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Christmas Day 2020

In Bethlehem ‘X’ really does mark the spot, the spot where it is believed that Jesus was born. Almost three decades ago I visited that spot, in the Church of the Nativity. The writer Annie Dillard describes the site of the stable thus:

“One of the queerest places on earth – I hope- is the patch of planet where, according to tradition, a cave once stabled animals, and where Mary gave birth to a son whose later preaching – scholars of every stripe agree, with varying enthusiasm – caused the occupying Romans to crucify him. Generations of Christians have churched over the traditional Bethlehem spot to the highest degree. Centuries of additions have made the architecture peculiar, but no one can see the church anyway, because many monasteries clamp onto it in clusters like barnacles.”

                                                                         From ‘Bethlehem’ P.217 in ‘Watch for the light.’

The Church of the Nativity was nothing like I imagined it would be like. In fact, if I am truthful, much of the Holy Land was too ‘Disney’ for me and I found myself often unmoved by major pilgrimage sites and having moving experiences in unexpected, rather mundane places. The Church of the Nativity left me particularly cold especially when the clergy I was travelling with started to sing; ‘Away in a manger’ badly. I just had to get out of the church building and I spent time just sitting in Manger Square watching ordinary people walk by.

Over the years I have reflected on my reaction to the Holy Land and I have also discovered that I am not alone in my feelings and probably no different to some of the pilgrims who have visited over the last two millennia. For a start, where was Jesus born?

Some theologians say it probably was not Bethlehem but Nazareth. Bethlehem, however, fitted the ancient prophesies better. Was he born in a stable or an inn or a cave? All three places are possible and just as likely, as many artists and poets have interpreted. Look at your Christmas Cards when you get home – what does Jesus’ birth place look like? In most paintings it will be a dilapidated venue, a falling down stable or stone building. Why? Because it is meant to represent the old ways passing away and a new beginning for humankind. It represents the end of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New.

Whatever happened 2000 years ago we Christians believe that Christianity began with the birth of Jesus, the long promised Christ, the Messiah. His birth was the time when God emptied himself into humankind. God became human. For me the fourteen point star on the floor of the crypt chapel in the Church of the Nativity that supposedly marks the place of Jesus birth or God’s incarnation is unimportant. What to me is important is the belief that God became as we are – fully human.

God did not need to become human but he chose to do so, so that we the creation could understand him better and he could prove to us just how much we are loved by him. Loved so much that he was prepared to die for us. If you have ever felt that you would give your life to save the life of a loved one, you’ll have some concept of what this unbounded love God offers us is like.

A love so powerful that it is life and creation changing. Today’s celebration of Jesus’ birth is all about love, earth shattering, all powerful, hopeful love. This for me is the importance of Christmas and it was in the Holy Land that I realised that I did not need a specific place to give thanks for Jesus’ birth. I can give thanks for his incarnation anywhere because his birth is not time limited or place specific. The incarnation is a universal, eternal event and event like the resurrection that is never ending.

Jesus’ birth was a gentle, almost unnoticed event at the time, give or take a few shepherds and magi (who may or may not have actually pitched up) depending on which Gospel account you read. HOWEVER Jesus’ birth was actually just as explosive as his later resurrection!

Jesus birth is frankly quite amazing. His birth has changed lives and cultures for over two millennia and this year in particular we need to be reminded of that fact and the hope for change that it brings. Sadly, however, Christ’s incarnation has been used by some in the past to cause trouble and strife but that is humanity’s doing NOT God’s. God did not become human in order to start a war or to cause division or even to set up a religion as Dillard says:

“I have never read any theologian who claims God is particularly interested in religion anyway.”

God became human to save us from ourselves.To love us both as God and as a human being too. Knowing that we are loved and that that love is unconditional and always there should be something that comforts us and gives us hope in the dark times and inspires us and challenges in the good times.

Human love can be fickle – we all know that - but God’s love is never fickle or changing and this is what Christmas says to us. Jesus is the epitome of pure, unadulterated, unbounded and eternal love. Love for you, love for them, love for us, love for me, love for everyone and anyone regardless. No one is beyond God’s love. Jesus is for all of us not just a selected few or chosen ones. Even if this love is rejected it is still continually offered – this is one brilliant and everlasting Christmas gift.

And how was this love manifested?

In a helpless babe, an infant needing love and care himself, that’s God all over. Unpredictable, constantly challenging our perceptions and taking us by surprise and in doing so showing us something wonderful.

Christmas is amazing, celebrate it with great joy and hope this year as you have always done; give thanks to God for Jesus and above all try to love others as God loves you. Loving each other is important as this past year has shown us, we all need each other to help us cope in the difficult times. Be inspired by Christ’s birth this year to love and receive love when its offered; to give and receive the helping hand and too surround everyone with your prayers for a better year to come.

