Drew Downs

Make a New Normal

Advent 4B

  • Our preparing for Christmas is often treated like setting up for the main event, rather than readying for a new way of being.

  • In the angel’s visitation to Mary, we get a glimpse, not just of what Christmas is about, but about what it means to believe.

  • In Mary, we have the example of the common and uncommon—and we are invited to reflect on what it means to be favored by God.

  • The lectionary jumps a lot in these seasons. This jump takes away one of Luke’s best stories for describing the place of the Incarnation.

  • In picking Mary, God shows not just who the invitation to grace is for, but how we get a similar invitation.

  • Advent 4B  | Luke 1:26-38 Who is Mary? This time of year, everybody’s talking about her. Countless pieces are written, diagnosing her history and declaring her purpose. Many are bent on defending her virginity and others exposing her age. And much like the priests and Levites last week, we’re all trying to figure out how…