Today we are celebrating the feast of the Nativity of the Theotokos. The 8th is actually when this
feast is celebrated more widely but we were not together then so it is today. You have probably
never given much thought to why it seemed important to anyone to make any todo about
the Birthday of Mary.
Sept. begins the liturgical church year and this is the first major festival on the Orthodox
calendar. It is one of the feasts of the Incarnation – God becoming human. Other miraculous
births from the Old Testament such as Samson, Samuel, and even John the Baptist are similar
in description and make clear the divine plan for saving creation. They are stories of older
childless couples giving birth to exceptional children. The Protevangeliam of James, though not
canonical, contains vivid traditional stories of Mary’s youth and have been used by many for
meditations on the providence of God working throughout history. These meditations remind us
that God works within history only with human cooperation
freely given.
Today is also the 10th anniversary of what most of us in the west consider a
tragedy. It is known as just “9 11”. Mary’s birth, God with us and 9 11-- what do
they have to do with one another and with God’s saving His creation?
We profess that God is with us- among us- and yet we frequently hear of our search
for God. It is a project of a lifetime, this search for God. Actually God always is, is
always everywhere as well as nowhere. God does not change. It is we who change. It is we who do not “see” God, who are not aware of God.
Prayer is considered one of the aids to seeking God and rightly so, if understood. Prayer will not give an immediate answer to the search for God but only the promise that there is a purpose to our quest. Readiness for God is something that has to be developed. Are we wise enough to pray for the awareness of the presence of God so that eventually we see God’s presence in all the dimensions of Life?
Was Mary aware of God’s presence? Did she understand that Jesus was God from the moment of his conception? I don’t imagine it was that clear to her. Mary was one of the exceptional “great” ones though. Greatness is a quality that is impossible to scientifically define with precision but seems impossible to mistake once you see it. Those qualities are compassion for others whatever the desires of the self, commitment to something greater than the self and the life-giving courage willing to sacrifice for the sake of goodness. This kind of greatness brings to the world around it a radiance of spirit, a clarity of purpose and courage of heart masked at first by the trappings of the ordinary. These same qualities we see in the many who gave of themselves on 9 -11 and in those who are still giving and suffering. For Mary this goodness is being faithful and faithfilled in doing God’s will. Giving birth to Jesus, believing in him throughout his life and his death and being able to forgive those who caused his death are what Mary did in her lifetime. Her greatness still speaks to us through the ages like sound waves in the universe.
Mary prayed and trusted in her God. At the end of his life Jesus prayed “Father forgive them for they do not know what they do”. Let us pray for those responsible for the tragedy of 9 11 and for all of us who have been and still are affected by it. God always is. May we see the face of the eternal and ever present God in everything.
Christ is Truly in our midst! |
