Christmas Eve meditation

 In ancient times, people worshiped many gods. And those gods lived in far off places. Places like Mt Olympus, and Asgard; places no mortal could visit.

So there was a separation between people and the gods. 

But the god of Israel wanted to dwell not in some far off, unreachable place, but among the people. 

So this god had the people construct an ark, a tabernacle, so that God could live among them, and be with them.

Then, once the people reached the promised land, and settled down, God had them construct a temple. The temple was a more permanent residence for God, right there in the center of their nation…right there in the center of their world.

But the temple was destroyed (by people, not by God). It was rebuilt, then destroyed again, then rebuilt again. And some of the people lived far away from the temple; some of them were taken into captivity, sent far away from the temple…far away from the dwelling place of God. 

God then decided to dwell among the people not just in a temple, set apart in a fixed location, but as one of them. 

God would start as all people started: as a tiny baby, vulnerable. 

And just as the people were sometimes forced into exile, forced to move, so too was it with this baby. After he was born, his family fled to Egypt, refugees escaping Herod’s wrath. 

Powerful people would eventually destroy this baby just as they had destroyed the temple. But God could not be destroyed. God’s love was and is stronger than that, and God’s desire to dwell among the people was not deterred. God’s Spirit—the Spirit of Christ—was sent to dwell among the people, and this Spirit of Christ dwells with us still. The Spirit is present in our church. The Spirit is present in our lives. The Spirit is present wherever the wind blows, and wherever human life has breath. 

The Lord’s Supper is a reminder to us that the God who dwelt among his people in the tabernacle, in the temple, and in the baby born to Mary and Joseph, still dwells among us today. 

Christ is here. God is here. The Spirit is here, present, as close to us as our own breath. 

And it’s all because of how much God loves this world. It’s all because of how much God loves you. YOU are loved, more than you know. And you are welcome. To receive these gifts of God; and to know that God—Emmanuel—is with you. 

You Shepherds

 Luke 2:8-20

In A Charlie Brown Christmas, the Peanuts gang is getting ready to rehearse their Christmas play. Lucy is handing out the scripts… 

She goes to Frieda and says, “You’re the innkeeper’s wife.” Frieda: “Do innkeepers’ wives have naturally curly hair?” 

Then, Lucy goes to PigPen and says, “PigPen, you’re the innkeeper.” PigPen replies: “In spite of my outward appearance, I will try to run a neat inn.” 

Then Lucy goes to Shermy, and says: “Shermy, you’re a shepherd.” Shermy says:  “Every Christmas it’s the same. I always end up playing the shepherd.”

I always thought that line was just for me. When I was a kid, and it came time for the church Christmas pageant, it seems like I did play a shepherd every year. I never got to be Joseph, or the innkeeper, or even a wise man. Every year, I was a shepherd. 

I don’t know if that was your experience; if not, I’m here to rectify that. For tonight’s worship service, I want you to imagine that you are ALL shepherds…every single one of you! Can you do that? Can you be shepherds tonight?

And the first thing I gotta say to you shepherds is: You stink! All of you! You’re stinky… and filthy! You smell like sheep and dirt and sweat. 

Because, as a shepherd, you live with your sheep. You’re with them day and night, out in the fields. You lead them from place to place, you help them find food, you help them find water, you protect them from wild predators.

What you don’t do is sleep in a bed, indoors; and neither do you shower or bathe; at least, not very often. So, yeah; you stink.

And, you aren’t liked very much. No one really likes shepherds. (But don’t think about switching roles. You all agreed. You’re shepherds.)

Shepherds are necessary, because without them there’d be no milk, or wool, or lamb chops for dinner. Livelihoods depend on shepherds. The economy depends on shepherds. So they’re tolerated; but no one really likes them. 

Because, in addition to being stinky, you shepherds have a reputation of being a little rough around the edges. Not only do you live with animals - you’re a little animal-like yourselves. There's definitely a wildness to you. Something uncivilized.

In fact, I’m not exactly sure how it is that you got in here tonight. Do we not have any standards? Shouldn’t a Christmas Eve worship service have a certain level of dignity and decorum to it? What - do we just allow anyone to come in?

