He shows mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors him as God. He has shown strength with his arm. He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations. He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones and lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty-handed. - Luke 1:50-55
Time Magazine name "The Protester" as its "Person of the Year" - the generic protester, both individual and collective, who has stood up to challenges in the face of sometimes insurmountable odds, who sees injustice and inequality in the world and who helps to draw the attention of others to those who have lost their ability to be seen and heard.
We, as Christians, are given a marvelous example of just how personal our God can be in the mystery of the Incarnation; God in human form is made manifest. We are also given a glimpse into the nature of this divine and human intersection in the way that God chose to be born - from the womb of a young peasant woman from Nazareth. In our own church, we celebrate the Blessed Virgin Mary as our patron, and when the scriptures and the season allow it, we cast our gaze upon her inspiration and example.
The powerful passage from Luke, known popularly as the canticle "Magnificat," is the attributed response of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth's recognition of the blessedness of the One that Mary carried within her. Mary's response is filled with the affirmation of God's power and her (and our) dutiful recognition of the honor due to God. It is also a cry for social justice for all of those who have disappeared or been allowed to disappear from view - the hungry, the humble, the meek, the lowly, the unprotected. It's almost not surprise when Jesus' own teachings often turned his disciples attention to those same people who were most in need. His mother must have taught him well! We, too, must cast our gaze toward those who have no face or voice. In the example of Jesus and of his mother, our patron, we are to give voice to those who society has forgotten. We must stand in solidarity with them. We must raise our voices in protest against injustice, unfairness, cruelty, and ignorance.
I am often humbled by my students at Gannon University, and this fall, one particular student drew my attention repeatedly. When the Occupy movement started this past fall, a group of individuals gathered at the gazebo in Perry Square, adjacent to our campus, and voiced their protest against the perceived indignities and injustices acted against the poor and disenfranchised in our society. While many young people were attracted by the novelty of the situation, this one young man, Jared, not only joined his voice to the other protesters but had the stamina and drive to stay with them. As the autumn chill hit the air, and while many others left the gazebo, Jared committed his energy to continue to give voice and face to the undeserved. He went to classes, did his homework, and then stood in solidarity with the men and women of Occupy Erie. Many times Jared's hopes have been challenged and the statements being made were lost, not unlike those whom he tried to support. But through the autumn into winter, Jared continues to support and stand up for justice. Most importantly, he does so with a powerfully strong Christian faith, a faith that gives him strength in adversity.
While we do support the separation of religion and government from our Constitutional perspective, Jesus and Mary remind us that we can never separate our faith and our social actions; in fact, our faith is supposed to inform our actions as we stand up to social injustice. The Episcopal Church's "Holy Men and Holy Women" by which we commemorate the saints who have inspired us, is filled with examples, not unlike Jared, of those who have committed themselves to making a difference in our communities, our state, our nation, and our world. May we have the strength, like Jared, to honor God and to honor the least among us, filling them with good things and not allowing them to be sent away empty-handed.
In Jesus' Name,
Fr. Shawn
Time Magazine name "The Protester" as its "Person of the Year" - the generic protester, both individual and collective, who has stood up to challenges in the face of sometimes insurmountable odds, who sees injustice and inequality in the world and who helps to draw the attention of others to those who have lost their ability to be seen and heard.
We, as Christians, are given a marvelous example of just how personal our God can be in the mystery of the Incarnation; God in human form is made manifest. We are also given a glimpse into the nature of this divine and human intersection in the way that God chose to be born - from the womb of a young peasant woman from Nazareth. In our own church, we celebrate the Blessed Virgin Mary as our patron, and when the scriptures and the season allow it, we cast our gaze upon her inspiration and example.
The powerful passage from Luke, known popularly as the canticle "Magnificat," is the attributed response of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth's recognition of the blessedness of the One that Mary carried within her. Mary's response is filled with the affirmation of God's power and her (and our) dutiful recognition of the honor due to God. It is also a cry for social justice for all of those who have disappeared or been allowed to disappear from view - the hungry, the humble, the meek, the lowly, the unprotected. It's almost not surprise when Jesus' own teachings often turned his disciples attention to those same people who were most in need. His mother must have taught him well! We, too, must cast our gaze toward those who have no face or voice. In the example of Jesus and of his mother, our patron, we are to give voice to those who society has forgotten. We must stand in solidarity with them. We must raise our voices in protest against injustice, unfairness, cruelty, and ignorance.
I am often humbled by my students at Gannon University, and this fall, one particular student drew my attention repeatedly. When the Occupy movement started this past fall, a group of individuals gathered at the gazebo in Perry Square, adjacent to our campus, and voiced their protest against the perceived indignities and injustices acted against the poor and disenfranchised in our society. While many young people were attracted by the novelty of the situation, this one young man, Jared, not only joined his voice to the other protesters but had the stamina and drive to stay with them. As the autumn chill hit the air, and while many others left the gazebo, Jared committed his energy to continue to give voice and face to the undeserved. He went to classes, did his homework, and then stood in solidarity with the men and women of Occupy Erie. Many times Jared's hopes have been challenged and the statements being made were lost, not unlike those whom he tried to support. But through the autumn into winter, Jared continues to support and stand up for justice. Most importantly, he does so with a powerfully strong Christian faith, a faith that gives him strength in adversity.
While we do support the separation of religion and government from our Constitutional perspective, Jesus and Mary remind us that we can never separate our faith and our social actions; in fact, our faith is supposed to inform our actions as we stand up to social injustice. The Episcopal Church's "Holy Men and Holy Women" by which we commemorate the saints who have inspired us, is filled with examples, not unlike Jared, of those who have committed themselves to making a difference in our communities, our state, our nation, and our world. May we have the strength, like Jared, to honor God and to honor the least among us, filling them with good things and not allowing them to be sent away empty-handed.
In Jesus' Name,
Fr. Shawn
1 comment:
Poor Joseph never gets any love. A few years ago, when I was an older teenager, I pointed out the fact that Mary had her own blue votive cup holder in our Nativity set to our pastor. Then I asked why Joseph didn't have one. He kinda played an important part too. The next Sunday, Joseph had his own green votive holder.
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