Option 1
Advent-Reinventium 1:1-7
So Gabriel went to the little country town in a hilltop far far from Jerusalem to see young Mary and he greeted her with fancy words. Mary was a suspicious sort so she narrowed her eyes and looked at this messenger of light with crossed arms and a fair degree of sass.
Gabriel tried again to bring the message he’d been sent with but this time Mary said “Fat chance of that buddy. Not interested, not for a second. On your bike – mission rejected”
And so, the name lay dormant – never conceived, never born.
And the year right now is either 5782 since the BC/AD division was never implemented to be updated- or whatever other number a ruling power of a region has determined;
None of the wars that marched under his name happened under his name but under the next most convenient excuse instead;
Every humanitarian and educational effort begun in the never-manifested Christianity was never begun;and no one ever used His name as a curse since it never existed.
Option 2
Advent-Reinventium 2:1-8
Now Gabriel, Messenger of God went to see Mary in the village of her youth and he greeted her with kindness. Mary heard his message with outright terror and replied “No way! I can absolutely not allow that to happen to me! I’ll be stoned alive! Everyone will talk! People will think Jo and I already did it!” and ran crying from that place.
And so now, in the year 5782 (or other) no one discussed the origins, date, meaning or symbolism of Christmas since no one had ever heard of it.
No Christmas songs.
No Amazing Grace.
No Christmas gathering.
Nothing to remember.
No Christmas spending.
No Gift.
Option 3
Advent-Reinventium 3:1-3
Gabriel, an angel from God went to find Mary in a little place up north to tell her she’d been chosen for a special role in history. Turns out she didn’t want the job so he had a word with her sister Johanna who said “OK – nothing ever happens around here and this sounds like something different to do, I’m in”
So Johanna became the mother of Jesus and Mary sat by the sidelines – bitter for about 32 years over not being so central to the story – but at the 33 year mark she was fine about that. Then the 33 years + 3 days she was jealous again.
Option 4
Advent-Reinventium 4:1-12
The Messenger Gabriel, went to Mary to tell her she was to be the miraculous virgin mother of the promised Messiah. She cried and agreed and was sore afraid and Joseph groaned at his future beside a woman who begrudgingly went along and neither of them ever saw the vision of what they’d been invited to participate in.
Both Mary and Joseph found natural explanations for all the ongoing strangenesses.
– Mary never sang.
– Mary took Elizabeth a casserole but didn’t stay long. Elizabeth’s baby leapt for the joy of recognition but Mary said “that’s just a strong braxton hicks”
– They smelled the smelly shepherds coming in from the fields and Joseph met them at the entrance and told them to take their smelly selves back whence they came “there’s a newborn baby in here you know. You can’t use this feeding place tonight
”- Eyes intent on their days tasks they walked right on by the old priest and prophetess when Jesus was 8 days old and never heard their words.
– The dreams and visitations were metabolised in their minds as ‘too much rich food at bedtime’ and as the way kept opening to keep them safe they still only saw the associated hardships.
– the visiting Easterners tested their earthly eyed vision since the gifts they brought represented decades worth of wages and having no rich relatives and no eastern connections they couldn’t figure this one out at all but who looks a gift horse in the mouth right? (Many years later when Jospeh had ‘gone the way of his fathers before him’ and the widow Mary had been made a single mum with a brood of kids on her own – she was so used to the barely depleting honey pot she forgot to be grateful for all its years of provision.)
– Joseph never told Mary about the time Jesus got left behind at the temple as she never went. Only the men had to go (and how annoying is that? Three trips a year taking weeks away from the things needing doing at home) and as the family later grew – the younger children would’ve made the trip so difficult. However Joseph still got into trouble over it when the cousins told her the real reason they were three days later than expected a few days after their return. Earth-busy eyes missing the wonders of it all. And so it went on all their days.
Finally…
Advent-Synopsius 1:1-20
Now groundhog-day Gabriel had imagined all these scenarios (and more) when he went for the first actual time to the little town where Mary lived to deliver the big news. This darling girl, with every reason to fear or cry or reject or run – had such a trust in her God that instead, she caught the wonder and joy of having been seen, found worthy and chosen! She asked a practical question but believing in a God who she knew conceived other miracles, found the answer easy to accept and began to worship instead.
She sang from her soul.
She sang from her spirit.
She sang at the wonder of participating in a miracle – THE miracle of the Ages, THE miracle that all heaven and earth and angels and heaven-turned minds had waited for – coming into being right now – in her time – in HER.
She sang about Gods holiness, His worthiness, His might, His deeds.
She sang of His heart and fulfilment and promise all coming to pass-now.
And Mary sang true.
And Mary stayed true.
And Mary was faithful and diligent and human.
And Mary panicked when He was lost, and her heart swelled with pride when she said “Listen to Him and do what He says” – for she knew… she KNEW this one was Special.
And Mary stood at the cross on that terrifying day as she watched her son die and her heart S-C-R-E-A-M-E-D at the blood and the cruelty and injustice and loss.
And she cried when they took Him down.
And she cried when they took Him away.
And she cried those three days.
And her heart erupted with joy when she saw Him risen.
And again she sang, and never stopped.
For she was chosen, beloved of God.
Called to participate in His grand plan.
Will we?
For something a little more accurate than the first 4 options above, watch this clip from “Drive Through History” – The Announcement to Mary.