On the 4th day of Christmas.... - The dark side - We shouldn't avoid it

The Nativity - Gerard van Hondhorst

I said in a previous post that the Nativity story is a story of hardship and heartache from beginning to end. That might have surprised you if you read it.

I wrote that as I was thinking about the Holy Family themselves. It began with the embarrassment and shame of Joseph and Mary at their situation when they found that Mary was pregnant. And even getting through that they had to make an arduous journey to Bethlehem to satisfy the census, only to find nowhere fitting to stay, so they had to bunk down in a cave or shed. If they thought things were tough then, they were going to get tougher, and frightening with it.

We read in St. Matthew's gospel of three Magi journeying to find Jesus. The portents had told them the baby would be a king. In trying to locate Jesus' whereabouts it seemed sensible to them to stop off in Jerusalem to ask the current king, Herod the Great if he knew where the new king would be born? Herod summoned his priests and scribes and asked them if they knew. 'Bethlehem is what the scriptures say', said the priests and scribes. So Herod sent the Magi off with instructions to return and let him know where they find the new king so that he can make a visit.

 Flight into Egypt - Gentile da Fabriano

After finding and visiting Jesus, the Bible tells us that, in a dream, the Magi are warned off telling Herod. So they go home a different way. Joseph is also visited in a dream by an angel telling him to take Mary and the baby off to Egypt until further notice because Herod is going to come for Jesus to kill him.

Hardship, heartache and now fear are visited upon Mary and Joseph. But if it was bad for them, it was even worse for the residents of Bethlehem because they had to suffer what I think would be described these days as 'collateral damage' to the event of the holy birth. Because a power crazed Herod decides he won't put up with the competition and orders the killing of all the children under 2 years of age in Bethlehem. So the chilling conclusion to the nativity story is summed up at the end in St. Matthew's gospel thus:

Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: 
"A voice was heard in Ramah, 
wailing and loud lamentation, 
Rachel weeping for her children; 
she refused to be consoled, because they are no more."

The Massacre of the Innocents - Leon Cogniet

Today, 28th December, the 4th day of Christmas each year, is dedicated to all those children killed in Bethlehem - the Holy Innocents, as tradition refers to them.

For many people, by this time, Christmas is over; they've had a lovely time and all it means now is a return to every day life. For some people, Christmas will have been a time of bereavement either just before, or on the day or in these early days following. And the saddest bereavement of all will be for those who've lost a child no matter what the circumstances.

Today especially, we might remember and hold before God all those children who are dying because of conflict in their homes or as refugees or because of conflict and violence between nations, throughout the world;  those who suffer and die innocent of the situations in which they are caught up.

Yes, for all its joy and peace, right from the beginning, Christmas has had a darker side; a darker side we can't avoid. And we can't avoid all those impossible-to-answer questions that go along with it. It was a darker side in which Jesus himself was caught up right from his birth. For him it would come to a conclusion about 30 years later when he was put to death, still the child of Mary his mother, who wept for him as, in the prophecy, Rachel wept for her children.

A lovely holiday - Leaving a legacy - St. John, Apostle and Evangelist

The monastery of St. John the Divine, Patmos

Early October and I was spending my 60th birthday on the warm and sunny Greek island of Patmos. It was a real treat for me as it's Greece's holy island and I'd planned to spend some time on my actual birthday visiting the monastery of St. John and the Cave of the Apocalypse. Because this is the island on which St. John, Apostle and Evangelist was exiled later in his life and on which is the cave in which he lived where, in a vision, he's said to have received a revelation of God to Jesus. The revelation was recorded at the time by his disciple Prochorus. It's that record which is the last book in the Bible.

The Cave of the Apocalypse

The monastery is approached by a steep road up the side of a hill. The cave is just below it. When my wife, Linda and I got to the cave there was nobody else there. We found it a smallish space in the side of the hill and when we went in, we were both struck by the 'strength' and depth of the silence. It wasn't at all an eerie or weird silence. If there is a holy silence, this was it. It was a silence that made you fearful of speaking and spoiling it. It had such an impact on Linda that she became quite tearful. It was an awe-full silence. Memorable for all the best reasons.

