I began my reflection on today’s Gospel. I envision Elizabeth rushing out to greet Mary, their eyes meeting and exchanging knowing glances. I see them stopping for a moment, just before they hug…both cradling their unborn babies…just like the expectant young mother in the first row. The soundtrack that plays in my mind as I reflect on the scene surrounding the meeting of these two heroic women is:
THE LORD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS FOR US…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY!
God had definitely done “great things” for Mary and Elizabeth. God filled them both with the Holy Spirit. But then, God asked great things of them. Both were invited to play a full, active, and conscious role in salvation history. Both accepted God’s invitation. Because of their willingness to cooperate with God’s grace, tomorrow, voices will be raised all around the world, singing a new song:
CHRIST OUR SAVIOR IS BORN!
As we take a final glimpse of the Advent wreath, it is good to remember that the Christmas Season is fleeting. In no time, Christmas 2018 will be a memory. The decorations will all disappear and the music will change. LOOKNG FORWARD, however, there is one song that those of us who have been Baptized in Christ Jesus should continue to sing…even if only in our minds and our hearts:
THE LORD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS FOR US…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY!
Like Mary and Elizabeth, we have been impregnated with the Holy Spirit. Each of us cradles Christ within our bodies. Each of us has been invited to take a full, active, and conscious part in the work of proclaiming the Reign of God. So, looking forward, give some serious thought to how you might go about “giving birth” to the Good News. And should you doubt how important you are to The Story of Salvation…remember the song:
THE LORD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS FOR US…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY…WE ARE FILLED WITH GLADNESS AND JOY!