- 1st Reading – Micah 5:1-4a
- 2nd Reading – Hebrews 10:5-10
- Gospel – Luke 1:39-45
Our fourth Advent candle is lit. That means Christmas is getting very near, and so it also means time is running out for us to prepare for Christmas. Is everyone prepared? Christmas decorations all put up? Christmas Cards been sent out? Christmas gifts bought, wrapped and either mailed out or put under the tree? Now how about the real serious preparations? Remember those words from John the Baptist a couple weeks ago; “Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight his paths.”? That means we have to prepare ourselves spiritually as well; and time is running out. In just a few days we will be celebrating Christmas. I pray that we’ve all had the time to prepare ourselves spiritually during the season of advent.
During Advent, we also experience winter, the cold weather, the darkness; and during this season we often let society and the media dictate to us what Christmas is all about, which only makes things worse, making busy schedules busier, straining resources and relationships. This time of year, a lot of people get stressed over everything that is going on, all the physical preparations. The season should strike in us a yearning for light, for warmth, and for festivity. And that’s exactly what Christ gives us when we prepare ourselves spiritually. So, although time is running out it’s not too late to finish our preparations. There is still much time that can be spent in prayer. Still time to receive the Holy Eucharist; still time to get ourselves into that joyous spirit. The closer we get to Christmas, the more joyous we should become. This is a season of great joy; of great expectation of the coming of our savior; and that’s what we need to really be preparing for.
In our Gospel reading you can almost feel the sense of joy that Mary and Elizabeth were experiencing. They were bursting with anticipation for the birth of their babies.
Mary was a young girl, newly betrothed, whose conception was miraculous. Elizabeth was an older woman, whose conception was also miraculous in that she was thought to be long past her child-bearing years. They both received word of their conceptions through an angel, the same angel, Gabriel. The two women knew that not just their lives would be changed, but that the whole world would be changed. They seemed to be very aware of the role they were playing in God’s plan of salvation for the world. And they both proclaim their gratitude to God for working his wonders within them.
Elizabeth tells Mary that at the sound of her voice the child in her womb leapt for joy. Filled with the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth too, with full understanding, greets Mary as the “Mother of her Lord”. She recognizes the importance of the event and expresses her joy and humility of being involved by saying “why am I so favored?” And she also acknowledges the importance of Mary and her role by exclaiming, “Blessed are you among women.” Many members of other Christian denominations wonder why we, as Catholics, honor Mary and give her so much devotion proclaiming her as Blessed. We are only following Elizabeth’s example. And her words are validated by the fact that they were uttered under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. If Elizabeth expresses her honor and respect towards Mary at such a vital moment, then I believe we can safely follow her and hold Mary with utmost respect and honor.
The tone of this whole Gospel reading is one of joy. So, the prophecy of the angel concerning the birth of John the Baptist earlier in the Gospel comes true, “He will be your joy and delight, and many will rejoice at his birth.” (Luke 1:14) The angel also foretold, “Even from his mother’s womb he will be filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Luke 1:15) John the Baptist, leaping for joy at the sound of Mary’s voice was the fulfillment of that prophesy, being filled with the Holy Spirit to recognize Mary as the mother of Jesus, and ultimately to recognize Jesus in the womb.
The two children, even though they were still in their mother’s womb, by the power of the Holy Spirit were able to recognize each other. John the Baptist, whose eventual role in life would be to identify and proclaim the coming of the Messiah seems to be already doing this even though he has yet to be born. It’s as if his whole existence is defined by this recognition. So, today’s Gospel account is not just about a meeting between Mary and Elizabeth, it is also about the very first meeting between Jesus and John the Baptist and the beginning of John’s mission.
The role of John the Baptist, his preaching, his task of preparing a way for the Lord and eventually the sending of his disciples to Jesus are all prefigured here in the account of John leaping within his mother’s womb.
The sense of joy in today’s reading comes about because Elizabeth and Mary realize that the events that have long been foretold are now coming to pass. And they are rejoicing because they realize that they are personally involved. And their joy becomes our joy, because while they were there at the beginning, we’ve seen the fulfillment of all that was promised. We’ve witnessed God’s plan of salvation and have seen the end of the story. It concluded successfully and gloriously at Calvary. The salvation of humanity was brought about by the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus.
So let us rejoice as we enter this last week of Advent. Let us put aside the stress of the commercialization of the season. Elizabeth and John the Baptist expressed great joy in the presence of the Lord giving us the words that we pray so often, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.” In just a couple days we will be celebrating the Nativity. Let us reflect on the great gift that God has given us, his son and may we, like John, leap for joy in the presence of Christ.