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Luke 1:39-45 (46-55)
Advent 4C
We don’t hear Mary and the angel’s conversation this year but we do witness its aftereffects. Seized with anticipation of a fellow miracle-receiver, Mary hastens to the countryside to find her elder cousin Elizabeth. The thing is, we’re told that Mary was given the scoop about Elizabeth’s pregnancy from the angel Gabriel, but not vice…
Luke 1:68-79
Advent 2C
We could call it Psalm 151. Because that is what Zechariah’s song sounds like. Not only does it sound like some of the actual 150 psalms in the Hebrew Psalter, it sounds very much like an Old Testament passage even though it is of course in the New Testament (which may be why the Year…
Luke 1:26-38
Advent 4B
The last Sunday of Advent finally brings us to the Incarnate one himself. Well, sort of. Because this is also a calling story for Mary, the servant of God. Mary is a compelling character in the Scripture narrative. Her calling is like that of the prophets before her: a messenger from the Lord comes to…
Luke 1:46b-55
Advent 4B
The Year B Lectionary makes Mary’s song, “The Magnificat,” an alternative Psalm lection for both the Third and Fourth Sundays in Advent. For Advent 4B the main Psalm lection is from Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26. This commentary will be on Luke 1 and Mary’s song but if you want to read a prior Advent sermon commentary…
Luke 1:46b-55
Advent 3A
The Year A Lectionary presents two options on this week’s Psalm. One option is what I will reflect on here from Luke 1. The other is a portion of Psalm 146. I am not writing on that psalm as this entire psalm was the Lectionary psalm just a couple of months ago. If you wish…
Christmas A: Flutter of Angels
The Advent world is a world of angels. It’s a world alive with the flutter of angels. Our world, in contrast, is inhospitable to angels. It seems totally void of angels. This discrepancy between the Advent world and our world is the thought behind H. G. Well’s story, “The Wonderful Visit.” One day, so this…
Advent 4B: Strangers on the Earth
Those of us who are parents, grandparents, uncles, or aunts all know what it is like to watch our children when they are in the spotlight. Maybe it’s your son’s piano recital or perhaps it is your niece singing a solo at church. Maybe it’s your son at the basketball freethrow line with one-second left…
Luke 1:39-45 (46-55)
Advent 4C
Though the power of Mary’s song always draws my heart’s cry for justice and hope, this year I’m particularly drawn to what we learn about the way of God in the support that Elizabeth offers to Mary. After Mary gives her big “YES” to God’s plan for the salvation of the world, past, present and…
Luke 1:68-79
Advent 2C
Someone once said that visits always bring pleasure because even if the arrival of a certain visitor didn’t make you happy, his departure will! The comedic pianist Victor Borge also touched on this topic when he once noted that the mythic figure of Santa Claus has the right idea: you should visit people just once…
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