But you, Bethlehem-Ephrathah…from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel.
Micah 5:1-3
Lord God,
Dancer of the Universe,
Show me how to
dance.
Take my hand and give me a twirl.
Spin me around until I collapse
in your arms.
Teach me a step until I get it right.
Lead me to where I’m
not inclined to go on my own.
Toss me in the air until I squeal with
delight
And can see further than I have ever seen before.
Make me dance
with you
Until I don’t recognize my new self,
And I am breathless
With
Joy.
Renita
Weems
Hail Mary, full of Grace
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among
women
And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of
God,
Pray for us sinners now
and at the hour of our death.
AMEN
“Do not be
afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will
conceive in your womb and bear a son….”
The Gospel this week is the Annunciation – that
great moment recorded in Luke in which a young girl is approached by a
formidable angel, and given a great task. Mary was probably about 14 –
certainly no older than 16 – much too young in our society to be bearing
children; but during Mary’s time, it was normative for young girls to be
betrothed and married. The average life span for a woman was 40 years.
What thoughts
went through Mary’s mind when told the news that she had found favor with God?
Did this favor include a blessing? Yes. And No. The
blessing was that she would be known throughout time as Theotokos,
God-bearer. We normally hear it expressed as Mary, Mother of God.
But with that blessing came incredible cost. Mary, you have found favor
with God –
Now God asks you to do more – Now God asks you to give up your
reputation, your dreams, your plans for a quiet life with Joseph, and be
God-bearer. Bear the discomfort of pregnancy, give birth and raise a
son whose life will be short, and whose death will be painful. He shall be
great, and shall be called the Son of the most High. And you will Bear him.
Mary’s response is the
one I would desire to make when asked by God to do something. Mary’s words
challenge me to trust, and give more.
“Here am I, the servant of the Lord:
let it be with me according to your word.”
For we are all called to be
God-Bearers in this world – living in such a way that the light of God can be
seen in and through us. This calling challenges us continually, for we
wrestle with the implications, as Mary did. We, too, are sometimes called
to rearrange our well-ordered lives in order to respond to God’s call.
Mary had a choice –
just like we do. I wonder what would have happened if she had said, “No, I
don’t think I can do this. Find yourself another handmaiden.” And I
wonder how we respond when we are called, as Mary was.
Child of Bethlehem –
House
of bread;
Man of Jerusalem –
City of peace;
You have loved us
Without limit or condition;
In our greatness and in our misery,
In
our folly and in our virtue;
May you hand be always upon us
And may your
heart be within us
So that we too
May become bread and peace
For one
another.
John
Hammond, OSB
Debra’s Midweek Meditation
"And Mary said,
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in
God my Savior,"
This is the beginning of Mary's
song of praise called the Magnificat. Every evening in monasteries and
churches this song is sung by musicians and people who cannot hold a tune.
It is sung to commemorate a faith that carried the burden of a promise and
rejoiced.
Mary sings before the fulfillment of Jesus' birth.
She sings in the
in-between time.
We dwell in the in-between time. In Advent we become more aware of
waiting than at other times, perhaps, but we are always waiting for one thing or
another.
Mary is our example of praising God while unsure of the outcome.
Can we
thank God before we get the new job, or the results of a test?
Can we sing
our faith, when we aren't sure which way the wind blows in our
lives?
Mary's soul magnifies the Lord. This magnification is a sense of bringing close.
I now have to read with glasses that magnify the letters on the page. My glasses make it possible for me to see and to understand what it is I am looking at.
When mist rises from a river and light pours through the droplets,
refraction shows the light for what it really is-
bands of beautiful
color.
A rainbow.
We are like that rainbow when we praise God.
We open our souls to
God's light and God makes a beautiful thing.
Give thanks and pray,
no matter what is in your day,
God is
present.
Blessings,
Debra
Daily Morning Prayer
http://www.episcopalchurchingarrettcounty.org/morning_prayer.htm
I was regretting the past and fearing the future. Suddenly God
was speaking,
“My name is ‘I am.’” I waited. God continued,
“When you live in the past, with its mistakes and regrets, it is hard. I am not
there. My name is not ‘I was.’ When you live in the future, with its problems
and fears, it is hard. I am not there. My name is not ‘I will be.’
When you live in this moment, it is not hard. I am here. My
name is I
am.”
On
kitchen wall of St. Benedict’s Monastery
This Week at
St. James:
Sunday: 6:00 pm
Christmas Caroling at the Minor’s.
Wednesday: 10:00 am
Academy Christmas
Pageant
Academy
half day.
Prayers, ETC
For
those in need of healing:
David W. Pat B.
Ellie
Bill L.
Brittanny
Chris L.
Kristin L.
Katie H.
Maria R. Anna
B. Donald M. Brian E.
Barbara
W. Paul R. Nancy G.
Becky L. Dot H.
Belinda
Mary
Lee I. Tony G. Joel
Arabella
Henry H. Kate H.
Nancy
S. Josh & Lovisah
Paul
& Fritz Dave Alves Debbie Holt Gary Plummer
JB,
Chase & Sandy Ronald
Luloff
The Paul Shelton Family The Keelty Family
The Shockey
Family
Our seminarian Laura Brecht and her husband Lyle.
For
those who are deployed and their families.
In Closing:
Lord, enable me this Advent to prepare
for your coming by a deeper attitude of faith, so that I find you very near in
each and every moment of my life, very near in each person or event that crosses
my path.
AMEN
Carol
Stuhlmueller
The people who walked in darkness
Have seen a great
light;
Upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom
A light has
shone.
You have brought them abundant
joy
And great
rejoicing,
As they jejoice before you as at the harvest,
As men make merry when
dividing spoils.
For the yoke that burdened
them,
The pole on their
shoulder,
And the rod of their
taskmaster
You have
smashed, as on the day of Midian.
For every boot that tramped in battle,
Every cloak rolled in
blood,
Will
be burned as fuel for flames.
For a child is born to us, a son is
given us;
Upon his
shoulder dominion rests.
They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero,
Father-Forever, Prince
of peace.
His dominion is
vast
And forever
peaceful,
From David’s throne, and over his kingdom,
Which he confirms and
sustains
By judgment and justice,
Both now and
forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do
this!
Isaiah
9:1-16, Roman Rite
May the love of the Lord Jesus Christ draw us to
himself;
May the power of the Lord Jesus Christ strengthen us for his
service;
May the joy of the Lord Jesus Christ fill our souls.
(Wm. Temple)
Pax et Bonum,
Loree+
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