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Christmas Eve: Monday, December 24, 2018
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Festival of the Nativity of Our Lord
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In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
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Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
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But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see-I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people:
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to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.
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This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger."
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And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,
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"Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favors!"
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When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us."
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So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.
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When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child;
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and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them.
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But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.
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The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
Luke 2:8-20
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This November I had the amazing experience of leading a group of 27 to the Holy Land. It was my second time travelling to Israel/Palestine, so I was familiar with what we would be doing, but I was still a little nervous this time since I was responsible. No one wants to be the pastor who lost someone on a pilgrimage.
I knew that there would be emotional highs and lows throughout the trip. People would be overcome with the immense gravity of standing where Jesus preached to the crowds by the Sea of Galilee. They would also experience the dissonance of going to the Jordan "river," a place they had imagined since they were a child hearing the stories of John the Baptizer, and behold what could best be described as a creek. I also knew there would be the anxiety of crossing into the West Bank through the separation wall.
As one enters into the Palestinian controlled territory you can tell you are in a different place. The streets are in disrepair, trash is strewn about, and the houses all seem as if they might blow down with the next strong wind. I know the thoughts of, "What are we doing here?" and, "Are we the only ones crazy enough to come here?" crossed many of the minds as we drove to Bethlehem and unloaded to enter the Basilica of the Nativity.
But, as you approach the church structure which has remained mostly unchanged since the 6
th
century, something ancient grabs ahold of you and calms you. Then as you duck to enter the small entry door, you hear the throng of voices speaking in Arabic, German, French, Hindi, Korean, English, Swahili, Russian, and countless others. You quickly realize that you're not alone in this strange, foreign land.
After waiting ... and waiting ... and waiting in line, we entered the cave beneath the apse to venerate the place our Lord was born, and the rock hewn manger where Mary laid him, and kept him warm, and sang to him - and we sang. We sang "Silent Night." We sang right after an African group had sung "Silent Night." And right after us, a Romanian group sang "Silent Night."
When you emerge from the cave you are transformed. You feel as if you belong down there just as much as anyone. You feel the peace of the moment that the shepherds felt when the angels came and sang to them in the fields on the other side of Bethlehem. You realize that Jesus is the great equalizer, the common thread that brings everyone - rich, poor, foreigner, or local - to their knees in awe. This Christmas Eve, I pray that we all can sing to the Lord of Universe with strong voices, no matter what those voices sound like, and know that they all sound the same to the incarnate God laying in a manger before us. And trust that the promise that this little boy brings is the same hope for all.
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Prayer:
God with us, your incarnate Word has come among us and has opened up the reign of heaven to us all. Be with us this holy night, and give us peace. Amen.
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ADVENT CALENDAR: CHRISTMAS EVE
Be still this Holy Night and draw near the manger. The King
is coming!
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