Scripture Text (NRSV)
Matthew 2:13-23
2:13 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to
Joseph in a dream and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother,
and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is
about to search for the child, to destroy him."
2:14 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night,
and went to Egypt,
2:15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to
fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, "Out of
Egypt I have called my son."
2:16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he
was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around
Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that
he had learned from the wise men.
2:17 Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet
Jeremiah:
2:18 "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."
2:19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a
dream to Joseph in Egypt and said,
2:20 "Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of
Israel, for those who were seeking the child's life are dead."
2:21 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to
the land of Israel.
2:22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in
place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being
warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee.
2:23 There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that
what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, "He will
be called a Nazorean."
Comments:
The reading for Sunday brings us face to face with the kinds of
struggles we've seen in the modern-day Middle East.
I have a question. Did Herod's rule extend to Nazareth, the home town
of Joseph? Would not Jesus have been safe had Joseph & Mary just
returned to Nazareth?
I understand wanting to bypass the darkness to go to a happier text,
but I think we do our folk a disservice if we do that. Many of us
still walk in personal darkness. I think this is a good time to talk
about the eschatological hope we have through Jesus. The freedom he
gives us comes at enormous cost.
Sybil in KS
First request for help: anyone have a "dialogue" elaborating on the
Lord's Prayer? Would be done by youth. I've seen it somewhere but
don't have a copy. For preaching, thinking about the dreams of Joseph
and our good, useful, God-inspired dream for a new year that
remains--in spite of evidence to the contrary--full of promise. Peter
in WI
I'm a desperate preacher that has only been reading this site. Thank
you all for your contributions - this offers better homiletical
material than any commentary out there. Concerning the question of why
Joseph moved south and not back to Nazareth, it seems to me they
wanted to go where they would least likely be pursued. The tie in with
Afghani refugees (or any refugee) seems appropriate Craig - in
relatively warm south FL
I'm by-passing it, less because of its "darkness" than because I don't
want to frighten the children! I could preach a pretty good sermon on,
"Where is our faith when the news ain't so good?" (after all, look at
the praise in the Psalm) and angle towards "God's will WILL be done,
regardless." The thing is, I'm mindful that "children overhear the
Gospel" (Craddock) and I'm apprehensive about scaring them, and
presenting a message, however true it may be, that innocent children
will sometimes be murdered by the hands of someone who doesn't want
God's will done. Children in other countries have lived with similar
fears; stepping on landmines, being separated from parents ... I don't
know if I could do it without running the danger of a child thinking I
was laying on a guilt trip (as in, "Children in Africa are starving,
so eat your dinner") or getting frightened. A clergybrother once told
of his 4- or 5-year-old daughter having nightmres and, when they
researched into it, their Sunday school had taught them of the murder
of the innocents. In our small church, where children are in the
regular worship service, I'm not touching it - call me chicken, wimpy,
or whatever, but we can't control or even guess what children will
pick up, and I don't think children under about 10 need to hear
something that might frighten them (especially after 9/11).
Sally in GA
Unrelated, but I'd like to know for sure:
Since Epiphany falls ON the Sunday, do we still light the Advent and
Christ candles? I'm thinking we do, because they'd be lit up until
Epiphany Sunday, anyhow, right? but I've got a woman (the one in
charge of it, unfortunately) who's kind of uptight about being
"proper" with candles and things like that and she says "no." Of
course, she's also got the acolytes holding their holders upside-down,
and is far from omniscient. I'm not about to get into a power struggle
over CANDLES, but I'd like to know for sure.
Sally in GA
I am planning a 'pack the church' Sunday evangelism event at my church
this weekend and I find this text a bit troubling to work with. I
don't want to compromise the text in any way, but I also want the
guests and visitors to hear the Good News of the Gospel. So far, I
feel that Joseph and Mary's journey to Egypt can be of some help.
