Mary's humble power
In this morning’s first reading we heard,
My heart exults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in my God.
My mouth derides my enemies because I rejoice in your victory.
There is no Holy One like the Lord, no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God.
Talk no more so very proudly; let not arrogance come from your mouth,
for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.
The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble gird on strength.
If this sounds familiar, but not quite right, you are correct. This is actually the song of Hannah, one that Mary, the mother of Jesus, would have known. Hannah was the wife of Elkanah, and had not borne any children to him. In deep sadness, she went to the temple, and fervently prayed to God for children.The temple priest, Eli, assumed that she was drunk. He berated her, and she replied that she wasn’t drunk, and that she was praying. Eli gave her a blessing that included children, and she eventually bore a son, Samuel. When he was old enough, she brought him to the temple along with a sacrifice to give thanks for him and to give him up to serve at the temple. Her song was her prayer of thanksgiving for Samuel at the temple.
Mary would have been familiar with this song, and she sings her own song that is similar to Hannah’s, as she runs to her relative Elizabeth to tell her that she is pregnant. Mary had at least two things in common with Hannah; one, that they were pregnant with their first child, and two, it was the result of God intervening in their lives. Both were young women in Israel who had some status, but because of the circumstances of Hanna's barrenness or Mary's pregnancy, they had lost that status. Hannah had not fulfilled her expected role of bearing children, specifically a son, to Elkanah, and Mary was unwed. Mary was at risk for being ostracized from society for her presumed sin, and Hannah was presumed to have sinned, therefore God had made her barren. But Hannah rejects that presumption by addressing those around her when she says “Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth, for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.” Hannah’s worth came from God knowing her faith, and not by her ability to bear children. God was said to have closed her womb by the people around her, but it was God who opened her womb because of her faith, faith first expressed in the temple. This redemption was what Mary experienced as well.
Mary had come from humble origins, not assuming anything grand about herself despite what the angel had told her about her child. Now, it could be said that this humility came from her position and lack of status in society, and that can’t be ignored. But her mention of the proud being brought low and the lowly being exalted was her reaching out from that imposed humility to speak of humility in God’s terms, not human terms. It must have been scary and daunting to be carrying God’s son without much status. Recall that she was pregnant and unmarried, which put her in the same light as prostitutes in that time and place. She is empowered by the favor that God has shown in choosing her to bear God’s son, and we hear it in her prayer. Mary is redeemed not because she is the bearer of God on earth, but because she has faith in God and what God will do for her. It is an echo of Jesus’ words in the future when he tells people whom he has healed that it was their faith that made them well. Her humility came from understanding her relationship with God, not from the men and society around her who wanted to condemn her for her pregnancy. This ultimately brings attention to Jesus and what he brought to the world because of Mary’s faith in God, rather than because God was showing the world that they were wrong about her.
What we see as a failure can be part of something larger, something that we assume we know, but in reality, we don’t. Both Elizabeth and Mary understand that larger thing, as does Hannah, and that larger thing is God knowing the depth of their faith and commitment to God's will. The people “in charge,” the ones with power, don’t get it. Their assumptions about Mary and Hannah are not the same as what an angel sent from God tells the women. Like the people making assumptions, we think we know what God is up to, and that is when we ask the wrong questions like, “Are you sure about this? Is it even possible? Are you sure you have the right person?”
If we look at and pay attention to these assumptions we might consider how we would respond to a similar call from God. Not to bear a child, but to start something that would have an impact on a lot of people. What would we say versus what would people around us say? Would we go through what Mary did if we were called by God the way that she was? It would certainly be a powerful experience of God paying attention to us, and we would be confused about why, asking how it could happen, like Mary did. Eventually we might take that leap of faith to say yes. So, Mary becomes a model, an example of the human experience in the presence of God, being elevated above others because of humble faith in ways that are not always obvious or visible. This is what it means to have an unjustifiable trust in God because of an indefensible faith when everyone around you is saying that you aren’t worthy, and don’t have the right credentials. This is the trust and faith that Mary has in God, and it is all that she needs.
Jesus, who came from a humble family, taught that humility to his disciples and to us. It runs counter to what we are used to, that is, influential people with a lot of social presence and power, dominating our culture and values. We tend to overlook the meek and unassuming people, people who don’t measure up, people who have sinned in our eyes. They are the ones who Jesus later said were among the blessed. But despite their quiet presence, they can have a powerful effect on us from what seems like mundane or imperfect lives. They are the ones who we want to pay attention to, because like Mary, they have something to offer, something important to give. They just might be bringing Jesus to us. Look around you for that person, that Mary, and welcome them in. They might just bring the light of Christ to us.
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