(she/her/ella)
Director, A Pathway for Tomorrow: Co-Creating the Church of Tomorrow at CTU
Readings:
Isaiah 35:1-6a, 10
Psalm 146:6-7, 8-9, 9-10.
James 5:7-10
Matthew 11:2-11
This past week, we celebrated two major Marian feast days- The Feast of the Immaculate Conception and the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Both of these feast days illustrate the in-breaking of grace and the miraculous into the world through Mary– who is theotokos, or “God-bearer.” However, these feasts also remind us that she is in solidarity with us in the struggles and difficult circumstances of our daily lives, in el cotidiano. Far from being a gentle and passive figure, Mary was and is a powerful, prophetic, and revolutionary model of justice for all those who are suffering, especially those whom society has deemed the “least” among us.
Mary’s song in the Gospel of Luke, referred to as the Magnificat, affirms Mary’s prophetic message of justice. In it, she proclaims that God has “lifted up the lowly” and “fills the hungry with good things.” God has “thrown down the rulers from their thrones,” and “sent [the rich] away empty” (Luke 1: 46-56). As Javier Reyes, CMF stated, the Magnificat is more than just a simple prayer- it is a “revolution of tenderness” that shows God’s preferential option for the poor and vulnerable…and Mary’s, too. As a young, pregnant teenager facing the reality of giving birth in a politically dangerous empire, Mary not only deeply understands the struggles that many face today as they seek to protect their families from violence and political oppression, but she also calls for a radical transformation of these unjust systems.
The readings on this third Sunday of Advent echo this message of transformation and revolution. The psalmist joyfully announces that God “secures justice for the oppressed, gives food to the hungry [and] sets the captives free.” God “raises up those who were bowed down,” “loves the just,” and “protects strangers.” This advent, as we wait in joyful hope for love incarnate to permeate the painful spaces in our world, may we cultivate the courage and faith to live out this counter-cultural message that Mary proclaims. By lifting up the lowly in our midst, protecting the stranger, feeding the hungry, and securing liberty for captives, we can move slowly toward the beloved community that God desires for all of humanity.
Karen Ross, PhD
(she/her/ella)
Director, A Pathway for Tomorrow: Co-Creating the Church of Tomorrow at CTU