Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God

Lectionary: 18

A Grandlun scultureThe Seasons of Spring, 
Summer and Fall.Winter is curled up,
sleeping beneath them.

Then the shepherds returned,

glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen,
just as it had been told to them.

When eight days were completed for his circumcision,
he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel
before he was conceived in the womb.

In today’s gospel we learn of two prophecies fulfilled:

The Shepherds found the infant lying in a manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes, as it had been told to them; and

The child was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel.

It’s good to see the Lord’s promises fulfilled. Earlier in the gospel Mary hurried up to Jerusalem to see the Angel’s word fulfilled in Elizabeth’s pregnancy. Perhaps she thought, “If that dear old lady is pregnant, even a virgin can conceive.” By the time John was born, Mary’s pregnancy was certain.

In today’s second reading, Saint Paul uses a key phrase for our understanding of prophecies, in the fullness of time.

In scriptural theology, a word has its own dynamic. It is like a seed that will bear fruit when its time comes. The gift of prophecy is not the ability to look in a crystal ball and see future events as if they’re on television. Even if someone had that mysterious ability, what good would it do? A televised scene of the past, present or future means nothing without a deep understanding of its context and setting. Even the videotaped beating of Rodney King wasn’t what it appeared to be, according to those responsible for making that difficult call.

God’s word, given to a prophet, a virgin or a group of shepherds, must find its mysterious fulfillment; and only then do we know what it means. In the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus we have seen prophecies fulfilled with crystal clarity. Now we understand them, although they were not at all transparent before the fullness of time had come.

The New Testament authors were acutely aware of their moment in time; they lived through a turning point in the history of the universe. Ancient prophecies were fulfilled; new prophecies sounded through their congregations. Some of those new words blossomed immediately: e.g. the naming of Jesus, his resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit. But some prophetic words might not bear fruit for twenty or thirty centuries!

As we enter a new year, we look forward to the Jesus’ second coming and the Judgment Day. What will it look like? How will that word be fulfilled? 

You’ll know it when you see it.