Joseph and Mary are filled with fear so they run and they hide. Think
of all the things we fear, and how sometimes we run and hide. But the
Good News for Mary and Joseph and for us is that 'God is with us' -
Emmanuel. I might try to work with the fear, the running, and the
hiding motif and see if I might be able to explore some of the reasons
why we run from church. Many of my visitors and guests will be people
who are not believers, who have left the church for numerous reasons,
or have been in the church for a long time but are fearful,running and
hiding from God and are not even aware of it. Well, this is a thought
in process, but if this speaks to any one's heart please help me build
this idea. If you have any good examples of what people fear, and why
people run or hide, please let me know.
Vicar John in Chicago
Like many of you, I am troubled by the section of this text that tells
of Herod's massacre of the innocents--mostly because of the presence
of children, including my 6-yr-old daughter and 10-yr-old son, in
worship this Sunday. So I've decided to excise vs. 16-18 and stitch
together 13-15 and 19-23.
The title of my sermon is "Dreams and Journeys," and I want to explore
the symbiosis in Matthew 1:18 - 2:23 between dreams and texts.
Borrowing from Reinhold Niebuhr: The revelation given in dreams is
"confirmed and clarified" by the revelation given in scripture (in
Matt esp, the fulfillment of prophecy).
Joseph's dreams lead him on quite a journey: changing his resolve to
quietly divorce his pregnant fiancee/wife; fleeing with his wife and
child into Egypt; returning to Israel and deciding to relocate to
Nazareth of Galilee.
The dream of the Magi leads them on a journey away from Herod, buying
time for the Holy Family to escape to safety in Egypt.
The next step is to make what my 6-yr-old daughter (quoting her
first-grade teacher) refers to as the "text-to-self connection." Given
today's variety of approaches to dream interpretation, what journey
might our dreams lead us on?
Doug in DC
I have been a long time reader, an finally have the courage to make a
contribution. As I read this text, I do not see the dark side, I see
the guidance of God. Even before I read the lectionary text, I had the
words, "just do it!" (thank you Nike) on my mind. What better words
could describe what Joseph did. Certainly he didn't know all of the
reason or the future, he just did what he was instructed to do. I am
not promoting a mindless faith, but sometimes we get so theological
and intellectual that we forget that God wants us to "just do it!" No
but, no what ifs,etc. "just do it!"
joy in me
Well, how about this for good news? Matthew is very intentional about
making parallels between Moses and Jesus. Going to Egypt, being called
out of Egypt after the death of Pharoah/Herod, going out to the
wilderness for testing, going through the water of baptism/Red Sea.
Delivering the sermon on the MOUNT. All of these and more are
carefully planned to show Jesus as the new Moses. There's a lot of
good news there, but I'm not sure how to preach it to people who
aren't too interested in Moses or the exodus. Larry cny
How about "Leftovers" for this passage? The leftovers of Christmas --
not always so nifty to deal with, versus the leftovers of the massacre
of the children -- Jesus, the leftover who helps us deal with the
other leftovers...To me, it's one way to deal with the realities of
the Middle Eastern situation. Despite the late date, just starting to
mull. CE in CO
I have to admit that I don't particularly like to preach the story of
the Holy Innocents, either, but I'm not sure we do our kids (or their
parents) any favors by cutting out the "objectionable" parts of
Scripture. If we do that, we're making the same mistake as Marcion,
who tried to do it in the 4th Century, or Thomas Jefferson, who did it
in 18th Century -- we end up distorting what Scripture says about God.
I think the Reflections on this passage in the New Interpreter's Bible
are helpful, pointing out that this is a "confessonal" story, not an
"objective reporter" story. As a "confessional" story, it need not be
considered literally factual -- it can be exegeted as one of what my
daughter calls "the fairy tale elements" of Scripture. I think our
kids understand that fairy tales are both false (i.e., non-factual)
and true (i.e., they reveal something about reality) and can accept
that Scripture contains such elements. Matthew is telling a "story"
about Jesus that communicates a truth about him and about his
relationship with God -- it contains fairy tale elements for which
there is no objective reportorial evidence. Although it would not have
been out of character for Herod to have ordered the slaughter of
babies and toddlers, there's no record of such an event actually
taking place in Bethlehem during his reign. Matthew has either written
down an oral-tradition legend, or more likely, made up the story to
"show" his thesis of parallels between Jesus and Moses (Herod=Pharoah,
Holy-Innocents = Baby-boys-thrown-in-the-river, that sort of thing).
