[__01_] It requires some extra internal imagination
and devotion to recall the remains of the 4th Sunday of Advent. Pay
no attention – on the altar and here in church -- to the Christmas trees,
poinsettias, wreaths your 12/25 proximate preparations at home, et cetera, et
cetera …
Right now, it is only a word, a
promise that both STARTS and FINISHES in solitude.
Yes, the angel appears to Mary telling
her not to be afraid, inviting her to be the Mother of God.
But, in the end, the angel departed
from her. Mary – without human physical companionship – she is outwardly “solo”
though inwardly saved and blessed.
[__03__]
Pope Benedict XVI wrote about the 3 steps – 3 reactions of Mary (The Infancy Narratives: Jesus of Nazareth,
33-37)
at the Annunciation.
Mary PONDERS; Mary is PUZZLED; Mary is
POSITIVE.
Mary
ponders without what I normally experience as the parallel emotion of distress.
When do I find myself pondering … or
in deep thought?
[MATH-ACAD.] Long division. The
difference between radius and diameter. Interest rates.
Academically – and intellectually – we
ponder.
When do I ponder?
[MSG-MEM.] If my phone were to ring or
receive a message at certain hours of the day or night, I ponder – what did I
forget to do? What do I need to do?
[DIFF.PERS.] If I bump into someone
who makes me uncomfortable, I tend to ponder, perhaps, my “dislike”, my “envy”,
my “revenge…”
Mary invites you and me to ponder – to
recall – to remember what God has done in our lives and what God can do in our
lives with our cooperation, both internally and externally.
This Annunciation moment is retained –
pondered – by Mary and shared by Mary with Jesus, his disciples. It becomes
part of the Gospel. Mary is the only witness.
It is her podcast and it is a reminder
that our ponderings can also be podcasts for GOODNESS, for GRATITUDE, for the
GLORY OF GOD.
Mary is neither the 1st nor
the last person to be puzzled by God’s will or ways. Mary asks, “how can this
be?”
Similarly, Sarah – wife of Abraham in
the Book of Genesis was puzzled that she could have a child in her advanced
age.
Sarah laughs at God at this
information …then when asked “why did you laugh?”, she denies it.
These are classic psychological
reactions to being puzzled. That is, being puzzled, we retreat into ourselves,
go into hiding and possibly denial. We want to solve the problem on our own terms without the help of God or neighbor.
Mary, OTOH (on the other hand), does
what is difficult. Calmly, with tranquility, she asks – “tell me more” …. “how
can this be?” …. “OK, so what is the plan…”
Mary PONDERS; Mary is PUZZLED.
[__06__]
And, 3rd, Mary is POSITIVE. Through Mary’s affirmation, we are made
not only brothers and sisters to Jesus Christ, to the Son of God, but we are
also made brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ and to each other.
A mother reminds her child -- you and me – of relationships and
responsibilities – POSITIVELY – we have to each other.
And, yes, LOVE and RESPONSIBILITY call
us to PONDER, sometimes to fear of commitment or fear of not keeping our
commitments.
Asking for forgiveness, admitting our
wrongdoing – or the true reason – even to ourselves – can be puzzling,
troubling.
We also ask – how can this be?
Mary gets ready herself – on the way –
we are called to the same.
[__07__] In 2008, on Martin Luther King Day, a Monday
evening / at night, I was in the rectory talking on the phone to a friend on
“Line 1” of the rectory telephone system, when “Line 2” began to ring.
I was asked, “Is Father Joe Petrillo
there?” As so many of us remember
fondly, Father Joe – our beloved pastor until he passed away around this time
of year in 2013.
“May I speak to Father Joe Petrillo,
please”
Hearing the matter-of-fact tone of
voice, I detected no emergency for a
priest in general. I asked the person to HOLD and I resumed my conversation and
wrapped it up about a minute later.
I engaged / picked up LINE 2 and said,
“Sorry, Father Joe is not available – may I ask who is calling?”
“This is Archbishop Myers.”
Mentally considering that Father Joe
was in charge of all priest-personnel assignments and that this is the AB, I was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
I reported that Father Joe was
unavailable and out for the evening and took the message that Archbishop Myers
had called.
How
can this be?
I knew he was visiting a friend in
Wilmington, Delaware because he always did the same trip annually on Martin
Luther King Day with the same people, same visit. Clockwork. That’s Father Joe.
I called one of his friends on a cell
phone that was NOT turned off and was able, positively, to connect Father Joe à Archbishop Myers.
[__09__]
Some puzzles invite us to look beyond our own competency and calculations. “How can this be?” invites us to consider
where God’s grace is present, in another person, in our own conscience, in
God’s word to us each day.
Can God not be glorified in the puzzles,
the mysteries of my life?
Interrupted. Mary is interrupted. She
is alone. We are interrupted sometimes causing MADNESS or GLADNESS.
But, it is then that we can also
discover God’s presence and welcome his development, his nurturing, and our
re-birth. [__fin__]
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