64:1 O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that
the mountains would quake at your presence--
64:2 as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to
boil-- to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the
nations might tremble at your presence!
64:3 When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came
down, the mountains quaked at your presence.
64:4 From ages past no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye
has seen any God besides you, who works for those who wait for him.
64:5 You meet those who gladly do right, those who remember you in
your ways. But you were angry, and we sinned; because you hid
yourself we transgressed.
64:6 We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our
righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth. We all fade like a leaf,
and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
64:7 There is no one who calls on your name, or attempts to take
hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have
delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
64:8 Yet, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are
our potter; we are all the work of your hand.
64:9 Do not be exceedingly angry, O LORD, and do not remember
iniquity forever. Now consider, we are all your people.
For over four hundred years the prophets had been silent. There was
no word from God. The heavens were closed. Now the cry "O that you
would tear open the heavens." .... a violent act, a demanding
petition, an anguish for the Word of God.
How hungry and thirsty are we for a new revelation? How ready are we
for God to act? Would we recognize his action, his presence, it it
was revealed to us?
What if this Advent, God came again, in the form of a child, in a
crib in Harlem, in the home of a young girl whose father died on
9/11, or perhaps born to a peasant girl, this time, on the streets
of Iraq, in the narrow streets of old Jerusalem, in the little house
of a Palestinian family, among your own congregation, a teenage
pregnancy, a child of an unwed mother! Where do we find God? Are we
looking for him? Or are we too busy with our lives? Already we have
been to the Malls. If you are as southerner, most likely you have
already gotten your Christmas Tree. Where is God in our time, among
this terror, this desire to go to war against our enemies?
Will Christmas simply come and go again as it does year after year
with out a recognition that He has passed through out lives, that he
dwells deeply inside our suffering. What must I do to prepare for
his birth?
tom in ga
tom in ga,
Sunday afternoon and I just looked over the texts for this week.
This one stood out for me too. Yes, there was "an anguish for the
Word of God." God's answer: "...and the Word became Flesh and dwelt
among us." Our minds are headed in a similar direction. Indeed,
"what must I do to prepare for his birth?" The 'Season of Waiting'
begins anew...may God touch us in a way that might be new to our
hearts. My best to you as we start out the week living with these
texts.
S.in TX
Tom in Ga, S.in Tx--Thanks for starting the discussion. I have only
tidbits tonight after a first read-through.
I'm without commentary at home late tonight but I wonder if this
"tear open" image is linked to giving birth...
"YOU were angry and we sinned...Because you hid yourself we
transgressed..." blaming God for-or explaining to God- their action
in one verse and yet able to acknowledge the inclusive nature of
transgressions in the next.
The people experience God as hiding GOd's face; experience God as
Father (is this "Abba"); as potter with clay. Several images of the
relationship and the experience of the people and God.
This year I find myself really ready to pray the opening sentence of
this passage. Aslanclan
Our theme is simply: "Prepare!" and I'm faced with my yearly peeve:
celebrating Christmas as #1) a marathon, and #2) before its time so
when it actually comes we're grateful not for the arrival of a
newborn king, but that it's over. Our church Christmas luncheon is
Dec. 7. Our Christmas music program is Dec. 15. and we're having a
Christmas eve service (the first time in many, many years) in a
very, very informal ritual just because no one "has time" for
Christmas Eve.
I want to work this in, but gently. Our "preparation" for the coming
of the Lord is usurped by our preparation for an annual fun event.
As one who doesn't have her Christmas tree yet, but does have 1/2
the Christmas cards written and all but one present bought ... I
anguish for the Word of God this season.
Sally in GA
Sally in Ga.-- Impressive is your list of preparations done before
the season of preparation! And familiar is the frustration. I wonder
if the 'pagan spirits' haven't always had the upper hand at
Christmas? What would make the most beautiful & meaningful Advent
for you?
S.in Tx--Thank you for reminding me of Emmanuel. I perceive the
"already/not yet" tension. In this moment in our history, the
"not-yet" feels more real than the "already."
Yes--as we walk into Advent we are only recounting the longing for
Emmanuel who is already and always present.
Perhaps that opening sentence speaks to my heart the way some of the
Psalms do: 'Wake up, God, pay attention here...look at this mess
we're in...do something...'
This passage seems to be both a yearning for and a dreading of the
necessity of both confession & a clear eyed assessment of who is God
and who isn't.
Here is the feeling of the paradox found in a refrain in Luther's
Small Catechism "...we should fear and love God so that..." How can
we fear and love at the same time? impossible, except as the
paradox? Aslanclan
Advent is an interesting time of year: we expect and know the
outcome simultaneously. What more can we expect?
Just how many times will humanity be born and reborn? These are the
in-between times: both realized and not yet. How can we live in both
victory and hope of future victory without one denying the other?
I like Tom's observation here and in the Gospel page that this is a
rather violent image. "Tearing open the heavens ..."
Someone asked whether the tearing is akin to birthing - speaking
from direct birthing experiences: yes, it is. It's both violent and
joyful, painful and bearable, anxiety-producing and exciting. And
even these days, women tear.
One of the Pauline epistles talks about "groaning as a woman in
labor ..." as the early pangs of the Kingdom get born. I'll have to
look it up and get back to you 'cuz I can't remember right off and
I'm on my way out the door.
Sally
I read in a commentary today -- Whenever a child arrives, unexpected
changes happen.
Advent is a time to prepare for God coming to earth. This God does
not stay a warm, snuggly baby for long. Before long, this God is
challenging us to act, think and even pray differently. We can't
anticipate what will be asked of us. We can just wait.
It would be easier if all we had to do was prepare for
Christ/Christmas by shopping, writing cards and decorating. But this
God is not asking for a beautiful house to be received in, rather an
open heart. Which is more challenging for us?
-- Preaching and Expecting (in more ways than one!)
