The Lectionary and Scripture Interpretation during Christmas
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Today’s Readings and Feast
The Feast of the Holy Family liturgically falls on the Sunday after Christmas, which is Sunday January 1. The Solemnity of Mary always falls on January 1 which is also the Sunday after Christmas this year. In this case, a Solemnity supersedes a Feast.
Theotokos was a title given to Mary at the council of Ephesus in 431. Why does it matter? Theotokos is the oldest title we know for Mary, originating from the first or second century.
In the early 400s, Nestorious, patriarch of Constantinople, was stirring up trouble in the church with his preaching that Christ’s human and divine natures were separate and distinct. He called Mary Christ-bearer but not God-bearer. In reality he was trying to make sense of an ineffable, incarnate God. In his view, Mary gave birth to a human Messiah who was later joined to a preexistent divine nature. He believed that no union between human and divine natures was possible. This teaching brought him into conflict with Cyril, patriarch of Alexandria.
In 431AD, 250 bishops assembled at the Church of Mary in Ephesus, traditionally the place where Mary settled after the resurrection. The council voted against Nestorious which caused a schism and still today there are Nestorian churches in the East who hold to his beliefs.
The debate was as much theological as political – a rivalry between Constantinople and Alexandria.
The result of the council was to define the hypostatic union: one person with two natures. Therefore, Mary carried the divine; she was indeed a God-bearer.
If you want to see the aftermath of people trying to make sense of the ideas and the language from the council, take a look at this diagram.
Here on this first day of the new calendar year, we are given an example. Mary bore God within her, just as we do. In today’s readings we see an example of worship and pondering rather than action. Action is necessary in the Christian life, yes. But action is grounded in a stance of worship and reflection. What New Year’s resolutions might help you make more room in your life for reflection?
Numbers 6:22-27
The book of Numbers is part of the Pentateuch – the first five books of the Bible. These books tell the earliest stories of the Jewish people and define what it means to be Jewish.
This passage is a priestly blessing given in response to the Israelites living as God has commanded. This blessing was used in 3 feasts where Israelites went to the Temple: Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. It’s associated with going on pilgrimage to the Temple to encounter God.
Verses 25 and 26 reference God’s face. We often anthropomorphize God in order to understand God. Of course, God is not human with a face. But we understand what it means to look at someone and be looked at by someone in love. God’s face is a symbol or metaphor for God’s presence. God’s face was considered hidden in times of suffering and distress, when the people felt that God was not present to them. Blessing someone by wishing God’s face to look upon them was another way of wishing them to be in the presence of God.
Verse 26 uses the word peace, the Hebrew shalom. This is more than the absence of conflict. Shalom is total wellbeing of a person.
Why this reading for this feast? An ancient Jew would receive this blessing after making an arduous pilgrimage to Jerusalem and presenting a sacrifice in the Temple in the hope that God’s presence would go with them. Because Mary is the Mother of God, because she bore Christ, Jesus is present to his people. We see the face of God in all who carry Jesus in their hearts.
At our baptism, we are anointed prophet, priest and king. We, too, are capable of giving blessings. Perhaps they do not carry the same sacramental weight as a priest blessing the Sunday assembly. But our blessings can be powerful nonetheless. Think about who you might bless and what you would say. Perhaps speak it out loud over someone or write it down for them. It can also be something as simple as signing a note with “Peace be with you.”
Galatians 4:4-7
The Jews believe that keeping the commandments puts one into covenantal relationship with God. Paul’s message is that only faith can put us into any kind of relationship with God.
In this passage, Paul uses the word “abba.” Modern scholarship holds that “abba” is not a childish term for father equivalent to “daddy.” There is a Greek word that children used as a childish term of endearment – papa. That’s not the word used here by Paul. Rather he uses an adult term of address for one’s father. The translation today would be much closer to “dear father” than “daddy” – a term of endearment coupled with knowing respect.
Why this reading for this feast? The Numbers reading reminds us that the Israelites were under the law, a system that could never liberate because it could never be humanly fulfilled. Jesus came into a concrete historical context, subject to that law. He fulfilled it perfectly, allowing each of us the same relationship with the Father as he enjoys.
Luke 2:16-21
Mary gives us a model:
Breath deeply.
Respond, don’t react,
only after pondering everything
What in the world was going on in Mary’s mind? What was she pondering?!
Luke uses beautiful imagery in this passage. He places the baby Jesus in a manger, a feeding trough for animals, symbolic of Jesus as food for the world. Shepherds are the first to find Jesus – the lowliest of society, symbolic of Jesus’ concern with the marginal and outcast. Jesus is circumcised, showing that he subject to God’s law. And then there is Mary, watching, observing, pondering. Holding all the events in tension within her until the day she can begin to understand them.
Mary is such a beautiful, comforting model for us. The angel’s announcement confused her and, yet, still she said yes. Shepherds bring yet another unbelievable message about her son. And she ponders. She is not exempt from action. We can imagine her at the wedding in Cana, decades later, watching the situation develop, pondering it. She acts when necessary but only after reflection and, I would guess, a bit of prayer. Or perhaps they are often the same thing?
For those of us coming from non-Catholic faith traditions, Mary can be a challenge. Even in the Catholic tradition, Mary can seem so holy and set apart, it’s easy to forget that this Mother of God was human just like us. If you could have a conversation with Mary, what would you ask her? What might she say to you?
Questions to ponder
We are all called to bear Christ within us. In what ways has this been happening within you?
What New Year’s resolutions might help you make more room in your life for reflection and pondering?
Are there areas that are ripe for pondering to give way to action?
Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
© 2023 Kelly Sollinger