Apparently so.

I know; maybe you’re in here hiding from a landowner who chased you off his property. Is that it? Did you lead your sheep too close to his house? Did his dogs start barking at you? Did you try to take some water from his well? Did you make his wife nervous? Did you wake his children?

Or, maybe some soldiers are after you. Shepherds are always getting in trouble with the law. That’s just the type of people you shepherds are. What did you do? Did you not pay all your taxes to the government? Did you do something else to run afoul of the law?

Good grief. You shepherds sure are a troublesome bunch. If only we didn’t depend on you for wool, milk, and meat. If only you weren’t so essential to our economy. If only we could somehow get by without you…

It’s not much fun being a shepherd, is it? If there had been any other opportunities available to you, you surely would have taken one of those opportunities. But, in the Roman Empire, your opportunities are few and far between. You take what you can get.

I can think of some jobs like that today, some occupations, some very old occupations, that people get into, because they have no other options…because they’re desperate… 

Imagine that, one night, you and a few other shepherds are gathered around a fire. You keep the flames small and your voices low, because you don’t want to attract any attention. As a shepherd, you try your best to stay out of sight. Unnoticed. You don’t want any landowners or soldiers to come harass you or chase you away. You just want a quiet, peaceful night, and for a while, that’s what you get. 

You stand close to the fire to keep warm; you chat in hushed tones; and during lulls in the conversation, you hear your sheep snoring, [anyone tired of being a shepherd, and want to be a snoring sheep for us?] or a distant coyote howling [anyone want to howl for us?]; maybe all you hear is the quiet crackling of your fire, or maybe you hear nothing at all… just… silence…

BUT SUDDENLY, AN ANGEL APPEARS! Glorious light shines down upon you! A great chorus sounds! Can you imagine?

And you are all shook up, to borrow a phrase from a few weeks ago. All this noise, all this bright light… You expect some landowners to immediately come running; you expect to see soldiers appear without haste, their swords drawn.

What is going on?

But the soldiers don’t appear. The landowners don’t appear. It’s just you, your fellow shepherds, and the angel.

The angel says, “Do not fear!” The angel says, “I bring you good news of great joy!”

And you and your fellow shepherds wonder: Why? Why has this angel come to you? Of all people? I mean, come on - a savior - the long awaited messiah - is born, and the big announcement of this incredible event is made… to a bunch of shepherds?

This can’t be right. Shouldn’t the angel go and tell the high priests at the temple? Shouldn’t the angel go and tell the king? Shouldn’t the angel go and tell the emperor?

This is what you’re thinking. You’re so used to being ignored and overlooked, and you want to be ignored and overlooked, because the only time you’re not ignored or overlooked is when some authority is harassing you... The only time anyone ever pays attention to you is for all the wrong reasons. The only time anyone ever pays attention to you is to bring you bad news.

But this angel is bringing you good news. Good news of great joy. 

Because this time, no one is harassing you. No one is chasing you away. This time, you are included. This time, you are welcome. This time, you have been noticed in the most positive way.

This good news and great joy is for all people. Not just high priests. Not just kings and emperors. Not just the wealthy and powerful. But even for people as lowly and despised as you shepherds… Especially for people as lowly and despised as you shepherds.

Because now, the first become last, and the last become first.

And, at least for this announcement, there is no need to fear. No soldiers will be drawn to this announcement. No spies are around to hear it. Because nothing is going to stop this good news from being good news.

This good news is for you, all you shepherds. Good news of great joy. Good news of hope, peace, and love as well. 

This time, you are not left out.

This good news is for you, whoever you are.

This good news is for you, all you who have been overlooked or cast out.

This good news is for you, all you who do the most difficult work, work that no one else wants to do, work that you don’t want to do, but you have no other choice.

This good news is for you, all you who shine your light proudly, and all you who hide in the shadows.

This good news is for you, all you who’ve been told to “get out, go back home,” even when there is no home to go back to.

