Epiphany C 2018 – The Other Christmas Story
Dear Partner in Preaching,
This isn’t the Christmas story most of us shared with the kids and grandkids in our lives. It’s not the Christmas story any of us read on Christmas Eve. And, truth be told, it’s not the Christmas story we like to remember. (And the lectionary, for some reason, spares us the worst part!) But it is in Scripture, and it’s important to take it seriously.
Here are the troubling elements most briefly: An easily threatened and manipulative despot who turns to violence when thwarted; traveling and well-intentioned astrologers/seekers first duped, but then enlightened into resistance; a family on the run for their lives given sanctuary in a foreign land. And then the slaughter of the innocents omitted by the lectionary but necessary, I think, at least to mention, if not read.
Having named even this much, though, it’s hard not to admit that while this may not be the Christmas story we want to hear, it’s a version of the Christmas story that resonates deeply and troublingly with our own times. It is not an exact corollary, we should be clear, and trying to transform it into an allegory by substituting our least favorite leaders for Herod, etc., doesn’t finally do the biblical story justice. But, oh how difficult it is to miss the resonance.
We, too, have too many families on the run from their lands for fear of their lives. We, too, have too many innocents being slaughtered, whether by violence or treatable disease or preventable starvation. We, too, seem to see a plethora of leaders terrified by the prospect of losing power and willing to do almost anything to hang onto it. We, too, see all kinds of well-intentioned people manipulated by individuals, corporations, and governments via social media and countless other ways to view the world in a distorted way. We, too, see some who have become wise to the machinations of others stand firm in their resistance. So while this may not be the Christmas story we prefer, it does feel like a more realistic account of events.
But before succumbing once again to the temptation of allegory that slams our opponents and validates our own convictions, and while noting these echoes and patterns that seems consistent across the centuries, let’s note that this isn’t intrigue and machinations and plots and violence in general, or even for the gain of political power or wealth, but rather that all of this is provoked by the promise of God’s coming messiah and the salvation he will bring.
What is so threatening about God’s salvation, mercy, and grace? Simply that it is a stark reminder that we need salvation, mercy, and grace. That we are not in control. That we, no more than Herod “and all of Jerusalem,” do not have the final say in how the world, or even our lives, will run.
Jesus comes, and as we heard ancient Simeon say before he died, and he will be a sign to be opposed. So it was then. So it is now.
But let’s also note that what is constant across the centuries is not simply that Jesus occasions opposition, but that he comes. That he comes in love and mercy. That he comes to save. That he comes for all, leaving out no one who admits their need. And let’s note God’s consistent action to side with the oppressed and save those who are in need. God works through the magi, God warns in dreams, God helps the family take flight, God provides shelter and sanctuary in Egypt. Very little of this is what the various characters in the story would have hoped for or planned, yet none of it is devoid of God’s presence.
So it was then. So it is now.
This isn’t an easy sermon to preach, let’s admit that, Dear Partner. But it’s a necessary one to hear. That the world is difficult. That many entrusted with power are not trustworthy. That many who are well intentioned will fall prey to manipulation. That far, far too many children are threatened and sacrificed to violence. But also that God is still at work. At work for the sake of the vulnerable. At work for on behalf of those fleeing violence. At works for the sake of the world. And not only in mysterious or intangible ways, but also through us. God is fashioning the people in our pews to do God’s work in the world. To take stands against leaders who manipulate through fear. To offer shelter and sanctuary. To advocate those who have had to flee their homes. Who resist oppression and violence and manipulation.
God is at work in us fashioning us to be bearers of the light that has come into the world, the light that the darkness neither understands nor has overcome. God is at work fashioning, that is, an Epiphany people, people of the light, people who know that the joy and grace of Christmas is not a gift to be admired but one to be put to work for the sake of the world God loves so much.
Your sermon will help in this work, Dear Partner, and I’m grateful for your courage and fidelity in proclaiming it. Blessings to you in this new year of Grace.
Yours in Christ,
David
PS: I had neither planned nor anticipated taking the last couple of weeks off, but was grateful for the time to focus a little more on my parish and family. Thanks for understanding.
thank you for your words very helpful in my sermon preparation thank you so much. Blessings Rev. Persida
It’s very good you could have the time you needed, David, with your family and parish.
But I really appreciate your reflections again this week. I value immensely your identification with all who suffer in our troubled world and your deep comprehension of the tyranny of power we witness all around us.
Sometimes I honestly do wonder if there’s any hope … but your words have both reassured and encouraged me and will help me to persevere in the week ahead.
I know it’s hard to find the time to write these reflections, but I, too, find them helpful. Thanks for sharing!
David, I was neither surprised nor disappointed to see you take a few weeks off. I’m glad you did; you provide so much here every week. I hope you’re well, and I’m glad to see you back. Peace.
Traveling and missing church. Thanks for this graceful message. I am encouraged to be faithful and thankful even on vacation.
Good to have you spend the time you needed away from the website. There are always so many good things here week in and out which give me much to think over as I write sermons and other messages I work on.
Your caution is well taken this week, though I will respectfully observe that the addition to the lectionary reading, and the call to preach on tyranny remains–or at a minimum comes across as— a thinly veiled invitation to go after obvious political targets, at the pulpit, whether directly or with an additional, poorly disguised veil.
For those of us who must minister to ideologically diverse congregations which work hard to keep that aspect out of their sanctuaries so that as a place of momentary pause it lives up to its name, this week’s invite seems a bridge too far.
It’s not that this can’t, or should not be addressed, either. It should. And it is. But my apprehension expressed above is especially jarring to me given the uplifting message of Epiphany—as well as the multiple opportunities we have throughout the rest of the church year to take up this call to resistance and to counter the ugly and the negative, through allegory.
As such, this week it almost comes across like a stale ideological carrot that somehow was too good to pass up, with all the requisite counters, evasion and caveats sprinkled on top to make it palatable. That’s just one preacher’s view, for whatever it’s worth, because so many of us, especially in the ELCA, dwell in echo chambers on this topic. My congregation doesn’t give me that shield from reality, ever.
Thank you again for all you do, with God’s blessings, David.
Thanks for your thoughtful comment. I think I was trying to say much the same… but may not have been all that clear. I, too, am mindful that there are a whole lot of faithful Christians sitting in my pews that I love and respect and who are all over the political map. And, frankly, I’m glad that’s the case, as it often feels like the church is one of the last places people of diverse political views gather. Blessings on your ministry of building a Christian community anchored in the Word and struggling to live that Word in the world.
Reading as layperson, it’s good to know that pastors struggle with knowing how much to say or how directly to point to current events.
Preach the truth, and preach the Gospel. What people in the congregation ‘hear’ or how people in the congregation decide to live out the truth is on them. But give us the clear word of truth.
Knowing this “other” Christmas story makes Christmas more true. Jesus comes to us in the middle of trouble — to a weary world of strife. The fairy tale scenes of the peaceful stable are nice, but that isn’t a strong enough truth to get us through the bad times. Knowing we have a savior who can give us a kingdom that will see us through despotic times — one who calls us to trust in God rather than in the American dream or even the American constitutional democracy — that’s what we need to hear.
I am a frequent reader of your commentaries, if fact, almost weekly. Your commentaries often resonate with me. Your thought processing and theology are very consistent with my own. I find it affirming when I am able to read others that hold true to the Gospel and are willing to preach the truth although it may result in some backlash. Thank you so very much. And in the meantime, let’s do our part to take God’s message to the masses.