Saturday, December 11, 2010

Celebrating Christmas--Swaddling Clothes

I’ve often wondered what Mary must have been feeling as she wrapped her newborn Son in swaddling clothes.
During Biblical times after a baby was born it was washed,
rubbed with salt then oil and lastly swaddled. Swaddling was accomplished by tying strips of cloth together and then wrapping them around the baby to restrict movement. Swaddling kept the child warm, and it was thought that it also ensured that the baby would grow strong without deformity. Because of this a swaddled baby took on the metaphor of being a loved and cared for child. Thus Ezekiel says of Israel,
“And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, 
neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee: thou was not salted at all,
nor swaddled at all” (Ezekiel 16:4). 
In other words, because of Israel’s wickedness they have been abandoned and not cared for.


Perhaps the reason Luke gave us this small detail about Mary swaddling her baby was to help us realize how much she loved this child and to let us know He was well cared for. 
But there is something else. Of all people, Mary knew the significance of this child and the circumstances concerning His conception. From the moment of that miraculous event, if not before, she must have sought for any information about the fate of this child. There were many prophecies, and Mary must have hung on every word the rabbis and others said about the coming Messiah. She must have asked questions and in the answers would have discovered what was going to happen to her little boy.

Therefore, did wrapping Him in swaddling clothes make her think about the fact that one day 
He would be wrapped in similar looking grave clothes? 
Did seeing him wrapped tightly in the bands of birth make her think of the bands of death that would surely come to Him? 

Whether she did or not, the bands Mary swaddled her Son in remind us of His mission. He was born to die for us and by so doing would take away our “deformity” and allow us to live forever in His love.

5 comments:

Martha said...

I love this! I have thought a great deal about what Mary knew. I don't think she was ignorant or naive about who she was giving birth to. Thanks for adding to that with your insights.
What about the experience of presenting the infant Jesus at the temple? What insights do you have about what happened there?

Wendi said...

Being the mother of Jesus would have been so heart-wrenching! To know what would happen to Him even as she was taking care of Him as a baby would have been difficult. I'm so thankful to her and to Him for doing the difficult things that make my life less difficult. :)

Kim said...

Can I just say WOW! The tears are streaming down the cheeks. As I think of Mary and all that she did know, my admiration for her grows. She had great burdens on her shoulders but I at the same time I feel that God must have eased those burdens and given her some type of peace in order to continue being the Christ childs mother.

Thank you for the insight.

Dixie said...

In 1998 I read an Ensign article you wrote on the different characters of the Christmas story. I copied it off and each year re-read it. It was beautifully written and I have pondered many times over your thoughts and insight. I have had a tradition on giving my Children a Fontanini nativity piece and I write a letter sharing my thoughts and testimony. This year as I pulled it out, I thought that I should write and thank you for helping me think deeper about this special time of year. I'm looking forward to reading your blog and the things you share. You are an incredible lady!

Dixie said...

In 1998 I read an Ensign article you wrote on the different characters of the Christmas story. I copied it off and each year re-read it. It was beautifully written and I have pondered many times over your thoughts and insight. I have had a tradition on giving my Children a Fontanini nativity piece and I write a letter sharing my thoughts and testimony. This year as I pulled it out, I thought that I should write and thank you for helping me think deeper about this special time of year. I'm looking forward to reading your blog and the things you share. You are an incredible lady!