A couple days ago I realized that my next blog would fall on Christmas Eve. Reflecting on this, I decided I had a choice, write a blog as if it were any other day, or write a blog focused on Christmas. I chose to reflect on the meaning of Christmas for me, at this point in my life. I am Christian by faith, but a layperson in my understanding of my faith. I will consider the aspects of the Christmas story that are meaningful to me. There are certainly others that a biblical scholar could shed light on.
Briefly, here’s the story. A betrothed couple, Mary and Joseph, have to travel to distant town, Joseph’s hometown in Judea, to be counted in the census required by the Roman Empire. Mary is expecting a child at any time, and not just a child, but the messiah, miraculously begotten by God. Because so many people are traveling and doing the same thing, Mary and Joseph cannot find any accommodations or none they can afford. Finally, one innkeeper lets them stay in the inn’s stable with the animals. During that night, the baby is born and announced to shepherds by angels who tell them to not be afraid, but to go, find the baby who is clothed and lying in a manger and worship him as a savior.
Three wise men traveling from the East follow a star to worship the baby they believe is born to be the king of the Jews. They stop in Judea and ask Herod, the local dictator and puppet of the Roman Empire, where they can find this child. Herod is fearful of the power of this newborn because of the amazing things he has learned about this child from the wise men. Herod asks the wise men to come back and tell him how to find the baby so that he can worship him as well. The wise men, after following the star, find the child, worship him and give him royal gifts. Warned by a dream, they do not go back to Herod, but return to their homes a different way. Later, fearful for his grip on power, Herod decides to have all baby boys under the age of three slaughtered to rid himself of a perceived rival. Joseph, Mary, and Jesus escape into Egypt to avoid the slaughter.
There is, for me, a political element to the story. A huge, powerful empire wields unyielding power over its subjects. This empire tolerates despots who use their power ruthlessly and violently with no respect for human life. Mary, Joseph, and Jesus are caught up in this powerful web. From the perspective of this political empire, they are ciphers, unnoticeable and of no importance, unless there is a need for those in power to preserve that power. Further, Joseph, Mary, and Jesus must become refugees to avoid Jesus’ death. For me, these aspects of the story ring true today, the power of many governments which have little regard for human life, whether or not people are fleeing violence or death.
There are down-to-earth elements to the story. Jesus is born, poor, in a stable with animals around him. Shepherds, people at the lowest socioeconomic rung of the ladder, are the first to find him and worship him. And this is a newborn baby, no human is more helpless or vulnerable than as a newborn. For me, this is a lesson in humility, in the way that something new–to-the-world arrives, tiny, and seemingly helpless, but powerful because of love.
And there are mystical elements to the story. Of course, first and foremost, Jesus is conceived immaculately. He is of God. Further, he is announced by angels, heralded by stars, and perceived by distant wise men. Jesus is Emmanuel, or God-infused flesh. I believe that this is God’s gift of love to us, that God can be ‘on earth.’
For me, an extrapolated meaning of this mystical story for our time, is that Jesus is the messenger announcing that God is in the world. All creation is infused with the spiritual, expressed in love. Jesus is the Christian envoy of this powerful truth. Further, when we grasp this truth, we understand that we are expected to be stewards or caretakers of other people and also our planet. My hope is that, because of the many appalling situations of too many fellow human beings and dire environmental challenges to our earth, we realize this soon enough. But the final words are to ‘not be afraid’ and that love is all-powerful. And I welcome all creeds, religions, and beliefs to join in these efforts.
Thank you for reading this blog… All the best in 2019.