As with Zephaniah last week, this is the only use of Micah in the
Sunday Lectionary, so we will again provide some introductory
information. Micah prophesied in the southern kingdom of Judah at
the end of the eighth century, during the reigns of Ahaz and
Hezekiah.
Although he lived through a series of intense international crises,
including the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel and the
invasion of Judah by the Assyrians, Micah took little note of these
events (contrast Isaiah of Jerusalem) but concentrated rather on the
denunciation of Judah for its social injustices (cf. Amos).
Micah’s work, like Zephaniah’s, was later edited, and
more positive promises were added. The oracle about the birth of the
messianic king at Ephrathah (“Bethlehem” is thought to
be an explanatory gloss) is probably one such addition.
The situation when Micah wrote seems to be that which prevailed at
the end of the Exile, when hopes ran high for the restoration of the
Davidic monarchy. Christian faith has, since
Matthew 2:6, seen the final fulfillment of this oracle in the birth of Jesus.
Responsorial Psalm: 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19
This same arrangement of Psalm 80 was used on the first Sunday of
Advent in series B. Note particularly the last two lines of the
first stanza: “Stir up thy might, and come to save us]”
It is hard to imagine a more appropriate Advent prayer. Its words
are echoed in the ancient Advent collects that begin with
“Excita.”
The third stanza is a prayer for God’s blessing on the Davidic
king. Coupled with the first reading, this may be appropriately
referred to Jesus Christ. Thus, we put ourselves in the position of
ancient Israel waiting for the coming of the Messiah as we wait for
the celebration of his coming at Christmas.
This reading (beginning at
Heb 10:4) is also used on the feast of the Annunciation (March 25), a day
with which this Sunday has much in common. It is one of the most
important passages in Hebrews, for it defines Christ’s
sacrifice as the offering of his body (that is, the instrument of
his will) in obedience to his Father.
This, says the author of Hebrews, building upon
Psalm 40, is the whole raison d’être of the incarnation.
Christ took a body so as to have an instrument by which to offer
this perfect obedience to the will of God.
The choice of this reading today is a salutary reminder, needed
particularly at this time of year, not to dissociate the incarnation
from its supreme goal, the atonement. Bethlehem was the prelude to
Golgotha
Since there are only two annunciation stories in the Gospels (see
the fourth Sunday of Advent in series A and B), series C switches to
the visitation. Today’s reading in the Episcopalian Lectionary
runs through
Luke 1:49, thus including the first four verses of the Magnificat,
which has traditional associations with the fourth Sunday of
Advent.
Three times in this pericope Mary is pronounced
“blessed” (see also the second verse of the
Magnificat; this is the scriptural ground for our calling
her the “Blessed Virgin”).
Two closely connected reasons are given for Elizabeth’s
calling her “blessed”: Mary’s faith (Lk 1:45), which is the same as her obedience (Lk 1:38, the alleluia versicle), and her bearing of the Christ child (Lk 1:42).
So Mary is blessed, not for what she was or is in herself, but only
in relation to the incarnation. The Mariology of Scripture is
grounded in Christology.
In order to follow the evangelist’s understanding of the
annunciation, the conception of the Christ child, and the dialogue
between Mary and Elizabeth at the visitation, we should avoid
prematurely harmonizing Luke’s presentation with the Johannine
prologue.
Luke does not operate with a preexistent Logos-Christology as the
fourth evangelist does, any more than the fourth evangelist operates
with a conception and birth narrative.
For Luke, the virginal conception is not the way in which the
preexistent divine Son assumes humanity, for he does not think in
those terms; rather, the miraculous conception is the supreme
example of those Old Testament conceptions in which God raises up a
person to perform a specific function in salvation history (Isaac,
Moses [?], Samson, Samuel).
Thus, Mary’s miraculous conception of Jesus marks the birth of
one who is to perform the eschatologically unique role in salvation
history (Lk 1:32-33; note the future tenses, which speak of this child’s future
role, not of his “divine nature”).
In Luke—and the same is doubtless true of Matthew—the infancy
narrative is strictly Vorgeschichte, a historical prelude
to a unique salvation history that begins with the baptism of Jesus
and continues through his exaltation (see the qualifications for
apostolic witness in
Acts 1:22).
We shall discuss how this exegetical interpretation of Luke is to be
squared with the Church’s later ontological interpretation of
the incarnation and shall propose a contemporary interpretation of
it in our comments on the Johannine prologue at the third Mass of
Christmas.