The Body Language of Advent - Kneeling (Luke 1:26-33) 🕯

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Christmas has its own body language. We're reminded of this when we see a manger scene: a creche containing the figures of Mary and Joseph, the baby, the shepherds, the wise men, and the angels. Each of these people who experienced this story, who lived this event, all have typical postures. Identifiable body language. Even if we were looking at a manger scene made of stick figures or pipe cleaners, we would probably be able to identify who is who because of their body language: because of how they are posed.  

We would be able to tell that this one is Mary because she's kneeling beside the manger. That's Joseph because he's standing close behind her, leaning on a shepherd's crook. That one’s a shepherd because they’re holding in their arms a lamb or a gift. We would be able to tell that those are the wise men because they're standing proud, and holding out their gift as though it’s precious. That one’s an angel because they're dancing, pirouetting in the sky. Manger scenes are designed as a visual reminder of the story. How the figures are posed tells us something about who those people were, about how they lived that story, about how they engaged with what God was doing, even though they didn't always understand it. They were there. They were in.  

Our body language is part of who we are. We are embodied in the world. Our posture  is part of how we communicate. It's part of how we tell each other who we are. 

This week I want to begin, as we often do in the season of Advent, with Mary. In a manger scene, Mary is almost always kneeling beside the manger where Jesus lay. Whether she ever as an actual person physically did that, we don’t know. But when artists portray Mary that way, they're telling us something about who she was.  

Mary was a woman with a kneeling heart. 

She’d been born into a family of faithful Jewish people who named her after the sister of Moses. Named her after a woman who was a prophet in Israel. Named her after Miriam.  

The Gospel writers Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all mention Mary, but the text tells us almost nothing about her in herself. 

Most of what we know about her is what God told her to do, and how she responded to that call. 

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So why do people kneel? Why do we lower ourselves to the ground so that we can't see as well, past all the people who are standing around us? Why do we make ourselves smaller, reducing our ability to speak loudly and to be heard? Why do we make ourselves more vulnerable? Because when you're on your knees, unless you’re Spiderman or a ninja or something, there is no quick getaway. When you're down on your knees, you're not getting anywhere anytime quick. You are vulnerable down there. So why do people kneel?  

First, people kneel to acknowledge our status. When we kneel, we are speaking the truth about who is in the room and where we fit in. Someone is in the room who has authority. Someone is in the room who has the status to stand above me. Someone is in the room who deserves my loyalty. Who deserves my service. 

We see this idea reflected in the hours before Jesus’ crucifixion: 

...[the Roman soldiers] twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on His head. They put a staff in His right hand and knelt down before Him to mock Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!”  Matthew 27:29 

These same men who mockingly knelt before Jesus would have very seriously knelt before Caesar if he were in the room. They would have done so with no irony, with no mockery, with complete respect, and even no small fear. They would have recognized Caesar's authority... and knelt. 

The second reason why people kneel is to demonstrate our surrender, and to entrust ourselves to someone else.  

One day when Jesus was walking down the road: 

...a leper came to Jesus, begging on his knees: “If You are willing, You can make me clean.”  Mark 1:40

That man put himself in a position where he could not make a quick escape. He was not in a position to defend himself. He was already a man who was down. He had already been kicked. Because he was suffering from this skin disease, his trajectory was downward; things were going to get worse and worse and worse. He had already lost his family, his profession, his home, his health. He'd lost access to the Temple. He'd lost access to his faith community. He had lost his ability to make himself right with Yahweh God in the only way he knew how. So when he knelt before Jesus, it was because Jesus was someone who had the power to make his life better... or worse. This man trusted Jesus with the little he had left. So he knelt and made his request, knowing that whether the answer was yes or no, he would accept that answer, and walk away in it. We kneel to demonstrate that we trust someone greater than ourselves.  

A third reason why we kneel sometimes is to receive—to accept—something. In the Church, very often, the things that we kneel to receive or to accept are things like prayer and blessing, or sometimes... our assignment.  

When I was ordained last year, part of that observance was for me to kneel down in a circle of my friends. Those people placed their hands on my shoulder and prayed over me. I received—I accepted—their blessing. Not because they were of higher status than I, not because they had any kind of power over me, but because they were giving me something that I could not take for myself. There was something that I had to receive from the hands of someone else. So I knelt down and my friends placed their hands on me to affirm my calling, and to send me to do the work that I was supposed to be doing. Sometimes we kneel to receive—to accept.  

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This is all because kneeling is the outward expression of a posture of the heart.  

We see Mary more often than not in those manger scenes kneeling, because it is a portrayal that reflects the posture of her heart. She is kneeling in body because deep down inside she is kneeling before God.  

Her heart knelt to acknowledge her status when she said those words, 

I am the Lord's servant. Luke 1:38 

Her heart knelt to surrender when she said those words, 

May it happen to me as you have said. Luke 1:38 

Her heart knelt to receive the blessing and the support of other people because she alone could do what she'd been given to do, but she could not do it alone.  

Later on in her story, she met her relative, Elizabeth (the mother of John the Baptizer) who she hadn’t seen for a long time. When she walked into the room, Mary heard Elizabeth say those amazing words: 

The mother of my Lord has come to me... The Lord's word to you will be fulfilled.  Luke 1:43, 45 

That had to be the first time that Mary heard another human being say what she’d heard the angel say. She needed to hear that message from another person, somebody who got it, somebody who understood the precariousness of her situation: who understood, frankly, the danger that she was in and the challenge that lay before her. 

Elizabeth got it. And Mary, hearing those words of affirmation from another human being, sang her beautiful, amazing song:  

My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour! For He has looked with favour on the humble state of His servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed. For the Mighty One has done great things for me... Luke 1:46-49  

That was Mary's response to hearing from another human being that “Yes, God is doing what you think He is doing. He does want you to do what you think He wants you to do.” 

Mary’s heart was on its knees. Not to the angel. Not to the people. But to the God of eternity. To God of justice. The God who is love. 

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There's a beautiful quote that I found in one of my commentaries this week, talking about Mary's kneeling heart. This writer says, “Her servanthood is not a cringing slavery. It's a submission to God than in Old Testament times characterized genuine believers, and that should characterize believers today.” 

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Be still for a moment and imagine. Imagine yourself standing face to face—not with an angel, but with the One who sent the angel. Standing face to face with Jesus. With the God who created you. With the Spirit who gave you breath.  

As you picture Him, maybe He is standing in front of you. A man with brown skin and kind eyes.  

Maybe, before you in your imagination, He's a living, dancing column of light and flame.  

Maybe in your imagination as you see Him before you, He is seated as a wise and white haired Rabbi, Judge and King.  

You are standing before the all powerful, all knowing God who loves you.  

You stand before Him knowing that you are completely safe. That the One with whom you stand face to face can be completely trusted.  

Now imagine yourself kneeling. Feel the ground against your knees. Feel the flex of your ankles and your toes. Feel the bend of your spine as you kneel before the One.  

Imagine your hands open on your lap with your palms up and open. Imagine your face turned upward to meet the gaze of God. 

What do you see in His face?  

Do you see sadness? Do you see pride in who you are becoming and how hard you're working to follow Jesus? Do you see laughter and joy? Do you see compassion for your struggles, and the hard time that you're having right now? 

What do you hear Him saying?  

What do you hear Him promising you?  

What do you hear Him asking you?  

What do you hear Him commanding you?  

What is your reply? 

 

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