and I can just imagine the story about the birth of John the Baptist being repeated by all the relatives, especially once he became well known as the
"Voice crying in the wilderness: Prepare a way for the Lord..." ( Luke 3 v 4 )
and people all flocked to this man who was not afraid to speak his mind.
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| Zecharia's Vision : Alexandr Ivanov |
Right at the beginning of Luke's Gospel we are introduced to his parents, Elizabeth & Zechariah, a childless couple, who have hoped & prayed for children... & now Zechariah believes they are too old.
I searched the internet & found this painting which seems to express the shimmering awe & wonder of Angel Gabriel, together with the fear & disbelief of Zechariah who is struck dumb...
...but I have found no painting which portrays Zechariah's 'nightmare' of having to face the congregation awaiting him in the Temple, knowing that he cannot say a word... and yet the crowd are very understanding.
Mary's story is then closely woven into this narrative, like warp & weft together, as the same Angel Gabriel visits Mary when Elizabeth is in her sixth month of pregnancy...
I searched the internet & found this painting which seems to express the shimmering awe & wonder of Angel Gabriel, together with the fear & disbelief of Zechariah who is struck dumb...
...but I have found no painting which portrays Zechariah's 'nightmare' of having to face the congregation awaiting him in the Temple, knowing that he cannot say a word... and yet the crowd are very understanding.
Mary's story is then closely woven into this narrative, like warp & weft together, as the same Angel Gabriel visits Mary when Elizabeth is in her sixth month of pregnancy...
- to reflect further... see Trevor Dennis : The Christmas Stories [SPCK ] p.67 : An Angel, a priest, and a woman who loses her 'disgrace'
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