Eight years and a few weeks later and I'm standing in church on Christmas day listening to what's known as the Prologue to the gospel also attributed to St. John, the gospel reading for the day from chapter 1 - 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.' I was particularly struck by that last sentence - 'The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.'

St. John and Prochorus

The Word and the light being spoken of here is Jesus and his message. And when we look at the history of the last 2000 years and at the world today, it is true that the darkness of those millenia and the darkness of the present world hasn't overcome Jesus and his message. Despite humankind's continuous and continuing attempts to quash and destroy the message through suppression and persecutions and executions, two days ago millions the world over were standing in church celebrating the message together with others out in the world living it. And it's all because the likes of St. John openly received then lived and talked the message in his day and age and left a legacy and example in his life and writings that others could take up and follow.

Today, 27th December is the feast day of St. John the Divine, Apostle and Evangelist. It's maybe a pity that it's in Christmas week where after the festivities of Christmas Day and Boxing Day his day goes by often quite unnoticed. Unlike St. Stephen who we remembered yesterday, St. John died naturally in extreme old age in Ephesus where he was buried in the year 97AD.

On the Feast of Stephen...When good intentions go wrong!

As soon as Christmas Day is done, with all that's so very pleasant about it,  the Christian tradition takes us straight into the story of one of the earliest members of the Church being killed for showing off his faith in Jesus Christ. We go from a birth one day, to a death the next.

Boxing Day is the Feast of St. Stephen, who was a Deacon in the new church and reckoned to be the first Christian martyr. I don't know what wisdom placed St. Stephen's day on the day after Christmas Day but it's not the only death we remember in Christmas week as we'll see in another couple of days time.

St. Stephen was no evangelist! In the Acts of the Apostles we read that he berated the Jewish council because they couldn't see Jesus as the one they were waiting for. Not only that, he said their ancestors had a history of persecuting the prophets among them. And just to add insult to injury, he accused them of not keeping the law of Moses even though they were the ones who received it. So it was inevitable in the climate of the times, that members of the council dragged him out and stoned him to death. Chillingly, the story tells us that the witnesses of all this 'laid their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul' who'll come to be one of the most feared persecutors of Christians. So you know that this won't be the end of it. Things will get much worse before they get better!

Not only was Stephen not an evangelist, he was no diplomat either. In his zeal for his faith, he did nothing for Christian/Jewish relationships! So it's no wonder they took offence.  Of course the writer of the Acts of the Apostles, to get his point across that this was a holy death, tells us that St. Stephen, like any religious zealot, took it all in his spiritual stride; and just like Jesus at his crucifixion who prayed that God would forgive his killers, so Stephen prays the same.

Today, we give thank to God for and celebrate Stephen's witness and martydom and quite rightly so. But it's a cautionary tale.  Even now, unremitting adherence to ideologies, especially by politicians is putting many more lives at risk, even in our own country, our own towns and streets. Zeal for any ideology, belief, idea, religion or simply, point of view, when not tempered with respect for other peoples' ideology, beliefs, religion, ideas and points of view inevitably, I think history shows us, ends badly both for individuals and nations.

Whilst St. Stephen's faith is an example to us all; the way he went about showing it, at least in this instance, I'm sorry to say, isn't. It might have been better if he'd stuck to what he was good and gifted at - being a deacon! There's a lesson there for all of us, especially our nations leaders I think.

Where IS the Joy in Christmas?

Moving on a bit from my previous post, it being Christmas Eve today, we are on the doorstep of Christmas ready to step over the threshold to join the party. 'Joy to the world', we hear and sing. Or shout, with Noddy Holder -  'It's Christmaaas!!!' (You can play the song here (if you must!))

Christmas has been handed down to us as a time of peace, goodwill and above all, joy. And that peace, goodwill and joy, in some way, is connected to the story, also handed down to us of a baby, said to be the son of God, born in a stable in Bethlehem to his virgin mother Mary and her husband Joseph and given the name of Jesus or, if you like, Emmanuel, which means 'God is with us'.

