Irreverently Reverend

  Christmas Eve In those days Caesar Augustus declared that everyone throughout the empire should be enrolled in the tax lists.  2  This first enrollment occurred when Quirinius governed Syria.  3  Everyone went to their own cities to be enrolled.  4  Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea.  5  He went to be enrolled together with Mary, who was promised to him in marriage and who was pregnant.  6  While they were there, the time came for Mary to have her baby.  7  She gave birth to her firstborn child, a son, wrapped him snugly, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the guestroom. 8  Nearby shepherds were living in the fields, guarding their sheep at night.  9  The Lord’s angel stood before them, the Lord’s glory shone around them, and they were terrified. 10  The angel said, “Don’t be afraid! Look! I bring good news to you—wonderful, joyous news

  Fourth Sunday of Advent   In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country,  40  where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.  41  When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit  42  and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.  43  And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?  44  For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.  45  And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” 46  And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47      and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48  for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.     Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49  for the Mighty One has done great things for me,     and holy is his name.

  Second Sunday of Advent In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene,  2  during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness.  3  And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.  4  As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord,     make his paths straight. 5  Every valley shall be filled,     and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight,     and the rough places shall become level ways, 6  and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’ ” (ESV)             Every year, my mother has the tradition of buying me one of th