Miracle Unawares

Gospel: Luke 1: 5-25

We would think that if anyone were to recognize a vision and a miraculous event it would be a priest in the midst of Temple worship.  And yet in today's story Zechariah does not recognize the vision and does not accept the message given to him by the angel.  Even more startling is the fact that the coming miraculous event is one that is not unknown in the religious tradition within which Zechariah serves as a priest.  So he is rendered mute for his unbelief.

Before we become too severe on Zechariah consider the fact that each day we find divine wonders all around us, and we are both unaware of their existence and even in denial of them.  We see the wonders of creation and yet abuse the environment with reckless abandon.  We claim belief in the idea that all persons are made in God's image and yet we regard and treat many with abuse and neglect, classifying them in man-made categories of demeaning language.  

Yet the message of today's story is that a miracle is not dependent upon our belief for it to take place.  Zechariah did not believe the angel's message, and yet the miracle of John's conception and birth would take place.  Whether we accept it or not, our created world is a miraculous gift to us, and all people are children of God made in his image.  Advent is for us to recover our belief in these things and to act differently in our lives, for Christ is born among us each day in creation and in other people.