A Reflection for Thursday of the Fourth Week of Advent
Yow will discover today’s readings here.
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior.
for he has looked upon his lowly servant.
From at the present time all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name” (Lk 1:46-47).
After a friend gave birth for the primary time, she said to me, “I hope you’ve a baby someday so you may learn to like your body, too.” It was not exactly what I used to be expecting to listen to, but I understood what she meant. Like so a lot of us, this friend had never been quite comfortable in her skin and knew I also struggled with the identical insecurity. But something had modified for her during her pregnancy. Her body had not only created recent life but carried it through nine months of morning sickness and swollen feet after which pushed it out into this world after hours of excruciating contractions. It was a body able to protecting and nourishing and enduring great pain. How could she be anything but in awe of such a thing?
I believed of my friend’s words when reading today’s Gospel, Mary’s Magnificat. What struck me most this time was the arrogance of Mary. Here is a woman who had recently received what at first will need to have been terrifying news: that she was with child despite never having been with a person. We will imagine all of the fears and questions weaved into her response: “How can this be?” Would Joseph leave her? Would her family disown her? What would people say about her?
Who would blame Mary for feeling insecure about her position, even after she accepted Gabriel’s implausible explanation?
Who would blame her for feeling insecure about her position, even after she accepted Gabriel’s seemingly implausible explanation?
Yet here we discover Mary telling her relative Elizabeth, “From at the present time all generations will call me blessed.” Each women have good reason to be in awe of their bodies. Elizabeth because she has conceived in old age; Mary because she carries inside her the Son of God.
In fact, you must not have to present birth (much less give birth to Jesus) to like your body or to know your value. That is precisely what we have a good time at Christmas. Through the Incarnation, God took on our flesh, our imperfect, flabby, always-aging flesh. Every time we take the Eucharist, we, like Mary, carry the son of God inside us. It’s an awesome thing. And it should give us, too, the arrogance to proclaim the good things God has done for us and the great things he guarantees for the poor and lowly.
Get to know Ashley McKinless, executive editor at America and co-host of “Jesuitical”
Favorite Advent or Christmas themed art?
This 12 months, because of America Media’s Hark! podcast, I’m letting myself feel the natural melancholy that the colder, darker months bring with the assistance of “Within the Bleak Midwinter.”
Favorite Christmas tradition?
Every 12 months, I bake about 200 Christmas cookies that my family dutifully decorates with colourful powdered sugar icing and sprinkles. Five years ago, we invited the family of Afghan refugees that my parents briefly hosted upon their arrival in the USA. It’s now a yearly tradition—and their kids put me and my siblings to shame with their decorating skills.
Which project are you most proud to have worked on this 12 months at America?
“Can a pro-life and a pro-choice Catholic find common ground? We gave it a shot.”: Within the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade, my colleague, former O’Hare fellow Keara Hanlon, suggested that America publish a dialogue between women who held different views on legal abortion. Though I used to be reluctant to interact publicly on a subject that elicits such strong feelings, I’m glad I took part within the conversation, which I believe demonstrated that pro-life and pro-choice people can find common ground without sacrificing our deeply held principles. You possibly can read it here.
Favorite Christmas recipe?
Homemade stuffing is a staple of my family’s Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. The first step is spreading out eight loaves of the most cost effective white bread you will discover on cookie sheets and placing them on various high surfaces across the house where there are heat vents. (Yes, it looks ridiculous, but it surely dries the bread out in about 24 hours.) Tear up the bread into small pieces once dry. Sauté thinly sliced celery and onion in an ungodly amount of butter and add poultry seasoning to taste. Mix bread and butter and chicken or vegetable broth until sufficiently moist (but not too moist). Put aside some for the vegetarians like me and stuff the remaining within the turkey.
Favorite Christmas photo?
Christmas cookie decorating with the Ibrahims (2019)
