Mary, it seems to me, is the forgotten saint among most Protestant churches.  She is rarely mentioned in our sermons, and even less referred to in our prayers and devotions.  In fact, we hardly know how to appropriately speak about her. What should we call her? Do we refer to her as “the blessed Virgin,” or “Mary, the mother of our Lord,” or “the holy Mother,” or “Our Lady”? Perhaps we have evaded this question by simply ignoring her?

I think this is a blind spot for most Protestants. It seems to me very odd that we talk about Abraham and Sarah, Moses and his sister Miriam, Ruth the ancestress of David, the intrepid Esther, Martha and Mary, even John Wesley’s mother Susanna, yet drop a blanket of silence over Mary, the mother of Jesus.

Historically I can understand the Protestant reticence. It was a reaction to an    excessive emphasis on Mary among some sections of the Roman Catholic Church. In their reaction, they backed so far away from the Mother of our Lord as to ignore her.

Surely we are capable of doing better than that?  This woman is the most        significant of women. She can be an example to us; an inspiration to encourage us in our love of God and of each other.

Luke 1:28:  “And the angel came to her and said: “I salute you, Mary, most        favoured one, the Lord is with you!”

Mary, the Holy Mother, was open to God, open to God’s future, even though it can often be a frustrating, painful and frightening way to go. She was open to God and joyful about it.

Mary's soul magnified the Lord - it exalted the Lord -

          and God responded to her

          and gave her the joy and the peace and the hope and the love

          that our toys, our gifts, our carols, and our gatherings can only hint at.

May Jesus’ mother inspire us this Christmas Season.

God Bless,

Pastor Walt