The painting above is entitled; ‘The adoration of the Magi’ and it was painted in about 1542 by Jacopo Del Ponte (‘nick-named’ Bassano from the town the he came from ‘Bassano del Grappa’) near Venice.

Bassano’s work is one of my all time favourite paintings. Why? For many reasons; such as his use of strong colour, his subject matter and the fact it was one of the first paintings that I learned to ‘read’. Most of us will get‘Nativity’ scenes on Christmas cards this year but have you ever taken a good look at them and wondered what the different elements in the painting are all about? How does the artist want you to read their work? What is Bassano saying to us his viewers?

Bassano has taken as his inspiration the story in Chapter 2 of the Gospel according to St.Matthew, where Matthew records the visit of wise men from the East:

"In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’ When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born." They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

“And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.” ’

"Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’ When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road."

In the centre of the painting you have the three wise men, representing different races and ages of humanity. St.Matthew is trying to tell us in his words that the Christ was born for ALL God’s people and not just the Hebrews, so is Bassano trying to do the same in his painting. Hence the black man, the old man and the younger man. The wise men or kings are offering their gifts to the child; gold - acknowledging his kingship; frankincense - acknowledging his divinity (incense is used to represent our prayers ascending to God in heaven) and myrrh - foreshadowing Christ’s death (myrrh was used in embalming).

The baby Jesus is raising his hand in blessing and acceptance of the gifts and in doing so acknowledges who he is to the wise men. In these paintings the baby Jesus is usually shown naked, emphasising his belly button as proof that Jesus was both fully human and divine. All humans have a belly button, is the reasoning here. Joseph also is usually depicted, as here, as an older man with a walking stick, empathising the fact that he was too old to have been Jesus father and that Mary was a virgin when Jesus was born. If you look carefully around the Holy Family you will see other symbols telling us who Jesus is and how his life will develop.

The Holy Family is not in a stable but in some form of ruined temple, this emphasises the transition from the Old Testament to the New Testament with the birth of Jesus, the Messiah, the promised Saviour. Look at the stable pictures in other paintings and they too are falling down, indication the passing away of the old and the birth of the new age in Christ. You also have the ox looking at Jesus and the donkey looking away. The ox is a symbol for the new testament and the donkey one for the old testament. In Hebrew society the king always rode a donkey in processions. The cut tree in front of Jesus foreshadows his crucifixion on the cross.

Christmas cards with their Nativity images are worth studying, have a look at yours this year and ponder as you ‘read’ the painting what all the different bits mean and why the artist put them in. Nothing in any painting is there by accident. In Bassano’s painting there is so much going on and I have only given you a little insight but I hope you will like the painting as much as I do.

The Nativity has been a source of inspiration to many artists over the centuries and to countless millions of Christians as well. So strong is the truth it portrays that it remains, and I believe will always remain, an inspiration for the human race for eternity.

The simple message of the Nativity is that in the birth of Jesus (the Incarnation) God became human to show us all how much we are loved and how we can in God hope for a better future. With all the pain and difficulties we have all faced in 2020 let us hope that the hope and love of Christmas will encourage us to look forward to 2021 with joy in our hearts.

May Christ, who by his incarnation gathered into one all things earthly and heavenly, fill you with joy and peace; and bless you now at Christmas and in the new year to come. Amen.

Advent IV – Sunday 20th December 2020

Let it be with me according to your word

Like most journeys, many of us are glad when they come to an end.  Sometimes there a great sense of relief and satisfaction just to finish. We may feel tired, exhausted or worn out. We may wish that we had not started on them or been taken in a particular direction over which we had no control. At other times we wish they continued forever. A holiday, a friendship, a new and exciting opportunity, an unexpected encounter.   

Today the fourth Advent candle, representing Mary, the mother of God, the God-bearer, the theotokos, is lit. Our waiting is almost over.

If I was to ask you “what have you been wondering and pondering upon since our first Advent candle was lit, what would you tell me? Would it be one of new beginnings or a new understanding? Would it be one of asking questions which remain, as yet, unanswered or unresolved? Would we say that we have not had time or is there something that we are grappling with and will not let go?

In today’s gospel (The Annunciation), Mary too had questions. She was much perplexed and pondered upon what was being said. “How can this be?”  No doubt there were other questions and emotions which are not disclosed.

What surprises me is that Mary said “yes” so willingly.  “Yes” to the Incarnation.  “Yes” to a God who desired to dwell within her. To say that it was inconvenient and not good timing, would be an understatement. She overcame her fear by trusting the message Gabriel brought.  “Do not be afraid, for you have found favour with God”.  She opened her heart to this sudden, unexpected and life changing message. She opened her womb to bear a son, who was to be named Jesus.