This good news is for you, all you who think you’re not enough - all you who think you’re not old enough, not young enough, not smart enough, not rich enough, not pretty enough, not strong enough. You are enough, and this good news is for you.

This good news is for you, all you who celebrate Christmas in homes filled with people and noise, and all you whose homes are as silent as nights the shepherds knew.

This good news is for you, all you who believe, and all you who struggle to believe, and all you who have been told that what you believe isn’t good enough. 

This good news is for you, all you who maintain a perception of perfection but who fall apart on the inside.

This good news is for you, all you poor ordinary people.

This good news is for you; good news of hope, peace, joy, and love.

Christmas Eve (Luke 2)

 Slide 1: Candles

Tonight’s sermon is going to be a little different, because tonight, you all are going to help me. Throughout the sermon, I’m going to ask a bunch of questions, and I’m going to rely on you for the answers. Some of these questions are more suited to children, and some are more suited to adults, but anyone is welcome to answer.

The first question is an easy one:

How many candles are lit in our sanctuary? 

4 purple Advent candles, signifying hope, peace, joy, and love

1 white Christ candle, in honor of Christ’s birth

2 candles on the communion table, which we light every Sunday, and which remind us of the Spirit’s presence.

(Raise hands for this one): Have you ever caught yourself just staring at a candle flame? It’s so fascinating; so mesmerizing. The flames flow like water, they move like dancers, and the fire itself… It’s not matter; it’s not a solid, or a liquid, or a gas. It’s pure energy. Pure light. Giving a little heat on a cold night.

It is what the sun and the stars are made of. Energy and light.

How many candles would you have to light to equal the brightness of the sun?

200 billion trillion. Approximately. A number 28 digits long. (unroll streamer)

2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000

How long would it take to count that many candles?

Millions of years…

How much would that many candles weigh?

More than 10 times what the earth weighs.

So… that’s how many candles equals the light of our sun. But the sun is just one star in our universe…

How many stars are there in the universe? 

200 billion trillion. Approximately.

And how many candles would you need to equal all the light in the universe?

200 billion trillion times 200 billion trillion (which means I’d need 200 billion trillion more streamers to show it!)

Slide 2: Anselm

I think I need to sit down. These kinds of numbers make my head hurt! 

There was once a famous theologian named Anselm. One of the things Anselm is famous for is his definition of God. Anselm said that God is “that than which nothing greater can be thought…”

What’s the greatest ( most wonderful) thing you can think of? 

Answers… “can anyone think of anything greater than that?”

Greater than all the stars in the universe is the idea that the God who created all those billions of stars loves me. 

Greater than all the stars in the universe is the idea that the God who created all those billions of stars chooses to be with us, to dwell among us.

And the birth of Jesus is a sign that God is with us, that God dwells among us, and that God loves us.

I can’t think of anything greater than that.

Slide 3: Shepherds

One night long ago, as we heard in the scripture, some shepherds were in the field at night, watching their sheep, protecting their sheep, keeping their sheep safe… and maybe they also looked up at the sky, at the stars, and wondered about some of these same things we’re wondering about tonight. Then, suddenly, an angel appeared to them. 

What did that angel look like? Generally, the Bible describes them as being rather fearsome looking, not at all cute like we often imagine. But I think that when it comes to angels, the writers of scripture used their imaginations just like we do..

And then there was a “multitude praising God.”

What was the “multitude” like? What did it sound like?

All this was God’s way of announcing the birth of Jesus. All this was God’s way of letting us know that the God of the universe is here with us. 

How do you know that “God is with you?” 

This is the most important question of all. 

Sometimes people feel that God is very far away. That God is ignoring them. People in the Bible felt that way sometimes. (Psalm 22). It’s OK to feel that way. And that’s why the Christmas story is so meaningful. Because even when we feel that way - especially when we feel that way - we receive a reminder, right when we need it, that God is with us.

When I consider the story of Jesus, it’s like gazing into the flame of a candle. I can’t explain it. It’s like it’s pure energy - energy in the form of an overwhelming love from God. I don’t know that every single detail of the story is literally true, but I know without a doubt that that divine love, that holy energy, is 100% true. And we see it in the story of a tiny baby born in a manger.

