Keep Hope Alive

 

I don't think this sermon needs much of introduction really. I will share that what shaped it is the impending doom I am feeling and sensing that is out there amongst my friends and many of my congregation as we prepare for "President Trump 2.0." 

The country has enjoyed some version of stability and normalcy for the past four years under the Biden administration. But even Biden could not accomplish some ambitious goals when the Republicans in Congress...assisted by Senators Joe Mancin and Kyrsten Sinema from the Democratic Party...nixed important pieces of legislation. People decry "illegals" entering the country through the border with Mexico, and yet when there was a bipartisan bill that could address many of the problems at the border, one phone call from the aggrieved and unhinged president-to-be stopped the bill from being passed. Afterall, the leader of MAGA needed an issue to harp on for the campaign.

I bought gas on the way to Valdosta tonight. It was $2.74 at Costco. I only report that since so many people seem to think that the president sets the gas prices (presdients don't wield that sort of power). Still, for those of us steeling outselves for what's coming, we're taking note of all the petty complaints about an otherwise robust economy we had to read on our social media feeds. It will be entertaining, and really sad, when those who believed the president could set the price of eggs and gas discover that they don't do that. However, their economic policies can make markets either stable or chaotic...and the markets don't do well with chaos.

With all that in mind, I look to the readings for Christmas I and came to the conclusion that it is on us to keep hope alive. See what you think.

Texts: Isaiah 9:2-7; Luke 2: 1-20

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“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.”

These opening words of our First Reading from Isaiah tell a story of a people living in a time of tremendous turmoil and upheaval.

The Bible isn’t a history book…but these writings of the prophet were reflective of actual historical events.

There had been wars…and rebellions…and invasions in the 8^th century BCE that had resulted in the Assyrian Empire conquering and oppressing the people of Israel and Judea.

Not long after that…less than a hundred years later…the Babylonians would take over Assyria…further scattering and depressing the people.

The terms “darkness” and “light” are metaphorical.

“Darkness” is about oppression and fear.

“Light” is about relief from such circumstances.

And the words of the oracle that Isaiah is speaking to these beleaguered people are about hope.

A hope that stands on the horizon…if they can hold on through these desperate and troubled times.

Many of them could not. But for the remnant that remained…that glimmer of hope became the great light that delivered them out of captivity.

For Christians…we see this hope as a signal that crosses time and space many centuries later in a bright star in the sky over Bethlehem…signaling the birth of the Christ child.

And just as it had been during the rule of the Assyrian Empire…the Jews of that Palestinian region found themselves under the thumb of another empire…this time the Roman Empire.

We hear Luke tell us that Augustus has put out the order for everyone to report to their town of origin for the census.

And so miles around the countryside…obedient people are making their way back to their hometowns.

Think of it as if that were to happen today…it’s as if the President told everyone to go back to the places where they were born…it would be like the Thanksgiving or Christmas travel seasons…only on foot.

Joseph and Mary get to the inn…but everybody else has beaten them to this place.

There was no place to go.

Even the guest rooms were full.

So they end up out in the barn…with the animals.

To make this situation more dramatic…Mary goes into labor.

She gives birth to Jesus…outside of the inn…amidst the animals.

Lowing cows…braying donkeys…baahing sheep.

Meanwhile…in another corner of this landscape…the shepherds are also outside in the fields tending their flocks.

Shepherds are not romantic figures in this society.

They’re the working poor and the disenfranchised…living on the outskirts of Bethlehem.

In our own time…we might think of them as the undocumented workers who fix our roofs and work on our bridges.

It’s to this group that the angel appears…telling them…the unclean and the unknowns…that there is good news…happening right now…in Bethlehem.

Good news for all the people.

“To you…yes, to you…the poor and powerless…the forgotten…the marginalized… a Savior has come into the world.

To you…you people out here in the deep darkness…a great light has come…wrapped up in swaddling clothing. Go…see for yourselves.”

And if one angel saying all this wasn’t enough…Luke brings out a chorus line of heavenly beings…singing and trumpeting:

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”

This is definitely NOT a silent night!

Between the animals and the angels…the mad rush of shepherds showing up in the manger…an exhausted Mary with her bone-weary Joseph…are tending to this newborn…wrapped in cloth to keep him warm now that he is outside the womb…and in the outside world.

The Savior…the promised Messiah…is not born in a palace.

There are no rose petals.

Even as an infant…Jesus is with those who don’t enjoy the benefits and privileges of the well-connected and well-heeled.

From the very beginning…Luke shows us that Jesus…who is part of the tribe of Israel…is embedded with four-footed creatures and the working poor of his people.

And that is good news for them…and us.

Because…as we all know…this baby will grow up…

And Jesus and his ministry of love isn’t going to be received as “good news” to those who enjoy status and prestige in the Roman Empire.

This good news is for the ones who have been waiting for someone to tell them that their lives matter and are not forgotten.

This is the God with us…who will know human suffering with us.

These thoughts and these messages…are part of Mary’s pondering as she considers this new life she is tending to in an animal’s trough.

I was recently reflecting upon the experience of greeting one of our congregation’s favorite babies… Avery’s son Sayler.

I remember I was having a really rough week…one of those where it feels like nothing is going right.

That’s when I got the text that Sayler had been born at Archbold Hospital in Thomasville.

I was happy to be invited to visit and come up to this sweet and sacred space where the family had gathered to marvel at this beautiful little boy.

And it was when I was handed Sayler and got to hold hm that I felt all the weight of my troubles fall away.

Here in my hands was life…and hope.

Babies are such fragile and utterly dependent beings.

Their tiny bodies rely on us…the adults…to be careful and nurturing.

Babies need attention and love to grow and thrive.

In fact…studies done at the University of Miami confirm the importance of babies being touched and lightly massaged to help stimulate their cells.

So…when we think about the events of this Holy Night…the cacophony and the joy of angels and animals…the excitement and the exhaustion of the people…all placed against a backdrop of living under the thumb of a Roman Empire…we can see how this child…the Son of the Most High…this Prince of Peace…represents a hope that requires care and attention.

That hope today rests with us to not only be seekers of the light…but to be bearers of it as well.

 

Because even as we sing of peace on earth and good will toward everyone…we know that not all is peaceful.

And there are still those with the power who do not necessarily work for the common good of all people.

And so we revisit this story every year…a way to remind ourselves that hope comes as the gift from God to us in the Christmas season.

That hope…even if it feels fleeting at times…is given to us to handle with care and grow it larger and into something greater…because the world still needs a great light of Hope…Peace…Joy…and Love to shine in the deep darkness.

May we…like Mary…ponder these things in our hearts…and commit ourselves at this Christmas to keep hope alive.

In the name of our one Holy and Undivided Trinity.

Merry Christmas.