Scripture Readings:
Genesis 18:10-15
Luke 1:26-38
Like our opening song so joyfully proclaimed: Our God is Here! Amen? The Spirit is alive and well, at work in the world, in our beloved Communion, and in each of us present here today and throughout this week. She has been moving among us, through us, and within us as we have engaged this week in the holy work of being church together, walking together, living into our call as the body of Christ in the world. We have tried to create intentional spaces throughout the week to tune into the Spirit, to notice how she is moving among us and in us, because as we hear in our readings this morning, God sends the Spirit to bring new life into the world when least expected, where least expected, so we have to pay attention.
And God speaks to us in many different ways. Maybe there has been a time this week, where you heard something that gave you a physical reaction: perhaps a knot in your stomach, or goosebumps, or maybe you had an experience that brought tears to your eyes, or made you tremble. Maybe there was a particular phrase or idea that you heard that has stuck with you, perhaps a refrain from a song or a line from one of the prayers or keynote talks that keeps coming up in your heart and mind. These are important things to pay attention to, to sit with, to dig deeper into to see what God’s invitation is for you and for us.
In our Gospel reading tonight we have these two incredible women presented at different ends of the spectrum: Mary who is still a young girl, not yet married, and Elizabeth an old woman married for many years. Both of these women are invited to bring new life into the world, and neither of them are expecting this invitation when it is presented, and I think it’s safe to assume that no one in their communities was expecting these particular women to bring new life into the world in the way that God was inviting them. These weren’t wealthy, or powerful, or even well educated women. Within the Jewish community they were no bodies, a young girl and old crone. And God chose them to participate in her dream for the world.
I love this spectrum that is covered looking at Mary and Elizabeth as book ends, because it reminds us that no one is too young, no one it too old, to collaborate with God’s vision, God’s dream for the world. No one is too young or too old to offer new life. No one is too young, or too old, to dream a new dream and make it reality. We can expand on this to include all of our identities: no one is too female, or too male, or too straight, or too gay, or too white, or too latino, or too black, or too rich, or too poor or too anything in between to collaborate in God’s dream, to bring new life into our Church and into our world.
Our communion is about the same age as Mary, when she was invited to bring new life into the world. We are young, but we are not too young to incarnate God’s love in the world, and shake things up for the better. What seeds might have been planted within you this week that could grow into new life? What seeds have been planted for new life in our Communion? And are we willing to say yes, to take the risk of living into that vision, that dream, to step out of our comfort zones and into the mystery?
[Take 3-5 min. for people to share with a neighbor some thoughts/answers to these questions]
Every time a challenge arises, and we stay, we recommit ourselves to work through it together, we are saying Yes to God’s dream for the world. Being vulnerable, opening ourselves up to one another to learn and grow, we are saying Yes to God’s dream for the world. When systems of oppression seek to divide us into categories and pit us against one another, and instead we choose love, mercy, and liberation, we are saying Yes to God’s dream for the world. My yes to not giving up on you is a yes to unknown mystery God will birth into the world through you.
What do we need in order to say Yes to the Spirit of Life? How can we support and encourage one another in our individual Yes and our collective Yes? We need to have strong, deep roots. In order for Sarah, Mary, and Elizabeth to say yes, to believe in the vision of God for their lives, they had to have deep roots of faith. They had to be grounded enough, and sourced enough, by God, by the Spirit, that even though they were afraid, even though they doubted and even laughed at God’s plans, they were still connected enough to trust God and say yes.
Because we know from our readings that they were scared, and they were uncertain. That’s ok. We aren’t stuck with our first reaction. God didn’t say to Sarah, because you laughed and doubted you will no longer bear a son. God said, you laugh now but just wait, I will still bring new life into the world through you. Gabriel didn’t tell Mary, because you are confused and afraid God has changed God’s mind and will find someone else to bear the Son of God.
We get to be scared, we get to laugh at what seems ridiculous, we get to not understand how this could possibly all work out, what it will all mean, AND we can still be open and say yes, in spite of that fear or doubt, because we are deeply rooted in God and sourced by the Spirit. And because we are not doing it alone. As Bishop Francis laid out for us in his opening homily, we are walking this road together.
God reminds us in both readings today, that nothing is impossible, nothing is too wonderful for God. Isn’t that an incredible message? Nothing is too wonderful for God.
Perhaps some of the dreams shared with one another throughout this week might seem too wonderful, too impossible, but not for our God. I have heard repeated throughout this week about the Catholic impulse toward unity, and I have seen this in the dreams we have shared with one another, taking an honest look at where we have work to do - bridging the gaps that keep us divided across genders, cultures, languages, ages, titles and roles within our beloved Communion. I have felt the Spirit moving among us, through us, within us, drawing us closer to her, and the closer we are drawn to her the closer we are drawn to one another.
I want to end by encouraging you to hold these two questions in your hearts, and bring them back with you to your communities: What new life is God inviting me to say yes to and share with the world? What new life might God be inviting the ECC to say yes to, and share with the world?
As we leave this sacred space we have built together throughout this week, let us make a commitment to not only the nurture the new life growing inside of us, but the new life growing inside each of our sisters and brothers as well, those who are present and those who are not. Let us be attentive to the unexpected places that God’s life and spirit will burst forth into our beloved Communion. And let us all be midwives to one another, accompanying one another birthing into reality these beautiful dreams growing inside us.
Amen
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