A sermon by the Rev. Guillermo A. Arboleda, written for and delivered at All Saints' Episcopal Church, Tybee Island, GA, on Sunday, December 22, 2024, the 4th Sunday of Advent (Year C).
Primary Bible Reading
Luke 1:39-55
39 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, 40 where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42 and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43 And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? 44 For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. 45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” 46 And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for he has looked with favor on the lowly state of his servant. Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed, 49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name; 50 indeed, his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 51 He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. 52 He has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly; 53 he has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. 54 He has come to the aid of his child Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 55 according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
Be an Elizabeth
By the Rev. Guillermo A. Arboleda, Program Manager for New Starts, ELCA
Last Wednesday night, I attended a worship service at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church on Skidaway Island, where my wife, the Rev. Kelly Steele, is the rector. The service was called “The Longest Night”. It is a special service sometimes offered in Advent to give space for people to acknowledge their grief about something in their lives. Sometimes these are called “Blue Christmas” services. December is a time when we are flooded with messages about joy and fun and family gatherings and whatnot. But for many people, all of the traditional Christmas stuff is more depressing than joyful. For some, a loved one died in December and it’s hard to separate one’s grief about that from the “joy of the season.” For others, family relationships are strained and getting together at the holidays is difficult, or the relationships are so strained that folks choose not to get together for the holidays.
My grandfather died in December a few years ago, so I felt some relief being able to pray about that with others who shared that mournful mood. And I found out yesterday that my next door neighbor lost her mother this week. We can’t control the timing of life and death. This Longest Night gathering was a time to acknowledge our powerlessness together and turn to God, the Powerful One. Whatever the reason for someone’s sadness, there is often this pressure to perform happiness around Christmas. So, the Longest Night service was a beautiful time to gather and lower our masks for a bit, surrounded by a loving community of people who trusted each other enough to be honest about how we were feeling.
I imagine that is how Mary felt around her cousin Elizabeth. Today’s Gospel comes immediately after the angel Gabriel visited Mary to tell her that God wanted her to be the mother of the Savior. Mary was afraid at first, but then she consented to the pregnancy with the Son of God. Part of how Gabriel convinced her was by telling her, “now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God” (Luke 1:36-37). I imagine Mary thinking, Ohhh, you already spoke to Elizabeth, and she is in on this too. If Elizabeth is in then, “Let it be with me according to your word.”
Traditionally, we treat pregnancies as good news. We celebrate that a child is coming. And Christian art and tradition is especially joyful in celebrating Mary’s pregnancy with Jesus. But, we’re (mostly) adults here. We all know that not everyone who gets pregnant is excited about it on the day they find out. Pregnancies bring all kinds of mixed feelings, even in ordinary circumstances. They change a woman’s life forever. There are physical changes, a new addition to the family, new responsibilities and priorities. And I’m not a woman or a parent, so you don’t really have to take my word for it.
But these were not ordinary circumstances, were they? Mary had never been with a man. And she was not yet married to Joseph. Specifically, she had not slept with Joseph yet, so he knew he was not the baby’s biological father. Without supernatural intervention, it was going to be a tough sell. (Thankfully, the angel spoke to Joseph too, so they figured that out, but it didn’t all seem to happen at once.)
But immediately after Gabriel spoke to Mary, immediately after she learned that she was pregnant, I bet she was freaking out. Luke tells us, “In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth” (1:39-40; emphasis mine). She was not messing around. She ran with haste to visit Elizabeth. She didn’t stay in her parents’ home. She didn’t visit with other relatives. She specifically turned to Elizabeth. Mary trusted that with Elizabeth, she could let her guard down. She could be completely honest and vulnerable about what was going on in her body and in her spirit. Why would God do this to her?
Elizabeth was able to relate to Mary because of her own strange pregnancy. (Elizabeth is John the Baptist’s mother, but she didn’t become pregnant until she was unusually old; everyone thought that she was barren until Gabriel visited her husband Zechariah to deliver the news.) But more importantly, Elizabeth could empathize. She could welcome Mary with open arms. She could sit with her, listen, hug, and wipe Mary’s tears of fear and frustration.
And Mary’s trust was validated the moment she walked into Elizabeth’s home. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she blessed her cousin Mary: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb” (Lule 1:42). She didn’t greet Mary with suspicion. She didn’t doubt Mary’s spiritual experience or shame her for her unmarried pregnancy. Though the world might curse her as a “loose woman” (or worse) and curse her child as “illegitimate” (or worse), Elizabeth blessed them in the Name of God and by the power of the Holy Spirit. This gave Mary the clarity she needed to channel the Holy Spirit herself. Mary began to prophesy and sing: “My soul magnifies the Lord!” (Luke 1:46). Mary felt safe enough with Elizabeth that she stayed with her and Zechariah for three months.
Maybe these last few days are filled with more sadness than joy for you. Grief might feel stronger than holiday cheer. That is okay. You are allowed to feel how you feel and to be honest about it. God already knows. I pray that you are able to find an Elizabeth in your life who can warmly embrace you, give you the safe space you need to heal, and empower you to carry on.
And maybe you are feeling just fine about Christmas. You don’t carry any major heaviness or sadness. Congratulations! That’s okay too. But, guess what. That means that you are called to be an Elizabeth. You are called to look around and find those in your life who might need extra love and support and offer to give it. Critically, though, you can’t force yourself into someone’s life as a “safe person” or ally. They have to choose you too. And, like in the case of Mary and Elizabeth, it might take a lifetime of trust building before the moment of crisis comes. Elizabeth had shown Mary that she was trustworthy for years before this famous visitation. I pray that God gives us the grace we need to be gracious, loving, safe people to our family and friends. May God give us a spirit of Elizabeth to love warmly and bless and lift up people who feel like they have been cursed and put down. Amen.
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