Mary, Mother of our Lord

Sunday, August 15, 2010
Mary, Mother of Our Lord
Midweek Musings
Reflection by Pastor Macholz

INTRODUCTION
Mary's role is not limited to giving birth to Jesus and mothering him in his childhood. In John's gospel, she is among the women standing near the cross; in Acts, she is among the disciples awaiting the gift of the Spirit. Through all that happened she continued to see how God was at work through her son, keeping the ancient promises to her ancestors, brushing aside the rich and powerful, and focusing on those as poor and powerless as Mary herself.
Mary, Mother of Our Lord
The church (including Martin Luther) honored Mary with the title theotokos, meaning "God-bearer," for her role in giving birth to the Son of God. Her song, the Magnificat, speaks eloquently of God's lifting the lowly and feeding the hungry.

PRAYER OF THE DAY (ELW)
Almighty God, in choosing the virgin Mary to be the mother of your Son, you made known your gracious regard for the poor, the lowly, and the despised. Grant us grace to receive your word in humility, and so to be made one with your Son, Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

FIRST READING Isaiah 61:7–11
The prophet proclaims a hopeful message: The Lord loves justice and will make an everlasting covenant with Israel and her descendants. In response, the prophet sings a joyful song, like Mary many generations later, about God's mercy and salvation.

7Because their shame was double,
and dishonor was proclaimed as their lot,
therefore they shall possess a double portion;
everlasting joy shall be theirs.
8For I the LORD love justice,
I hate robbery and wrongdoing;
I will faithfully give them their recompense,
and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
9Their descendants shall be known among the nations,
and their offspring among the peoples;
all who see them shall acknowledge
that they are a people whom the LORD has blessed.
10I will greatly rejoice in the LORD,
my whole being shall exult in my God;
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11For as the earth brings forth its shoots,
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,
so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise
to spring up before all the nations.

PSALM 34:1–9
Proclaim with me the greatness of the LORD. (Ps. 34:3)
1I will bless the LORD | at all times;
the praise of God shall ever be | in my mouth.
2I will glory | in the LORD;
let the lowly hear | and rejoice.
3Proclaim with me the greatness | of the LORD;
let us exalt God's | name together.
4I sought the LORD, who | answered me
and delivered me from | all my terrors.
5Look upon the LORD | and be radiant,
and let not your faces | be ashamed.
6I called in my affliction, and | the LORD heard me
and saved me from | all my troubles.
7The angel of the LORD encamps around those who | fear the LORD,
and de- | livers them.
8Taste and see that the | LORD is good;
happy are they who take ref- | uge in God!
9Fear the LORD, you saints | of the LORD,
for those who fear the | LORD lack nothing.


SECOND READING Galatians 4:4–7
In the promise of the Incarnation, Jesus Christ embodies God's mother-father heart, in love claiming people as adopted children.

4But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. 6And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.

GOSPEL Luke 1:46–55
Mary's song, the Magnificat, serves as a thematic anthem for God's work in the world and therefore for the ministry of her son, Jesus. In Mary's praise we hear of a saving God who remembers the humble, scatters the proud, lifts up the lowly, and fulfills all things.

46And Mary said,
"My soul magnifies the Lord,
47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
50His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
52He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
53he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
54He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
55according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

REFLECTION
I remember growing up in a predominately Roman Catholic city of approximately 60,000. Mary was not all that well appreciated by those who were not Roman Catholic. I’m not sure if that was because of anti-Roman sentiments at the time and place where I lived in the midst of conservative Lutheranism or simply because Mary was so prevalent and held up as model that she became ‘overdone’ in our eyes.

Whatever the case might have been, it took me a number of years to grow in appreciation of the role of Mary in the salvation story, her life in the church and her profound acceptance of the responsibility to be the God-bearer.

This Sunday we will celebrate the feast day of Mary, Mother of Our Lord and focus, via the lessons, song and sermon, on the ministry that she was so intimately involved in as she gave birth to the Christ child and walked with him to the cross and beyond.

Mary is certainly a model to be lifted up for us if for nothing more than her response to the angel’s announcement, ‘let it be with me according to your word.’ May we be as open as Mary to God’s movement in our lives and discover ways to give life to the Christ child within us.

LET US PRAY
For those who seek healing
That those who mourn will be comforted
For the ability to act faithfully and not out of fear
That the people of Pakistan affected by flooding, may find relief and hope
To be open to the Spirit’s intervention in our lives

QUOTE
One should honor Mary as she herself wished and as she expressed it in the Magnificat. She praised God for his deeds. How then can we praise her? The true honor of Mary is the honor of God, the praise of God's grace . . . Mary is nothing for the sake of herself, but for the sake of Christ . . . Mary does not wish that we come to her, but through her to God. (Explanation of the Magnificat, 1521). Martin Luther