Reflection for December 22
Let it be known that I think the world of Liza Peters. But then again, don’t we all? She’s the coolest.
Earlier this year, Liza preached on Holy Thursday. Maybe you remember...many of you were there. I’ve never told her this (surprise, Liza!) but I bawled the entire time.
For one thing, she spoke straight truth. Her message was, in equal parts, comforting and convicting. She put into words so many of the things my spirit hungered to hear.
There was something too about seeing a woman at the pulpit. Standing tall and unapologetic. Using her voice and being heard.
I felt...so proud to know her. And so inspired. On a visceral level, I was reminded that I, as a young woman, have a place in our Church and in our world. That my voice matters. That the Word of God chooses to dwell in me too.
It’s the same way I feel when I read Mary’s Magnificat. I feel so proud to call Mary my Mother. I give thanks for her ‘yes.’ And my heart bursts with the knowing that the Word of God continues to be born in the hearts of women. In Liza. In my own mama. In me. In you.
Mary’s song reminds us that God makes room for, and within, all of us. ALL of us. Children. The poor. The uneducated. The homeless. The hungry. The oppressed. The broken-hearted.
Today, let us join Mary’s song. Let us raise our voices and magnify a God who saw and heard her. Who sees and hears each one of us. And let us listen for God’s voice in the voices of one another. For Christ is being born again and again.
Caelie Flanagan