December 8, 2022

Dear Central Church, 

The story of Christmas begins with the most unlikely of heroes. A young girl in an out-of-the-way village is chosen as the one to bring God’s greatest gift into the world. 

The Catholic tradition does a better job of celebrating the contribution of Mary in God’s plan of redemption. It’s fair to say they may overdo it theologically, but Protestants (that’s us) need to recapture the role of Mary in how we tell the story. 

When I visited the “Cathedral of the Annunciation” in Israel I marveled at all the paintings of Mary that had been contributed. It was built on the site where we believe an angel appeared to her and announced that she was going to have a baby. The chapel walls are lined with portraits of the mother of Jesus each from different countries. 

The beauty of this space is that each portrait reflected the distinctives of the culture that offered it. Mary was seen as an Asian, African, European, Indian, HIspanic, Pacific Islander, and many more. The chapel is a visual representation of how Mary’s song in Luke 1 (known as “The Magnificat”) has been fulfilled. She sings, “From now on all generations will call me blessed.” Mary sings, recognizing the blessing she has received and celebrating how the blessing of her baby boy will transform the world. 

As we continue to walk through this Advent season, let’s think about why Mary sings and how we can join her in this song. 

As you prepare for this weekend, remember that we will have a regular worship service at 8:30 AM and then our children will present their musical in the 11 AM service. It’s going to be a great Sunday at Central. I hope to see you there. 

Until He’s Finished, 

Pastor Mark