The Light of Christmas Shines into the Darkness—Lectionary Reflection for Christmas Eve/Day (Isaiah 9, Titus 2, Luke 2)
It is Christmas once again and many neighborhoods are ablaze with Christmas
lights. The three lectionary readings for Christmas Eve/Day highlight the glory
of God. In addition to these biblical stories that we draw upon in our
celebration of the birth of Jesus, many people bring to the season favorite
Christmas traditions and stories that bring out the season's meaning for them.
Some of these traditions and stories are non-religious, or at least not
explicitly so. However, they do help us discern the meaning of the season. One
of my favorite Christmas stories is Charles Dickens’s A Christmas
Carol. Each year, my family watches several versions of the story from
Alister Sims to the Muppets. I expect we’re not alone!
Dickens’
Christmas Carol takes place during the height of the industrial
revolution. It was a time when the distinction between rich and poor had
reached epic proportions. In that, we may see some parallels to our current
situation, with the wealthiest Americans having a disproportionate share of the
nation’s wealth and power (the President-elect is a billionaire, with a cabinet
filled with billionaires, with others in his sphere being at the top of the
economic pyramid. In other words, this is the world of oligarchs). The Christmas Carol offers us a
wonderful story that both charms us and challenges us. In this story, Dickens invites us to consider
the true meaning of Christmas by offering us a powerful message that brings
light to the darkness that can be present in our lives. Yes, Ebenezer Scrooge
is emblematic of how greed can take hold of our lives, such that we shut out
everyone else, especially those most in need. Christmas is, for Ebenezer
Scrooge, simply a “Bah Humbug.” Visits from several ghosts open up Scrooge’s
soul so that light might shine into it, transforming him into a man of
compassion and generosity. Thus, he (like the Grinch) exemplifies the spirit of
Christmas. It is a vision of Christmas that reflects the light that emanates
from the manger in Bethlehem (even if that part of the story is not in the
foreground).
The three lectionary (RCL) readings designated for Christmas Eve/Day offer
messages that bring light into the darkness of our world; light that reflects
God’s glory. Each of these passages reminds us that the message of Christmas is
one of transformation through divine encounters.
The
first reading comes from Isaiah 9, which declares that people who walk in
darkness have seen a great light, and that light is none other than a child,
upon whom authority rests. Though the passage carries with it a militaristic
message, it ends with a promise of one coming into the world who would bring peace
and justice. The sixth verse of this passage is well-known to many Christians
as it has come to be seen as a reference to the birth of Jesus. He is
understood in Christian tradition to be the heir to David’s throne. Upon his
shoulders rests authority and he will be called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty
God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”. As such, he will bring everlasting
peace, along with justice and righteousness, to the earth. We may know this
passage best from its appearance in Friedrich Handel’s Messiah. We
sing together: “For
unto us, a child is born, unto us, a son is given . . .” When read in
its original context, the prophet addresses the southern kingdom of Judah that
faces significant threats from its neighbors. Isaiah offers the people the
promise of a coming ruler who will lead them not as a warrior but as the prince
of peace. Most likely the prophet has in mind the reign of Hezekiah, who led
Judah as it held at bay the Assyrians, bringing a period of peace and prosperity
to the land. Christians have turned to this passage to define Jesus’ calling.
He is the one who is expected to bring g peace, justice, and
righteousness. In preparing for this day in which light will shine in the
darkness, and the people, having seen a great light, will receive a great
nation, Isaiah offers four titles for this ruler: “Wonderful Counselor”; “Mighty
God”; “Eternal Father”; and “Prince of Peace.” Each title speaks to
aspects of this rule that will bring transformation to the world, but it’s not
enough to simply sing out in praise of these titles. We must ask
ourselves, what it means to follow one such as this, especially one whom we
speak of as “Prince of Peace.” What kind of reality does this hold out for
us?
The second reading comes from Titus 2, a letter written, according to the
ascription, by Paul to a young pastor serving a church in Crete (Tit.
1:1-4). While Titus, like the other two Pastoral Epistles, likely was
written by someone other than Paul, the point here is not authorship but what
this brief letter adds to the message of Christmas. While the doesn’t speak of the
birth of Jesus, it does speak of God’s grace coming to bring salvation “to all
people.” The message here is universal in scope. It applies to all people, promising
that God’s grace has been made available to everyone, but it comes with a call
for recipients to “renounce impiety and worldly passions” so that they might
live upright lives. Rather than focusing on Jesus’ birth, this passage points
us forward to the “manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior,
Jesus Christ.” As such, Jesus brings to the world the light of God that
transforms lives. Perhaps we can hear an echo of the promise of Isaiah 9:6. Although
we might debate whether these passages speak of Christ’s divinity, what is not
debatable is the promise found here that Jesus brings salvation to all people,
such that they might experience the transforming power of God’s grace. The one
Titus speaks of here gives himself to rescue humanity from lawlessness by
cleansing humanity, enabling humans to live godly lives. Perhaps we might hear
echoes of the story of Ebenezer Scrooge in this passage. Ron Allen and Clark
Williamson offer this reflection on the words of the epistle: “We should
not downplay what may seem stodgy moralism. War making is a worldly
passion; we should resist it. And our character should manifest our deepest
convictions. The ‘present age’ is passing and we ‘wait for the . . .
