Love both of these miraculous birth stories together -- John and Jesus. What a buzz of mystery there must have been in this extended family. I love the fact that God gave Mary a confidant in her extremely stressful and embarrassing condition. Mary has Elizabeth and stays with her for three months.
You always wonder about the gossip surrounding Mary's virgin conception of her son Jesus. Anne Rice -- yes, of vampire novel fame -- does a wonderful job painting the real life whispering around Jesus that must have plagued the family in her two books, Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt and Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana. They are written from Jesus' point of view a potentially controversial way of approaching the story, but I recommend them both.
All of the people who recognize His birth: Joseph and Mary, Elizabeth and Zechariah and the unborn John who leaps in His mother's womb; the Angels who proclaim His birth; the shepherds in the field; Simeon at the temple and Anna the prophetess. And then, in tomorrow's reading, Herod and the chief priests and teachers of the law whose opinion he calls for and then the Magi. Wow, what a wide and varied birth announcement list. Too big a group to have organized to have created this story.
And then there are the heart-wrenching words of Simeon, ironic and prophetic (prophesy seems often ironic):
"And a sword will pierce your own soul too." [Luke 2:35]
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