Third Sunday of Advent . . .Gaudete!

Gaudete! Gaudete! Rejoice! Rejoice!

Our time of waiting, and Mary's, is drawing near to the end. . .

For you, O Lord, my soul in stillness waits, truly my hope is in you. . .


Today is the third Sunday in Advent. This is Rose Sunday, Gaudete Sunday, Mothering Sunday, all of which are in celebration and recognition of Mary. . .

As a Protestant, I grew up with conflicted feelings about Mary. However, as an Episcopalian, we are allowed to revere her without the guilt that most Prostestants associate with that reverence. For, truly, without Mary, none of it was possible! And, here is why:

The Nativity was not the beginning of Jesus, but the incarnation (the enfleshment) of Jesus. God came to us, enfleshed, in the cold darkness of our sinful natures. He put himself in the most vulnerable position ever, a child in the womb of an unmarried 13 year old Jewish girl living in a world ruled by Romans. Think about it! What was He thinking??? He must have known that Mary was the perfect steward of his enfleshment. Why else would He have chosen her? His love for us was made known in the Word made flesh. . .

And what about Mary? What was she thinking? She was a 13 year old unmarried Jewish girl? Why would she say yes? The only answer is that she had taken her blinders off. Gaudete! Rejoice! Thanks be to God!

During these times we live in, don't we all walk around with blinders on? I mean, do we just always see things on the periphery and then try to make logical sense out of it all? And then along comes God asking us to take our blinders off by becoming one of us in the form of a babe, wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger, defenseless against the cold dark evil of this world. He is asking us to make an illogical choice to believe that this child is our Savior. . .Who wouldn't love Mary for her illogical choice???

For you, O Lord, my soul in stillness waits, truly my hope is in you.

Aidan, by the way, is doing really good. He still has times of wheezing and coughing, but, for the most part is past the hump or the worst of this stuff. Mama, on the other hand, has started to cough and seems to have laryngitis! I just seem to get this stuff from him! Ii guess I should expect it since he tends to cough and sneeze all over me, especially when I hold him at night. . . I can't expect to shower each and every time! We're hoping to get out with him later this week. Thank goodness for online shopping! I've been able to get most of my Christmas shopping done without leaving the comfort of my desk. . .now to get the wrapping done! (when is one supposed to wrap with a two year old under foot??? : ) )