“The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight” - that line from “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” we sang it last Sunday, and I’ve been thinking about it all week.  The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.  What are your hopes? What are your fears? It seems to me that we have both hopes and fears in abundance right now. 

What difference does it make to know that, in every hope, God is with you?

What difference does it make to know that, in every fear, God is with you?

"To You a Savior is Born"

What one word do these images have in common?

Sometimes when we use a word, we have to be sure that people know what we mean.  Sometimes a word can have more than one meaning. 

The word ‘save’ can mean a number of different things. 

On the day that Jesus was born, there were some shepherds living out in the fields, watching over their sheep.  And that night, when it was dark, an angel stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, shining a great light in the midst of the darkness. 

And the angel said: “Do not be afraid.”  (That’s an important message of the gospel:  “do not be afraid.”) 

And the angel said:  “To you is born this day in the city of David… a Savior.”

A “savior” is a person who saves.  Jesus is our Savior.  Jesus saves us.  But what does that mean?

A professor of mine in seminary said that someone once asked her, “Are you saved?”  My professor responded by saying, “Saved from what?”

Jesus saves.  Jesus is our savior.  And this, according to the angel, is good news of great joy for all people. 

But what does it mean?

Who knows what language the gospel of Luke was originally written in? (Hint: it wasn’t the King James English.)

Greek.

And in ancient Greek, the word that means “to be saved” is sozo.

But when sozo is translated into English, sometimes different words are used to convey its meaning.

When the Bible says you will be saved, that’s sozo.

When the Bible says you will be healed, that’s sozo.

When the Bible says you will be made well, that’s sozo.

When the Bible says you will be made whole, that’s sozo.

Sozo is salvation, and salvation is healing and wholeness.

Somehow, in recent times it has been assumed that sozo only refers to what happens after death, that being saved has very little to do with this life, the life we’re living right now.

Not so.

Let me explain.

Jesus was born in a very dark time in history.  The Roman Empire had, not too long before, squashed a rebellion and ended a civil war.  Now it was brutally eliminating all who opposed the Roman government’s way of doing things.  Dissension was not tolerated.  If you didn’t like what Rome was doing, you better keep quiet… or you’d end up crucified on a cross.

In fact, the hills around Nazareth, where Jesus grew up, were covered with crosses on which hung dozens, if not hundreds, of those accused of taking part in a failed rebellion in the nearby city of Sepphoris. Rome squashed that rebellion, and destroyed the city of Sepphoris. 

And the people of Nazareth, in the shadow of Sepphoris, trembled in fear.

This is how the Roman Emperor brought peace on earth:  through brutal, violent force and oppression.

The religious leaders – the high priests who ruled in Jerusalem – worked with the Roman government, which granted them special favors as long as they helped keep the peace.  In other words, those high priests worked with Rome to keep the people in their place.  To keep the people quiet, without resources, working so hard just to survive that they couldn’t possibly muster the energy to challenge Rome.  All their energy went into just surviving.

As a result, the people were tired, poor, oppressed, broken.  Their spirits were crushed. 

They needed to be saved.

When the angel told Mary about the child who would be born to her, Mary responded with a song.  “My soul magnifies the Lord,” she sang, “for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.  He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.”

To be saved means that the lowly are lifted up and the hungry are filled with good things.

Later, when Jesus began his ministry, he announced that his purpose, his mission, was “to bring good news to the poor, and to proclaim release to the captives, sight to the blind, freedom to the oppressed.”

To be saved means just that: good news to the poor, release to the captives, sight to the blind, and freedom to the oppressed.

The word gospel literally means “good news,” and it’s not really good news if we have to wait until we die to be saved.  It’s not really good news that so many live in a present hell and are told only that it will be better in the life to come. 

Good news and salvation come when we comfort those who mourn; provide care to those who are sick; feed those who are hungry; and work for a true and lasting peace, a peace that is not established through violence but through justice.

Good news and salvation come when no person goes without health insurance.

