The Christian tradition has been accused in some secular circles over the centuries of subjugating and oppressing women, giving them a lower place of dignity than men in Creation.
But it is worth noting that the first ever Christian was a woman -- Mary.
She knew before He was conceived that He was the Son of God, Luke's account shows.
But knowing His identity is just the beginning. Mary is made aware of His identity and then presented with the decision, as we all are, of whether or not to welcome Him in, to allow Him to take residence within her very being, so that she could then bear Him to the world.
And she said yes. Or to be more specific, "May it be done to me according to your word."
With that utterance, she encapsulated what it means to be a follower of Christ. It means to place oneself at the disposal of God, to be used for His purposes, to reflect His goodness to the world. Mother Teresa of Calcutta once decribed herself as a pencil that God uses to write a love letter to the world. Mary was that par excellence. She received the entirety of what God wanted to give her, which was Christ Himself. And by receiving Him openly and entirely, she was able to share Him openly and entirely with the world.
Compare that with the world on the night of Jesus' birth. He was not allowed in, because the inn was too crowded, and no room could be made for Him. Humanity, on the night its Savior was born, banished Him to a stable full of animals, where He would be born into a feeding trough. Whereas Mary allowed herself to be "overshadowed" by the Holy Spirit, the cold world, as we tragically sometimes imitate, considered that it had more important things to make room for and treated Christ as an afterthought, not worthy of real priority or dignity.
And Mary, bearing Christ within her, exemplified, by the very nature of her role in God's plan, what each Christian is called to do, which is to share in the suffering of Christ. His banishment from all places of shelter and comfort became her banishment from all places of shelter and comfort. Where Christ went, she went. That connection would not wane as Jesus' life and ministry continued.
Mary made herself small before God, placing herself at the disposal of His plan. By doing so, God made her the portal through which salvation itself entered the world.
I know it's the season of Lent, not Advent. But I think we would all do well to examine, as Lent continues, what priority we give to Christ in our lives, whether there is room for Him inside of ourselves, and whether we are truly receptive in our hearts to everything that He wishes to give us, as was the first Christian.
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