Sermon. The Blessed Virgin Mary

Sermon. St Mary’s, Little Ilford. 15 August 2019

The Feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Luke 1.46-55

“What is the most boring way to begin a sermon on the Feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary?”

“We don’t know Patrick, but we’re sure you’re about to remind us!”

Well, we’ll all have different answers, as we all have a different “back catalogue” of sermons. One, for me, is to begin thus:

“What a tragedy! Christians should unite in admiration for and gratitude to Mary, the Mother of Jesus, for all she accomplished. So how tragic that Christians are in fact divided over her; she is a cause for hostility.” That sort of thing. Usually the preacher goes on to expound their own views of Mary – which turn out to be those around which all Christians should unite.

If we think of Mary as a source of division between Christians, we probably think of rows between Catholics and Protestants. Different answers to such questions as: Was there anything special about Mary’s own birth? Did Mary, after Jesus’ birth, go on to have a normal married life? Was there something special about Mary’s death? What titles can we give Mary? Is she (for example) “Queen of Heaven”, or just a Christian among Christians? Such matters - all of which I propose now to leave to one side.

You may not know that there were controversies about Mary long, long before the Reformation. Already in the early Church, there was a heated debate about titles for Mary. Everybody agreed that Mary was the Mother of the Lord Jesus. So she could be called the “Mother of the Lord”. But could she also be called “the Mother of Gd”? The Mother of Gd.

Brothers and sisters, tonight I can reveal for the first time that this controversy played itself out anew – in this very parish, when I arrived, and Fr Brian and I looked together at the liturgy. We were looking at our services, and in particular the eucharistic prayer, the whole of the prayer over the bread and the wine. You’ll know it ends with mentions of saints. Brian wanted “we, in the company of Mary the Mother of our Lord, St Michael and all the saints, may praise and glorify you”; I wanted “we, in the company of Mary, the Mother of Gd…” and so on.

Brian won. Unsurprisingly. And I did and do take his point. To call Mary the Mother of Gd feels strange. Because, well, obviously, in human life parents are always older than their children; parents come first. So to call Mary the Mother of Gd makes you feel that Mary is older than Gd, which makes no sense at all. In truth, even people (like me) who do like to call Mary the “Mother of Gd” don’t think it’s the best expression. The original Greek is actually Theotokos (I like the sound of the word – you can say it too – Theotokos). It actually means “the Bearer of Gd”, “She who bore Gd”, “She who gave birth to Gd”. You see: Gd is eternal, outside of time; within time, Mary is indeed the one who bore Gd, who gave birth to Gd. I think this is right, and it’s the argument that won in the early Church (and, by the way, Brian would agree).

If it is a cliché to say that Mary should be a source of unity between Christians and it’s devastating that she has been a source of division, then (like so often) it’s a cliché because it is true. In truth, we all have so much to learn from Mary. Mary is present at important moments, without saying a word. She ponders things in her heart. That’s vital in itself. But let us on this occasion look at the four times she does speak.  

First of all, she speaks to the Angel Gabriel, saying, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” and, then, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Here – well, I am going to say it – here we see Mary as a prophet, or like a prophet. When the Word or the Spirit of Gd comes to a prophet in the Old Testament, the prophet almost always objects or raises questions. Mary is the same. But Mary swiftly accepts her vocation. “Let it be with me according to your word…”. Don’t think of Mary here as some shy and timid person. Rather you can imagine her shouting a huge “YES!” back at Gabriel, a Yes that changes everything.

Second, she sings her great hymn of triumph with Elizabeth (which we have just heard): “He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.” No shyness of timidity there. The song of a revolutionary, more like (another true cliché). So, again, I say: Mary the prophet.

Third, the curious incident of Jesus the child left in the Temple. Mary says, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.” It’s hard not to feel a sense of exasperation here. So here we have a unique story of the family of Jesus, which powerfully shows us just how human they all were. They misunderstood each other; they bewildered each other by seeing things in different ways – just like every other family.

These are the times Mary speaks in the Gospel of Luke. She also speaks once in the Gospel of John. I think you’ll remember where. At the wedding at Cana. She tells Jesus “they have no wine”. She says to the servants: “Do whatever he tells you.” Do whatever he tells you.

Actually, you know, I’d want to say that is a good summary of the Christian Gospel. Come to know Jesus. Be with others who know Jesus (so you check out that you have got it right). Stick with others who know Jesus even when you don’t see eye-to-eye, as getting to know him is not in all ways easy (how could it be? It’s a real relationship!). But it should feel like a party (a wedding feast), this being with Jesus. Go on getting to know Jesus and his party and, then… do whatever he tells you.

This means of course there are as many ways of being a Christian as there are Christians. Each of us is called to be – and called to be only – the disciple Gd wants us, personally, to be. Do whatever he tells you.

I dare to hope that that that is an exciting idea for you (as it is for me). That you have  your own unique vocation; it is yours alone. Your vocation is not limited by human expectations. Not those of the institution, nor of those around you, nor even your own. Go on getting to know and staying with Jesus at his party, and then do whatever he tells you.

Among Mary’s many gifts to us is that she was the first to give this exciting commandment. We can thank her for it. May we all find Mary exciting. Maybe one day we’ll even hear an exciting sermon about her.

Amen.