Good news and salvation come when we stop cutting relief programs for the poorest among us, and work toward a fairer sharing of our resources.

Good news and salvation come when no one is made to feel unwelcome or unloved because of their sexual orientation, or discriminated against because of their skin color.

Good news and salvation come when we look to that place within us, and realize that, despite all our flaws and imperfections, there is within us a divine spark, and that each of us is a beloved child of God, beautiful in God’s eyes…

…and that God has enabled us to be the good news for others, to provide salvation, to be a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world by practicing kindness and compassion and love in all we do. 

For this is the way of Jesus, the Savior who is born to us.

Light in the Darkness

Last week, strong winds blew through southern California.  I had to re-hang the Christmas garland in front of the church after the wind knocked it down.  Friends in the Inland Empire reported to me that they lost power for some time.

When the power goes out, it gets dark.  When the flashlight batteries are dead or the lantern is out of propane, it gets dark.  Really dark.  Dark in a way that we rarely experience in the 21^st century.

I was listening on the radio recently to residents who lost power during Hurricane Sandy.  In the days that followed, they lived in darkness.  One person said, “my family suffered tremendously.”  Another said, “Coming home every day to a house that’s cold and dark and having no idea when that’s going to change:  that’s torture.”

Jesus was born in the deepest darkness, in the middle of the night at the winter solstice.  That may not be a historical truth – we don’t actually know the date and time of Jesus’s birth – but it is parabolically, metaphorically true.

Silent night, holy night…

It came upon a midnight clear…

While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night…

Whether or not it is literally true that Jesus was born in the midst of darkness, it is true in a deeper, more significant way.  It was a dark time, the time of his birth.  It was a time of oppression. A time of suffering.

But into this world of darkness, a light shines.  A light of hope, peace, joy, and love.

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness, on them light has shined.”

“By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Around the time of Jesus’ birth, the stories of Roman mythology were well known.  According to those stories, the emperor – Caesar himself – was the light of the world.  He was descended from Apollo, the god of light, who protects the earth from the serpent of darkness.

The stories of Jesus’ birth turn those stories of Caesar upside down.  The book of Revelation even says that when Jesus was born, a serpent of darkness was waiting to devour him; and then Revelation uses the number 666 to identify that serpent as the Emperor himself!  According to this scripture, the emperor is the serpent of darkness, and Jesus is the true light.

Those are some pretty cool stories, huh?  But what do they mean?

They mean simply that the way of Jesus is a lot different than the way of the emperor.

And for those who live in darkness, for those who suffer under oppression, for those who are poor, for those who are filled with anxiety and stress …

The way out of that darkness of the soul is the way of Jesus.

The emperor claims to be the one who brings peace to the world, but the emperor maintains that peace through military might, through the sword and the cross.

Jesus also brings peace to the world, but the way Jesus brings peace is very different.  The peace of Jesus comes through love of one’s neighbor and even love of one’s enemy.  It comes through kindness and compassion.  It comes through welcoming those who have been left out, bullied, burdened, oppressed, and discriminated against.

The shepherds knew all about that.  No one cared about the shepherds.  They were picked on, made fun of, and were never invited over to play with the cool kids.  And yet the angel went to them, and said to them:  I bring you good news of great joy.

 In our world today, there is a lot of darkness.  There is a lot of sadness, a lot of violence, a lot of hate.  We have seen innocent children slaughtered, and this reminds us that Herod ordered the killing of countless innocent children following the birth of Jesus. 

Then and now, the world is a world of violence, filled with weeping.

But there is light in the darkness.  There is good news of great joy, and it is the news that this is not the only path that exists.  There is another path, a path of healing, a path of hope, peace, joy, and love.

And every act of kindness, every word spoken with kindness, is a step on this other path.  The Dalai Lama has said that his religion is kindness, and I think the same could almost be said for Jesus.  Kindness leads us out of the darkness and into the light.  Kindness brings healing to those who are in pain. 

Only kindness can stop the killing of the innocent.  Only kindness can relieve suffering.  And the good news tells us that kindness is something that each one of us is capable of.  The light that shines in the darkness is within us all.