Meaning of John as Gestational Gymnast

4 Advent C     December 23, 2018

Micah 5:2-4   Song of Mary     

Heb.10:5-10   Luke 1:39-56

Lectionary Link

 Luke 7:28b-35. I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he

When ancient writings survived, they became more venerated.  The survival of writings were proof of their continuing popularity within communities of people who found their meanings useful.  Survival was manifest in their actual "printing" technologies.  When text faded from the scroll of papyrus, it had to be re-inked.  The re-inking of the text was proof of the popularity of the text and so texts which lost their usefulness or relevance within a community were left to fade away and disappear.

The ways in which the Gospel texts have come to serve the church calendars should not keep us from trying to achieve insights into the function of the text when it was first written.  The context of the early Jesus Movement trying to convert the followers of John the Baptist is more relevant to the actual meaning of today's Gospel than meanings that we have come to have for it in our Advent-Christmas lectionary purposes.

Above I quote a later passage from Luke which obviously is a rather blunt oracle saying of Jesus  in the early church comparing the experience of the post-resurrection Holy Spirit filled Christian and the experience of John the Baptist and those who used John the Baptist as the most adequate message about God and about God's kingdom.

How were followers of John to be convinced to become followers of Jesus, followers of the Risen Christ who had an experience of the Kingdom of God which surpassed John the Baptist?

How do we know the experience of the Risen Christ and the birth of Christ into one's life surpasses what was offered by John the Baptist?

Well, John as an adult said that Jesus and his ministry was the preferred message and not only did John believe that as an adult, he even responded as prenatal John to the prenatal Jesus.

Prenatal John in his mother's womb leaped in response when Elizabeth his mother met with Mary who was "with child," with the Christ child.

So the pre-natal John without any cultural bias was responding to Jesus even before either of them were born.  Could there be any more fascinating preaching appeal to the followers of John the Baptist than this wonderful story of expectant moms?   Elizabeth's word helped to create perhaps the most popular prayer in the world, the "Hail Mary."  "Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb."

Before we rush into all the meanings which have accrued for John and Jesus in our Advent and Christmas observances, let up remember the primary function of the message being used to convince the followers of John the Baptist to graduate to the experience of following Jesus.

In the mystagogy, the teachings of the mystery of Christ born into one's life, or the mysticism of the early church, the birth of John to Elizabeth is contrasted to the birth of Jesus to Mary, somewhat like the Pauline comparison of the states of "chosenness" of the birth of Ishmael to Hagar and Isaac to Sarah.

John the Baptist baptized with water; Jesus baptized with the Holy Spirit.  The birth into John the Baptist was very important, but the birth of Christ into a person happened as one was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit to realized that one of "conceived by God and made a child of God."

We often get caught up in literal story and forget, neglect, miss the mystagogy that the early Gospel preachers are conveying in the Advent and Christmas stories.

The birth event of John and Elizabeth and his life teaching were to be preparation for the birth event of Christ into each person willing to say to God, "let it be to me according to your word."

Mary's song, a song of praise about the event of the experience of God's favor is to be the song of everyone who has realized the Christ event within the soul as the hope of glory in one's life.

As we enter the Christmas season and are so thrilled to keep the stories as external happenings in some past history, let us not forget the mystagogy which motivated the early preaching of the Jesus Movement.  These writings were preached and delivered by persons who were completely thrilled with the birth of the Risen Christ within their lives.  And I hope you have that thrill too.  Amen.