Meister Eckhart (c.1260-c1328) believed that we are all meant to be mothers of God. He wrote “What good is it for me if this eternal birth of the divine son takes place unceasingly but does not take place within me? And what good is it to me if Mary is full of grace, if I am not also full of grace?”

In his book “Waiting on the Word”, Malcolm Guite  also comments that although Mary’s role as the God-bearer, is in one way unique, in that she alone physically nurtures and brings into the world the body and person of Jesus Christ, in another way Mary is the archetype of every  Christian soul, and of the whole Church. We are all in some way called to respond to God’s promise. To say “be it unto me according to thy word”, to treasure his words and the gift of his spirit in our hearts. In some way, even in the intimacy of our own flesh and daily lives, to bear him into the world. Mary is our model and our encouragement as we prepare both outwardly and visibly and inwardly and spiritually for his “arrival” this Christmas.   

I want to end with the Collect appointed for the Feast of Mary, Mother of the Lord, which encapsulates something of her response: -

Almighty God,

Who looked with favour on your servant Mary

And called her to be the mother of your Son;

Grant us, we pray,

The humility which found favour in your sight;

That we, with her, may proclaim the greatness of your name,

And find the mercy shown to those who stand in awe of you.

Let it be with me according to your word

Our Winter yarn-bomb project! Thank you to everyone who made pom-poms during 'Lockdown'. 

Good Shepherd Advent 3 2020

The illuminated advertising hoarding opposite Tesco Express on Roseburn Terrace isn’t often a stimulus to theological reflection, but a couple of the posters that are currently on electronic display there have a distinctly Advent feel to them. One of them has the strapline “Don’t get caught out” and the other reads “You need to act now”. They remind me of the urgency of John the Baptist’s call to his contemporaries to repent and his warning that they may not recognise the Messiah in their midst. In fact the purpose of the advertisements is to encourage businesses to prepare for the changes that will come on New Year’s Day when the Brexit transition period comes to an end. Business people have had a long and frustrating wait for clarity on those issues. Waiting and clarity are also Advent themes.

The Jews who journeyed to the Jordan valley to be baptized by John the Baptist, and those who came to question him were all waiting for the coming of the Messiah. The questioning to which John was subjected by the priests and the Levites suggests that some had begun to wonder whether John himself might be the Messiah. John’s behaviour was, after all, challenging and unusual. He was inviting people to be immersed in water and was linking that immersion with repentance.

Up to that point, water had been used by Jews for only two religious purposes: ritual purification and the ritual cleansing that converts to Judaism were required to undergo. John the Baptist was inviting people who were already Jews to go through that ritual of change, to acknowledge that they needed to change. For the repentance which John preached didn’t just (or even mainly) mean saying sorry for past wrong-doing – Jews have other rituals for that purpose. It meant turning round, changing your expectations of yourself and of others, rearranging your priorities. John was saying that observing the law and the prescribed rituals was not enough – religion is nothing unless it is life- changing. It’s easy to get caught out, John warns, and if you think that your religious practices are a destination, that you have in a spiritual sense arrived, then you aren’t waiting at all. You need to understand that you are on a journey. You need to act now and to act is to change.

Those who questioned John wanted clarity about his identity. Might he be Elijah? Or “the prophet” – and John rejected those suggestions. He answered their next question

“What do you say about yourself?”

in a way that was strikingly free from egotism, by quoting the prophet Isaiah:

“I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord’”

He shifted the focus away from himself and towards Jesus, and his next response is in the same vein:

“Among you stands one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me: I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.”

It’s both an answer that points towards Jesus, and an answer which hints that not everyone will be able to recognise Jesus as the Messiah. The Messiah is here, John says, but you do not know him and may not recognize him because you lack clarity of vision. Your expectations are wrong. If you are to recognize him, you will need to be open to change.

Advent invites us to reflect on the answer to the question “For whom are you waiting” and John the Baptist points us in the right direction. We are waiting for the light that came into the world when Jesus was born, the light that shines in the darkness. We know that in Advent we are waiting to celebrate once again the love of God made visible.

The eighteenth century French spiritual writer Jean Pierre de Caussade asked the question

“Why are we waiting?”
and answered it by suggesting that we need to act now:

As Dean reminded us in his sermon last week, we lose ourselves in the very heart of God by prayerful listening. Jean Pierre de Caussade taught that it is in the present moment that God is most present, present in our waiting and our listening. He put it thus:

“All that takes place within us, around us, or through us, contains and conceals God’s divine action.”

And it is in the waiting and the listening that we discover that.

Why are waiting? Because we know that God is present in Jesus in our human condition, and, because of that, is present in the here and now with all its difficulties and uncertainties, and present in the as yet unseen time that lies before us.