Stillness and Incarnation

Advent reminds us of Mary’s quiet waiting in a time of unknowing.  The wonder of pregnancy and birth rarely leaves us unmoved. Like all mothers, Mary likely went about doing her ordinary tasks with an ever growing awareness of the movements of the child within her. And during times of stillness, she must have been amazed at this child sent by God to be nurtured within her.

 Her early response to the Angel Gabriel’s message, however, quickly evolved into acknowledging solidarity with another pregnant woman, her cousin Elizabeth. Her bold choice to move beyond her own pregnant condition to create room in her life for someone in need, lets us know again what it means to respond to ever-present God-ness. In the stillness of her journey she moved forward, one step at a time.

In our daily darkness of unknowing, every response to hidden-Godness may allow small incarnations to again be manifest. Sometimes the invitations arise in situations and persons we may prefer to pass by. Can it be, that within a deep breath of stillness, one breath at a time, we can actually awaken to a wider range of incarnating-responses? It may be, that inviting ourselves to choose these brief moments, we may find ourselves in solidarity with Mary’s step by step waiting and incarnating. According to Bede Griffiths, stillness can be amazingly transformative for ourselves and all around us.

Stillness within one individual can affect society beyond measure.

Mary Rachel Kuebelbeck, OSB