Dreams Pregnant with Possibilities: Advent 4 Year A
Rev. Emily E. Ewing
While this week’s readings are pregnant with pregnancy, bodily autonomy, believing what people say about themselves, reproductive and climate justice are apt focuses all year round. While delicacy and context play a big role, especially when preaching and readings touch on pregnancy, they can be extremely life-giving when preached well. Advent, especially this final Sunday of Advent, is also a time for dreams, and not just Joseph’s. Dreams for the world and for ourselves are ready to take root as we anticipate love incarnate in our world.
Commentary
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Isaiah promises new life in God-With-Us, bringing a quick end to the impending violence.
Verse 11
Ancient cosmologies of the depths of Sheol, the place of the dead, and the heights of heaven.
Verse 14
Pregnancy and birth as divine signs.
Verse 15
Prime food for weaning a child, yet not easily acquired during war or conflict.
Verse 16
The impending conflict will not linger.Description text goes here
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A cry to God for restoration.
Verse 1
God the Shepherd to the flock of God’s people. Caring, guiding, sheering.
Verse 5
Tears of salty water as food and drink.
Verse 18
A bargain of the preservation of life in exchange for faithfulness
Verse 3, 7, 19
Perhaps a page out of Moana’s book: Shiny!! Exploring bioluminescense
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Paul begins his letter to the Roman church.
Verse 3
Descendents and ancestors and the responsibility we have for both.
Verse 5
Gentiles as the ones outside God’s chosen people, yet still in the world. Perhaps a symbol of creation? Not always counted, but always there.
Verses 7
Rome as Empire, military destruction, oppressor, and yet a community of the faithful in its midst.
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While some admire the fanciness of the temple, Jesus reminds them that the future is uncertain, but will certainly involve hardship.
Verse 18
Hints at the fuller diversity of reproduction found throughout Creation.
Verse 20
Dreams as connection to the cosmos, to our inner thoughts, to the divine, and to creation.
Verse 21
Jesus, or in Hebrew Joshua: “God saves”; perhaps salvation from the sins we commit against all of creation.
Verse 23
Mistranslation of Isaiah 7:14, also read this Sunday
Teaching and Preaching Suggestions
Pregnancy, Abortion, and Infertility
The readings this week circle around pregnancy and promises of new life. From Isaiah’s promise of Immanuel, God-with-us, born to a young woman, to Matthew’s reinterpretation, giving us a virgin birth. The texts are literally pregnant with possibilities. In many Western countries, conversation has also been increasing about population growth, sustainability, declining birthrates, and attempts to decrease the population as part of creation care. These conversations, especially when paired with the united states’ increasingly anti-choice policies around reproductive justice and bodily autonomy, make this week a great time to talk about bodily autonomy, about believing people when they tell you something about themself. It’s also a time to be aware of those who may be dealing with infertility, to give them a heads up about the readings. There are so many ways to speak and preach of God’s love unfolding. The readings this week lend themselves to a world pregnant with possibilities and pitfalls, depending on your context.
Dreams
In Matthew, we are introduced to the first of many dreams to come. Angels, messengers of God, frequently show up in dreams to warn, to reassure, and to direct. Joseph’s dream, reminding us of another Joseph who dreamed and interpreted dreams, Moses’ ancestor, dreams that prompted opportunity and danger. For Mary’s betrothed, Joseph’s dreams will carry the same mix of opportunity and danger. This first one is challenge and reassurance. Nudging Joseph toward compassion, belief, and trust in what Mary says about herself, rather than the propriety and proper politic of a quiet divorce. But dreams are not restricted to sleep or to whether or not a person is pregnant from the Holy Spirit. Today’s dreams are dreams of future generations having a place to live, of an earth that is still lush and full of life, and nightmares warning of increasing climate collapse as disaster after disaster piles up. The dreams we dream for ourselves, our community, and creation guide us as divine dreaming and imagining guides how we respond to our present realities.
Sources and Resources
For different places and ways of eating curds, check out the different types here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curd
For more on sheep and shepherding check out this Nerds at Church podcast episode on Good Shepherd Sunday deepdiving with Polly Festa, an actual shepherd! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/nerdsatchurch/episodes/4th-Sunday-of-Easter-Year-C-e1huo96/a-a7rostd
To dig more into Psalm 80’s tears, check out this article: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/2025/07/24/what-do-we-know-about-tears/
For more on dreams, check out this Nerds at Church podcast episode on Advent 4, diving into dreams with special guest, Dr. Pace Warfield of the Horror Nerds at Church podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/nerdsatchurch/episodes/Fourth-Sunday-of-Advent-Year-A-e1s434f
Contributor Bio
Rev. Emily E. Ewing (they/them) is a Lutheran (ELCA) pastor serving in Baltimore, Maryland working on their MFA in Community Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Arts (MICA). They combine creativity, spirituality, nerdiness, and the call to justice in many ways. Pastor Emily cohosts the Horror Nerds At Church podcast. They consult with communities of faith for anti-oppression trainings, Doodle Care spiritual practices, creative community projects, and whatever the Spirit calls them to.
Image Description
Pregnant Possibilities
Emily E. Ewing, 2025
Watercolor crayon and water on paper
Against a bright green background a darker blueish green form stretches out with spirals forming knots if the image were a tree and holding the stomach and face if the image were a person.