Mary the Prophet

 

I love the Magnificat, though I don't always like the tune settings. I always want the song to have more oomph than most composers seem to want to give it. 

I also love the statue called "Mary as Prophet" on the VTS campus. But it wasn't until I was writing this sermon, and spent some time with the words of the Magnificat, and read around the story of Mary's trip into the hill country to see Elizabeth, that I found so much richness and depth and meaning to this moment. When Peggy Parker made this statue, I have to wonder, if she made the same connections that I did to the great prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah? 

And did VTS understand what it did by placing this statue between the ruins of the burned down old chapel and the much bigger new one?

I'm including with this post the prayer I'll be using. It's from "Daily Prayer for All Seasons" put out by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 2014 and pulled from the Revised Common Lectionary p.34. 

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Prayer: O God of Elizabeth and Mary, you visited your servants with news of the world’s redemption in the coming of the Savior. Make our hearts leap with joy, and fill our mouths with songs of praise, that we may announce glad tidings of peace and welcome the Christ in our midst. Amen.

 

The Song of Mary…the Magnificat: so good…we actually heard it twice this morning.

It’s a song of might and resilience…one that ought to be heard as a rock anthem or even a power ballad.

It’s Mary’s song…her own remix of a prayer she probably memorized from her Jewish upbringing.

It echoes the song of her ancestor Hannah when she became pregnant with Samuel, the prophet and last judge of Israel in the Old Testament.

This song rises up from the core of her being…a shout to the heavens of praise and intensity.

But that’s not where this story begins.

There’s a logical build up to this tune.

Like I said a few weeks ago…of all the evangelists…Luke is the one who is a composer and librettist on the level of Rogers and Hammerstein.

If we know anything about their musical style…that duo always made sure there was a dramatic development in the story  that made singing the logical climax.

And therefore…there has to be an emotional build to this young teenage mother-to-be singing out “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord!”

So let’s back up a moment and get a sense of what all has happened.

First thing to know…Mary…a young Jewish girl descended from the line of David…engaged to a carpenter named Joseph…gets an unexpected visit from the angel Gabriel. Gabriel tells her that God has a special mission for her: she’s going to give birth to the Son of the Most High.

“Oh…and by the way…your relative Elizabeth? Yeah, the older woman who thought she was barren? Well…she’s gonna have a son and she’s gonna name him John.

Her husband Zechariah… who thought I was kidding and has been made mute as a punishment for laughing at me… is gonna declare their child “the prophet of the Most High” and their kid is going to prepare the way for this son you’ll be having. How do ya like that, huh?!”

Mary…as we might imagine…probably stood still for a moment in stunned silence and awe.

This is fantastical news…way beyond the bounds of human comprehension.

And so Gabriel finishes this declaration with, “Nothing is impossible with God.”

Again…Mary is listening to all of this.

She’s trying to make sense of this.

She’s a young unwed girl.

There are serious consequences for her being pregnant and unmarried in this culture.

Nonetheless…from the depths of her being she responds: “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”

This utterance is no less brave and courageous than that of her Jewish ancestors…such as the prophets Jeremiah and Isaiah. When told that they must go to their people and be prophets of sometimes really unpleasant tidings…they protested.

Jeremiah said, “I am only a boy.”

Isaiah tried to say, “Oh, no…not me: I am a man of unclean lips.”

And God said to both of them: Don’t tell me what I already know. You’re it! I got your back. Now go!

Through the Angel Gabriel…Mary is getting the same charge…one of God saying, “I know this is scary…but I’ve got your back, Mary.”

And Mary accepts the charge.

But…and there is a “but” here… unlike Jeremiah and Isaiah…she’s in an extremely vulnerable position.

By rights…the society in which she lived was allowed to vilify her and stone her death for being pregnant out of wedlock.

Joseph…as the man…could have told her he wasn’t going to marry her and left her defenseless against those who would see her as a less than because she was pregnant and put her to death.

So, she takes off to the hill country.

A thousand thoughts spinning in her head.

She’s going to Elizabeth…a relative of some kind.

We don’t know what the precise relationship is between them.

What we do know is that Elizabeth is a type of “auntie” figure…a trusted older adult…someone Mary feels comfortable enough with that she knows she can tell her what’s happened and receive good counsel.

I think this is something quite relatable.

I’m pretty sure everyone here at one time or another has faced a time when we’ve felt as if we’re in a pickle.

We don’t know what to do or how to make sense of a situation.

And that’s when we go looking for those helpers: a good friend… a parent… maybe a teacher or colleague…even a therapist… or a priest.

Someone who you know will listen and help guide you through the haze and the fog to making the right decision.  

There’s a statue on the campus of Virginia Theological Seminary by the artist Peggy Parker.

It’s called “Mary as Prophet.”

It’s located between the area of the old chapel and the new one.

And it depicts this encounter between these two women…symbolically like the statue’s location…this is the old Elizabeth and the young Mary….the mother of John…keeper of the Old Testament…and the mother of Jesus…who will usher in the New Testament.

I’ve posted a copy of a photo I took of the statue on the bulletin board in the parish hall.

Parker depicts these two women as being of African descent…a break from what we normally get shown here in the west.

She shows Mary looking wracked with anguish because…well…as I’ve said…this pregnancy could land in her in some serious hot water.

One arm is cradling the very small baby bump.

Her other hand is clutching at the collar of her robe.

Her gaze is off into the distance.

The Elizabeth character is reaching out…placing her hand on Mary’s elbow… a sign of reassurance.

She’s looking into the face of this younger woman.

And her face speaks of concern…caring…and comfort.

I imagine as we look back at the Gospel that this was perhaps how things were the minute Mary arrived at this home in the hill country.

And then…when she reveals the message of Gabriel…not only does Elizabeth respond positively and affirms this calling….

We hear that John… the one who baptizes at the Jordan River…the one who demands a reformation of the way the Jewish religion is practiced under the Roman occupation…even HE is leaping for joy at the sound of her voice.

One prophet recognizing another prophet.

With all this confirmation…with all this encouragement…Mary cannot contain herself any longer.

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord

My spirit rejoices in God my savior!”

Mary…serving as a prophet…pulls on that ancient song of Hannah.

In the face of whatever danger or disgrace may come her way…she sings all the louder:

“He has shown the strength of his arm

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones….

He has come to the help of his servant Israel

For he has remembered his promise of mercy…”

When we hear these words…and consider the circumstances that led her to sing out this way…we are reminded that God continues to seek and find not the rich and famous and powerful.

God comes to those who others ignore:

a young teenage girl and an old woman…

to be the ones to raise up a generation that will lead their people to new hope…and greater love.  

Their words…their songs…echo into our own time…to inspire us to never lose sight of a God who stands on the side of those who are the marginalized.

As we approach Christmas…may our hearts and minds be so stirred by Mary’s song.

May we find our own voice…fashion our own tune…to proclaim the greatness of God.

Because…with God…nothing is impossible.

In the name of our One Holy and Undivided Trinity.