Week #2 " Mary's Descent from Nazareth to Jerusalem"
Week #2 " Mary's Descent from Nazareth to Jerusalem "
Book: The Advent of God through Mary
Lesson #2 Based upon Chapters #1 & 2
Devotionals: Thursday - Wednesday
Chapter #1
Thursday: My Thoughts 2—Crystal Souls, Clay Jars
Friday: Story 3--Over Shadowed
Saturday: My Thoughts 3—A Woman Clothed in Light
Sunday: My Thoughts 4—Great Joy!
Chapter #2
Monday: Story 4—A Question of Faith
Tuesday: Story 5—Hiding Mary
Note: Our Bible Study is on Thursdays, so we covering the balance of the current Devotional Chapter, Thursday-Sunday & the Monday-Wednesday of the next Chapter or any portion thereof.
2nd Sunday of Advent: Theme of "Peace"
Part 1
Intro: Who is he?
Q: Who were you close too? Your mom or dad? ..or perhaps both. (A thoroughly interesting discussion ensued as to the roles, imprint of our parents, for good and ill).
Page #26-27_ "A Woman Clothed in Light"
Para #1 & 2
Jesus becoming flesh required Mary. They are vitally and intimately connected. Thomas Merton, requoted in “Advent and Christmas” from “New Seeds of contemplation,” (page #17) says:
“The Church cannot separate the Son and the Mother. Because the Church conceives of the Incarnation as God’s descent into flesh and into time, and His great gift of himself to His creatures, she also believes that the one who was closest to him in this great mystery was the one who participated most perfectly in the gift…”
Read: Matthew 28: 16-17
“Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.”
Matthew 28:16-17 NIV
Teaching: "but some doubted..." Matthew is remembering their last moments with Jesus before he ascended into heaven. The idea of serving, following Jesus was a given, and by now as the Son of God, the Messiah. But worshiping Jesus? Was that really appropriate?
For the next 300 years the church wrestled with the central issue of Jesus actual Being. Was he God dressed up in human attire? Was he a fully obedient human, a created, exalted "Son of Man" as in Daniel in whom God dwelt and through whom God was revealed?
In 325 A.D. in the Nicene Creed this question was finally addressed.
- Jesus Christ (The Son): One Lord, only-begotten Son of God, true God of true God, begotten not made, consubstantial (of one substance) with the Father, who came down from heaven, was incarnate, crucified, rose again, and will return in glory.
- In other words, Jesus is fully human, fully God, two natures in one person.
Mary, who she is/was became central in establishing both Jesus humanity and Diety.
Q: Two doctrines helped the church resolve the issue.
1. Mary's virgin birth
2. Mary's sinless nature (held by the Catholic Church to assure Jesus, in his humanity, was capable of bearing the sin of human kind).
Q: So, of these two, which do you think was an argument for Jesus humanity and which for his Divinity?
[Discussion ensued with arguments going both directions for each. Which are correct? Yes, exactly--all of them].
Read: Romans 5: 12, 17-18
“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned— For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ! Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people.”
Romans 5:12, 17-18 NIV
Jesus ability as the God/man to undo Adam's legacy of sin is directly related to who the Church saw as his two parents... God the Father, Mary of Nazareth.
[Note: John Wesley understood that Jesus passion and death provided atonement universally in so far as Adam's sin flowing through human history and to each of us and for the wound or infinities that follow.
In other words God is reconciled to each human long before they are born. We are born into a world welcomed by The Creator and with great sensitivity toward our human weaknesses flowing from a sinful and broken human race.
The only sins which are.only provisionally forgiven are those we have chosen, for 'our sins' are inherently relational, requiring our participation in confession and repentance to fully enter into God's kindly heart.]
Part 2
Pages #23-24, 26-27 "Crystal Souks, Clay Jars & A Woman Clothed in Light"
Two metaphors are used to describe or illustrate The Divine origin & Human reflections of Holiness enshrined in love.
Crystals - In a dark cave a crystal, though specially gifted, is meaningless. Only in the light does a crystal come alive reflecting, piercing and seperating the wave particals of light in brilliant colors.
Glass Window--The ability of light to penetrate in clarity is directly related related to the cleanliness of the window. When perfectly clean one cannot separate the light from the Payne.
Teaching: Holiness is always derived, in us. Real, and forming in us God's very character, holy love's origin is God, not us. Humans are an "image of the Divine". not the Divine.
Q: Who in our Prime Time group either reflects well or dances well with the light of Christ? Interesting affirmations emerged.
Teaching: . re: Masculine & Feminine mystique. Connecting last weeks discussion of the role of gender in creation.
We, all of us, women and men alike, are called to be "the bride of Christ ". Our orientation toward God is feminine, receptive, responding, reflecting.
In the earth: We, all of us, women and men alike, are to be "masculine", pro-active in initiating healing, forgiveness, justice, grace. Our definition of masculinity is however, the same as Christ's; that of a servant.
Related to Sunday's message closure, God wants Jesus Character filling the earth, transformationally.
Part 3
Page # 33 (Story 4--A Question of Faith) & #36 (Story 5--Hiding Mary)
Read: 1st 3 paragraphs of "A Question of Faith"
Q: What must have Mary been feeling?
Q: I interpreted all 3 (mama, papa, betrothed) as in dis-belief. Can anyone imagine any of the three believing her? ...yes, some could and shared significant witness to being believed by one person in the midst of otherwise universal rejection.
Read:3rd paragraph, page 36, of "Hiding Mary" describing Mary's Papa's difficult and painful good bye and hug as he said, “Perhaps,” he hesitated. “Perhaps I have been too liberal with you, my daughter.” And Joachim gave her a hug, careful, proper and saying nothing more,
Q: Why could he not provide his daughter with the acceptance of suspended belief?
Several observations, but one (Pat, I think) poignantly observed that to have accepted his daughters testimony, as given, would seem blasphemous toward God. He could have forgiven her indiscretion, but not her continuing insistence that her child was God's son.
Watched video discussion between myself and a friend reflecting on Mary's remarkable strength:
Hence: The Church cannot separate the Son and the Mother.
Prayed for you, asking God's surrounding grace! Blessings!
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