manifestation of the glory of . . . Jesus Christ’ (2:13), that is, the
eschaton. This is another good note for Christmas Day: Christmas is not the end
of the adventure but a beginning. The rule of God is not here, a point on which
the author and Jews would agree. Neither sees the world as yet fully redeemed.” (Preaching the Letters without Dismissing the Law, p. 8). Thus, we
continue to await the fulfillment of the promise of Christmas, since
redemption/salvation is not yet complete. Nevertheless, the realm of God has
begun to make itself felt.
The Christmas story as we know it, biblically, is found in the Gospel of Luke.
Luke offers us one of two infancy narratives, but this is the story that Linus
referred to in A Charlie Brown Christmas. This version takes place in
Bethlehem in what appears to be a stable. It offers shepherds but not magi
(that’s Matthew’s version). According to Luke’s narrative of the Christmas
story, Caesar August called for a census to be taken throughout the Empire, therefore,
everyone was expected to return to their ancestral home (such a requirement
would be impossible to execute, but Luke needs to get the Holy Family from
Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem, the “city of David.”). In search of a historical point of reference, Luke
places the story in the time when Quirinius was governor of Syria. There are
many problems with Luke’s story, but that’s beside the point. This census is
how Luke gets Joseph and a very pregnant Mary (Joseph’s betrothed) to
Bethlehem. When they arrive, it’s time for Mary to give birth. Perhaps, if we
read this passage theologically, we might hear echoes of Jesus being an “anchor
baby” since he has to be born in Bethlehem to fulfill his destiny as the heir
of David. In other words, for Luke, Jesus needs to be a citizen of Bethlehem,
the hometown of David. While Luke doesn’t refer to Isaiah 9, early Christians
envisioned Jesus in terms of the titles Isaiah applied to the one who would
bring light into the darkness, such that he is the one who is known as “Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, and Prince of Peace.” The one who is
given these titles by Isaiah, as envisioned by early Christians, was born not
in a palace but in a stable of some kind, such that at his birth he is placed
in the feeding trough for the animals. They are forced to stay there because
there is no room for them in the inn or guest rooms. It’s not that the people were
inhospitable, there simply wasn’t any room for them to reside. Therefore, instead
of a royal herald announcing to the important members of society that the heir
to the throne was born, angels declared to a gathering of shepherds that the
savior and messiah had been born in the city of David. The angels together with
the heavenly host sang: “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace
among those whom he favors!” (Luke 2:14). As is often the case when angels
appear, the shepherds were terrified by the sight, which involved the glory of
God shining into the darkness. The angels quickly let the shepherds know that
they needn’t be afraid. The angels then instructed the shepherds to go to Bethlehem
where they would find the newborn baby. When they found the Holy Family, they
were instructed to share their news. After the shepherds paid a visit to the
family and shared their news, they celebrated what they had seen and heard,
giving praise to God.
The
story that Luke tells is the one most of us know, even if we don’t attend services
on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. As noted above, it’s the story that Linus tells when
Charlie Brown asks what Christmas is about. Linus tells the story of
Christmas from Luke’s perspective because Charlie Brown is confused by all the commercial
excesses, he sees going on around him. While that message was deemed important
by Charles Schulz in 1965, it remains true today as well.
I enjoy
the “secular” dimensions of Christmas as much as anyone, but for Christians, it’s
important that we center the message that Linus shared, a message that centers
on the birth of a child in Bethlehem, a child was born in an occupied
territory, and whose family, according to Matthew, had to flee their homeland
because of a threat from a despot. This is especially true at a time when the
specter of mass deportations of undocumented persons in the United States,
along with other threats to the personhood of many others. So, we gather to
welcome into our midst the one the letter to Titus proclaims, the one who gave
himself to redeem us from iniquity and purify us so that we might be a people
zealous for good deeds. Thus, the message of the season shines a light into our
midst, inviting us to ponder the difference that Jesus, the savior, born in a
stable, makes to the way we live in this world.
As we ponder the meaning of
Christmas, might we join together, singing:
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy
mild, God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
join the triumph of the skies;
With the angelic host
proclaim, “Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
Hark! The herald angels sing
to the newborn King.
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!” (Charles Wesley)
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