The story of the birth of Jesus, a story which seems not all that important to two of the gospel writers we find in the New Testament - Mark and John, (nor indeed to St. Paul and other early Christian writers) because they don't mention it, in reality is a story of hardship and heartache from beginning to end.

We only have the angels' say-so that the event of Jesus' birth comes with 'tidings of great joy for all mankind' because, they say, Jesus is the saviour of mankind; whatever that meant at the time and has meant since. But it was meant to be a cause for great joy, the angels said, and to herald peace and goodwill among all people.

What puts a gloss on the story is the beautiful nativity scene we see every Christmas with the baby Jesus lying in the crib, surrounded by Mary and Joseph, sundry farm animals and visitors local and foreign and with angelic song in the background. The crib as we know it was first introduced by St. Francis of Assisi, a 12th century friar, who you could say was the one who really invented Christmas as we know it today. It's a lovely scene that's become iconic and it's no wonder we make the most of it at Christmas, especially where there are children present.

But I think this gloss profoundly softens the story which is really, without the gloss, as I said, one of hardship and heartache from beginning to end. And maybe it's the gloss we get carried away with and party on at this time of year. We mistakenly think that hope and peace and goodwill are somewhere in the emotions evoked by that scene, and it robs us of the proper, more profound hope of peace, goodwill and joy that can be a world changer.

If we party on the gloss of the story only, I think we fail to make what was a small step for God but a 'giant leap for mankind' (to steal a phrase - I wonder if you were around to hear that at the time it was said?) and connect ourselves with who and what Jesus was. To put it another way, where is the real peace, goodwill and above all joy for us, in and around this Christmas story?

Well, it's all actually in and around and from Jesus himself, with or without the crib scene. So, 'how can this be?' (to steal part of another phrase)

Europe is now one of, if not THE most secular parts of the Western world. So phrases like 'Jesus is our Saviour' or 'God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that all who believe in him may not perish but have eternal life' (John 3.16) tend to mean absolutely nothing to most and are totally irrelevant to day to day life. So we Christians have got to take back the message and look at it again and tell it again so that it does at least touch the soul of today's Westerner. I'd begin to do it this way:

One of the great saints of the 4th century, St. Athanasius, in his writing 'On the Incarnation' which is about how God 'redeems' or 'saves' humankind said this, 'He (God the Word i.e. Jesus) has been manifested in a human body for this reason only, out of love and goodness of His Father, for the salvation of us men.' Which means that God out of his love for his creatures gone wrong i.e. humankind, comes as Jesus, in human form for their salvation. (There's a much longer theological outworking of this statement, which is the body of St. Athanasius' work.) OK, but what's this 'salvation?'

Well, the story goes that humankind, left to itself, contrary to what God intended, makes a terrible job of life and all that goes with it and really ruins it, one way or another, both as individuals and as groups of people. And even if you don't ruin it for yourself, you play a big part in ruining it for others, one way or another in little and/or monumental ways. The answer to the ruination, at least for we Christians but in actual fact for all humankind is in and from Jesus. That's what Christians believe as a matter of Truth (yes, with a capital T, it's not relative, it's absolute Truth) The term St. Athanasius uses for this as we've read above, that encapsulates the answer, is 'salvation'.

That the first part of the above paragraph is true is beyond doubt. Just look at the history of the world, from the beginning to this minute. There's no doubt at all that humankind is the ruination of the gift of life at worst and at best, humankind, because of its propensity to self destruction, never achieves its full potential. But Jesus is our 'salvation'.

When you think about the word salvation, forget for the time being, and maybe for ever, everything you heard about it having to do with going to heaven when you die. That just gets in the way, at least for now (and maybe always!) I hardly give it a thought, I never have done. There's too much to be occupied with on this side of the great divide. The word salvation, which has the Latin 'Salus'(health) as it's root, I believe has more to do with health, wellbeing and prosperity especially of body, mind, soul and circumstances; it's to do with right thinking, right speaking and right action towards oneself and one's neighbour, that is, to the world. And for we Christians, towards God as well.

