Advent 4 (A) + A holy yes! + 12.22.19

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M. Campbell-Langdell
All Santos, Oxnard
(Isaiah 7:10–16; Psalm 80:1–7, 16–18; Romans 1:1–7; St Matthew 1:18–25)

Today we celebrate the power of the Holy Yes. And yet, in all the glory of saying a Holy Yes to God, there is a fair amount of grumbling too. If you’re anything like me.
Recently, for two weeks in a row Genesis required some extensive time at the dentist. She then needed me to take her to school, and in one case this process took about a morning and the other the whole middle of a day. And as we were making our way back up to her school we realized I could drop her off at the school where she was to play her soccer game, as her soccer team was almost on the way and it would save me at least 30 minutes of driving. But she was making sounds about staying alone at an unfamiliar school so I hung out with her until her group was arriving. I remember thinking how inconvenient it all was. But walking the next day, I remembered a truth about parenting. You don’t say “yes” to becoming a parent because of the warm fuzzy image you have of parents – perhaps something like this beautiful cosmic image of the Virgin and child that we read in today’s passage from Isaiah. You say “yes” because even though you will feel annoyed at times and like the love you are giving isn’t always returned in the same way or that you go through lots of effort for little appreciation, but you do all of that because you love the child and want to nurture them. Whether they are your biological child or not.
Of course I am so grateful we have Genesis in our lives. Not to mention a Health Savings Account and the means to pay for Genesis’ dental care. And blessings to those who struggle with getting their dental needs met. But chances are the adults among us, and perhaps some of the kids, know what I am talking about. You go the extra mile, not for the thank you, but for the love of it. Because at some point you said a Holy Yes to God. To caring for another being. Whether as a parent or in another role.
Today’s scriptures speak to us of at least two Holy Yeses, as was discussed in the Living Compass Reflection for today. Here you have Mary’s yes to God, that all-important yes that allowed God to come to earth and dwell among us. And you also have Joseph’s yes. Joseph could have done what seemed honorable to him. He could have quietly cast Mary aside as she seemed to be stepping out on him but yet she was such a nice girl! But God spoke to Joseph, saying, I want you to be a father to him, although you are not the father. Can you imagine how it would have been for Mary had Joseph quietly left the engagement? Sure he would not have publicly humiliated her, but it would have amounted to almost the same thing. She would have been left with the baby. And, don’t get me wrong - I admire single mothers and fathers! Single parents are inspiring to me. But I believe God wanted to show a different kind of faithfulness here. In Joseph’s stepping up. In showing us another Holy Yes so that we could know how to do the same. For our kin but also for those who bear no relation to us. And we know that Joseph made an impact on Jesus. He no doubt affected his religious development by bringing him to the synagogue. And by tradition Jesus learned a trade of carpentry from Joseph. Joseph and Mary’s Holy Yeses opened doors for Jesus, and for the good news to come to us. And theirs is not the story of a perfect family, but of one that faced challenges! Societal misunderstanding, I am sure. Limited resources and living under an oppressive regime. But they said a Holy Yes and that opened the door for God to make a new covenant with us.
But the Holy Yes that Mary and Joseph gave is not just something that parents can emulate. Yes, it is clear in the good example of people who step up to parent children that are not biologically theirs. But it is also clear in parishioner who goes out of her way to pick up another parishioner and bring her to church, and sometimes to the grocery store. It is clear in the adult children of elderly parents who lovingly care for them even when they are not always at their best. The Holy Yes is seen in stories like the one featured in the Living Compass devotional today which mentioned a couple who saw another couple, their elderly neighbors, struggling. The older man had lost his son and now was struggling to care for his elderly and ailing wife. So the neighbors pitched in to help the older man care for his spouse. They were no relation. They could have cared but stuck to small bits of help. But instead they said a Holy Yes to God’s nudge to help in a big way.[1] To be merciful. To let a little good into the world. Or a great good.
All of these little goods add up. To the great good that Jesus showed us in his life, sacrificial death and resurrection. To what are you invited to say a Holy Yes this season of Advent and into the coming year? And, because to say a “yes” sometimes you have to say a “no” to something else, see what needs paring away from your life to let you commit to that yes. And I ask God’s blessing on you as you strive to be faithful to that Yes and also to the Yeses you have already said. Mary said Yes! Joseph said Yes! And Jesus has said Yes! And welcomed you into his heart. How will you say your Holy Yes this Advent and the coming year?

[1] Mary Bea Sullivan, “Holy Yes” for December 22, 2019 from Living Well Through Advent 2019, p. 36-37.

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