Hail Mary
Like many Episcopal churches, we have a lot of former Roman Catholics at St. Peter's. We are a melting pot of a church, in many ways, and this group makes up a large chunk of the sauce. Not long after I arrived at St. Peter's, one former Roman Catholic approached me to voice a question I bet many others have considered: what does the Episcopal Church believe about Mary? The assumption being, I suppose, that we believe something different than Roman Catholics do about Jesus' mother.
Well, as this Sunday we will hear again the story of the annunciation by the angel Gabriel to Mary, and the song of praise that she utters in response (Magnificat), I think it fitting to offer some thoughts on the witness and story of this remarkable woman.
Since the earliest councils of the church, Mary has been known as Theotokos, literally "Godbearer": she is the one who gives birth to God. No one else has experienced such remarkable intimacy with God, and this unique experience sets her apart within the communion of saints. In the eastern tradition of iconography, Mary is usually depicted holding the infant Christ, his tiny faced turned upward toward hers, his little hand clutching at her face. To gaze upon this image is to glimpse the great mystery of God having a human mother just like every single one of us.
Some traditions, including Roman Catholicism, elevate Mary into a unique status as a result. She is prayed to ("Hail Mary"), in order to intercede with her son on our behalf. I'm not one to doubt the tradition of praying to saints to intercede with God, as it is revered by many millions of faithful believers around the world. But I do caution those who blur the lines of her humanity by deifying her. Though she bore the Christ, Mary is not a god. She is not divine.
Deifying Mary diminishes the idea that God could come into the world through an ordinary woman, just like you and I did. To claim that she is somehow more special, more unique, than the rest of us, is to try and clean up the scandal of the incarnation. It is to say that God would or could only come into the world by way of a superhuman. But although she was remarkable for her faith and obedience, the story shows us that she was every bit the usual, anxious young mother to-be, and what's more, when Jesus was born she was homeless and poor.
That is the extraordinary part of Mary's story. She was, by all accounts, one of the most humble and marginalized people in society: a woman in a time when women had no power, a young woman in a time when age garnered respect, a poor young woman in a time when wealth was believed to be a sign of God's favor, a poor, unmarried, pregnant young woman in a time when that could get you killed. And through all of that she remained steadfast and faithful, trusting and hoping in God against all odds and reason.
We don't deify Mary in the Episcopal Church. We admire her. We look to her as an example, a witness, a powerful model of what small, insignificant, overlooked people can do it response to God's great love. May we, this holy season, aspire to a small part of the faith and determination that she had. Mary is proof positive that is it possible ... even with flawed, wandering humans like us.