Now when you look at the life and work of Jesus, when you take the time to read, honestly, critically, the gospels, particularly the parts like Matthew chapters 5 to 7,  (the Sermon on the Mount) and when AND IT'S IN ALL OF THAT, ALL THAT WE SEE IN JESUS, THAT LIES THE REAL LIFE CHANGING JOY, PEACE AND GOODWILL that is heralded by the angels at Christmas. And is meant to be taken up by all of us in this day and age. There, in Jesus and potentially in us, is 'Joy to the World!'
you forget, at least for the time being, the miracles and wonder working and all the 'beyond belief stuff' and look at what Jesus said and did, look at his relationships and interaction with others; when you read and really look at his thoughts and words and his actions, there you'll find what 'salvation' means. You'll find and see how he brought it, lived it and shared it and how in emulating him, following his way of doing things, we can do the same.

We Christians will say that we can't do this without the Spirit of God working in us, which is itself a way of speaking about our relationship with God. There's a 'mechanism' for want of a better word, for finding a way into this relationship with God, but that's for another time. When Jesus and the hope possible in Him were announced to the shepherds, by the angels in the story, the way hadn't been seen yet. It was to be shown, as the story goes, about 30 years later. And that's when the hope the angels sang about was seen at last. Although, even then, not everyone did, and surprisingly few. Just shows how hard-hearted and ruinous humankind can be.

So, pleasant and uplifting and joyful though they often are, the real joy in Christmas isn't in the family get-together around the Christmas dinner, nor in the children's nativity play nor in the gift giving. While these go on year after year, the real hope, joy, peace and goodwill for a better 'person' and a better world were and still are on offer in Jesus. And that's the Christmas message. That's where the joy is in Christmas. It's in and through and from Jesus Himself! It's there to be had, if you want it.

Happy Christmas everybody and may God bless you all with his love, joy and peace.

Joy to the World (You can play that here too)

Happy New Year - Already?

It occurred to me recently that today, 22nd December, the day after the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year, is really the first day of a new year. More ancient peoples and their pagan descendants of today, those with a much more intimate sense of connection with nature seem to recognise this, with their rituals surrounding the 'return' of the sun, the driving out of darkness and evil and calling of blessing upon their lives and creation. And as the sun gains in height and strength, the rituals of blessing continue as the year progresses.

Many of the rest of us, less connected with nature, or brought up in the  more urban, Westernized Christian tradition will, one way or another, catch up in a few days time with our celebration of Christmas and then New Year; with our rituals, both secular and Christian, casting our hopes, prayers and blessing for the days ahead.

Christians in a rural environment may go on to celebrate Plough Sunday and Plough Monday in January; Rogationtide in May; Lammas in August and Harvest in September/October; the last of which we urban Christians still tend to keep. But all of these festivals have connection with the earth and in them Christians pray for blessing on its bounty.

Whoever we are, and wherever we are, most of us begin to look forward, at this time of year to renewed prosperity of body, mind, soul and circumstances, involving not just ourselves but family, friends, acquaintances, colleagues and neighbours. Hopes, dreams and prayers are refreshing of body, mind and soul in these shorter days of little light and even less warmth.

It's no accident therefore, and it was certainly adroit of early Christians to overlay pagan celebrations with Christian ones, connecting the originally pagan themes with the life and work of Jesus. And there's nothing at all unchristian or disingenuous about connecting the Son of God the Creator with that which He, as that part of the Holy Trinity which was 'begotten not created', actually created; just as an artist is 'in' their work of art.

From this Christian perspective, Charles Wesley captures much of this, in the imagery he used in a hymn verse:

Christ, whose glory fills the skies,
Christ the true the only light,
Sun of Righteousness arise,
triumph o'er the shades of night;
Dayspring from on high, be near;
Daystar in my heart appear.

So from whatever religious tradition we follow, or not, may we all cast abroad our hopes, prayers and blessings for renewal of body, mind, soul and circumstances on this (new year's?) day and in coming days.