A recap of the first 17 verses in the Gospel of Matthew, we learned that Jesus is descended through his adopted father from Abraham and David, two of the most important patriarchs. One known for his faith and the other the archetypal king. The number of generations was 14 twice demonstrating Jesus’s connection to King David. 14 “is the numerical value of the Hebrew letters forming the name of David”ⁱ

The inclusion of women stands out against the many men on the list. Jesus’ ancestors included women such as Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba. Besides being women they were also foreigners. Even Jesus’s ancestry testifies to giving power to the marginalized and making the stranger a part of the community. Finally we learned that Joseph was married to Mary Jesus’s mother.

Remember, the first hearers of this gospel would not have had the Gospel of Luke in their minds to fill in the blanks. This is literally the beginning of the story. Mary had no dreams nor visitations to tell her what was going on. 

And now in today’s passage, Mary was pregnant and not by the man she was engaged to. Leigh brought us up to speed last week on what this could mean. Mary faced execution based on the rules of Deuteronomy 22 for adultery. A woman who became betrothed claiming to be a virgin, but deemed to be lying could be stoned to death. A woman who was betrothed who had sexual relations with a man in the city who was not her betrothed could be stoned to death. Consent was presumed because people could have heard her screaming. 

Mary had very little as a peasant in the backwaters of the Roman Empire. She was at the bottom of society’s pyramid. She was facing losing her honor and a husband that would provide for her, defend her and who would represent her in the community. It meant that even the little she had could be taken away.

Later Jesus would be called the Son of Mary instead of the Son of Joseph as an insult. Rumors swirled around Mary. Some said she had been raped by a Roman soldier which would be tragic but far from unusual. Mary only knows what happened to her and how traumatic it could have been. Imagine being pregnant and engaged but not pregnant with your fiance’s child. Multiply this by a hundred for a lower status for women. Imagine the guilt and shame that would be heaped upon her by her community. It’s hard to explain to a 21st century person from an individualistic culture just how important reputation was to a person in the honor/shame culture of 1st century Palestine. The social pressure would have been overwhelming. 

Mary must have felt like she was hitting rock bottom. She had done nothing wrong but her world was falling apart. Her fiance was looking at abandoning her. She was pregnant and alone. Mary’s tragedy could have wrecked her life and left her there. God, however, did what would be later proclaimed in the letter to the Romans chapter 8, that God will use all things for good. She would have desperately wanted to believe Jeremiah’s prophecy applied to her that God had “plans…for you…plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope” (29:11)

Later it would be said that the child was from the Holy Spirit and, unlike rape by an occupying army, that was quite strange. The possibility she was pregnant by adultery rather than rape was even worse. Which of the three would her community believe? What we millenia later take for granted is that God took this impossibly stressful moment and used it for good. God did something new with Mary. Mary’s faithfulness led to God being present and reachable in a new way. A light shone in the midst of Mary’s darkness and despair. 

Her husband-to-be was an honorable man and wanted to save her from public execution for adultery. Even more he wanted to spare her any shame and disgrace he could while still leaving her.  Even with Joseph trying to keep the pregnancy quiet this was a terrifying set of options for Mary. She wasn’t just going to have a hard time getting by. This could be catastrophic and be with her for the rest of her life.

Before Joseph could leave her, God intervened. Joseph had a dream where an angel sent by God spoke to him. God took Joseph’s fear and anxiety and transformed it to hope. This child was from the Holy Spirit. However the pregnancy came to be, it was guided by God. God saved Mary. Her life did not become tragedy, but a witness to the greatness of God.

In the Gospel of Luke’s telling, Mary is moved to sing out. She proclaims how God favors her even a person at the bottom of the social ladder. God has done great things for her. 

Listen to a contemporary version of Mary’s song. Mary’s song is typically referred to as the Magnificat based on the first words in it—My soul magnifies the Lord. This one is called the Canticle of the Turning:

God has been faithful to God’s people. God will raise up the powerless and bring down the powerful. Mary knows that as transformative as it is for her God will change the world through this new Light. 

It can be hard to see how good can come from bad when you are in the midst of it. I struggled after seminary. I applied to church after church and nothing came of it. Yet if I had moved away right away to Pennsylvania I never would have met Leigh. I never would have served West Elkton Friends and I never would have met you.

I was poor, but from it I learned humility. I couldn’t hold to my middle class pride and make enough money. With no job prospects I was willing to work wherever the opportunity arose. I welcomed the help of others and was grateful for it. I did physical labor which I had not considered. I worked with autistic children which I had never imagined and it was so rewarding. 

We may feel like we know the start of Joseph and Mary’s story now from Matthew’s perspective. These are the details from the story, but they are not all Matthew wants us to see. To Matthew, Jesus’ birth is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah chapter 7. A young woman would give birth right before their enemies were to be defeated. That child would be called “God with us,” Emmanuel. 

The name Mary is a translation of Miriam, the name of Moses’ sister. The process of Mary and Joseph getting together, breaking up, and reuniting matched with a popular story from that time about Moses’ parents.

For Moses’ parents breaking up was about not having children after Pharaoh’s decree to kill all newborn Israelite baby boys. Amram and Jochebed, Moses’ parents, did not want to take the chance of having babies just for those little boys to be killed. For them their daughter Miriam talked them into coming back together. She brought hope during a dark time. For Joseph it was an angel.ⁱⁱ

Moses’ father, Amram, had a dream in those stories just like Jesus’s father, Joseph would. Amram’s dream revealed that Moses would deliver the people of Israel. One day they would be led out of slavery in Egypt. For Moses to do all that he would first have to be born. ⁱⁱⁱ

Part of celebrating Christmas in the northern hemisphere this time of year is seeing the longest night come just before Jesus arrives. Like Moses and Jesus, the Light returns to us. Light gains a foothold in the midst of the darkness and returns.

Joseph’s dream told him he should name his son Jesus which is also translated as Joshua. Joshua means Yah (a shortened form of the divine name) will save. “God will save” is literally his name. Joseph’s son would also be a great deliverer like Moses. Jesus’s liberation would be of heart, mind, and spirit. Jesus would free us from internalized oppression and break down the walls that separate us.

We are promised by the prophet Joel and it is repeated in the Book of Acts that God’s spirit will be poured out on all people. We are promised prophecies, visions, and dreams. This is not limited to a select few but foretold of the many. We too may have visions and dream dreams.

One day Jesus would proclaim his Sermon on the Mount, just as Moses had brought the ten commandments down from the mountain.

For now, Mary was pregnant with an unknown future. At least Joseph would be her husband and remain by her side. The rest was yet to be seen.

The point is not whether these stories are factual or not. The point is that they are true on a deeper level. Matthew chose to tell them to persuade us about who Jesus was.

I leave you with these queries. 

• When has light begun to shine in your darkness?
• When have you had a true dream that revealed something about your life or the world around you?
• When have you hit your lowest and had God lift you up?
  
  

ihttps://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/1

iihttps://www.thetorah.com/article/the-birth-of-moses-between-bible-and-midrash

iiihttps://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/1

https://opwest.org/blog/how-does-matthew-present-jesus-as-the-new-moses