Anyway, I'm going to leave the passage as is and work with it ... I
thought I was going to be spared that, as I had arranged for a guest
preacher for this Sunday, but she "pooped out" on me! Darn!
Blessings, Eric in KS
Because the "Flight" (2.13-23) follows the visit of the Magi in the
MAtthew account (2.1-12), I am skipping this and doing it in biblical
order (not as the in lectionary). Wonder why these pericopes are
reversed this way?
Mike in IN
Because of this pericope containing a great account of God's
faithfulness, and getting the job done despite an enemy's best efforts
to thwart it, I'm going to refer to Herod and his successor's actions
within another context. I'll even quote vv 13 & 19. While I appreciate
that we can "protect" children to the point of heresy, I don't know
that this story, read from the pulpit, won't frighten one of the
younger ones. It's best dealt with in Sunday school before they learn
it in church, and in an age-appropriate manner.
to the Vicar with a "pack the church" Sunday -- I'm sure you know that
one of the doubts or questions many seekers have are centered
particularly around concerns such as "If God is all-powerful, why
didn't he just make Herod stop?" and a question about the prophesy
"Rachel weeping for her children ..." as part of God's WILL. May be an
opportunity to address these things right off the bat, if you can do
it without "using" the text.
Sally in gA
Herod sends his army into Bethlehem, killing many innocent children in
search of one "enemy" whom he never finds. Perhaps families fled
Bethlehem, in search of refuge elsewhere. If Herod were to have been
approached about the innocent lives lost (as if he really cared), what
would he have said about them? "Colateral damage"? MTSOfan
Is anyone able to answer Salley's question about the candles? I have
the same concern. This is my first year as a pastor and I don't know
whether to keep the advent wreath up and lit for two more Sundays or
not. I am in the United Methodist tradition (if that makes any
difference?!)
I also have a thought about the scripture. I am going to preach on
family's and our expectations for a "Hallmark greeting card - family"
in relation to the perfect holy family who had so many problems:
pregnant out of wedlock, threat of divorce, homelessness, threat of
violence, fear and running away in the middle of the night etc. ...
not so different than some of our experiences ... But God is the one
that makes the difference ... etc. still developing it. Very Green in
Maine
I'm thinking along Martin Luther King Jr. lines- God has a dream, a
dream for you. This connects the for- you-ness of Jesus as Emmanuel
with the impetus to action we find in the numerous dreams of this
pericope. We face the 'Osama Bin-Herod' situation of wondering where
the sword will strike next, even from out of a shoe!!!! Many around us
feel the fear that Joseph felt, and this is a way to put a positive
spin on it. I'm considering showing a video clip of MLK to kick the
message off.
Pastor Steve in BC, Canada
Is any one thinking about tying this passage in with the cultural
phenomenon "The Lord of the Rings"? There is an evil force seeking the
one to rule them all, and this evil force kills the innocent while a
small band does what is necessary to protect and fulfill the destiny
of the one. Just thinking out loud. OLAS
To the question, "Why flee to Egypt rather than Nazareth." ---
Larry cny and Eric in KS, I think, get to the heart of the matter.
Matthew himself points to the fact that this is a theological move,
not a practical one.
Also, according to Matthew, it would not be accurate to speak of
returning to Nazareth. According to Matthew, Joseph and Mary lived in
Bethlehem before the birth. Only moved to Nazareth after Egypt. It is
Luke who says they lived in Nazareth and travelled to Bethlehem for
the census.
And to the question of candles. I have never seen advice from ANY
denominational tradition (and specifically not UMC) to suggest the
Christ Candle should be taken out before Epiphany, the culmination
feast of the Christmas season.
Any attempt to bring Christmas to a close before January 6 is a
secular influence, conflicting with both traditional and bliblical
concepts of what the season is about. Light them and shine them
bright!!!
pHil
In regard to the candles one is ligted the First Sunday of Advent, and
each Sunday following the Christ Candle would be lit this Sunday since
this is the first Sunday since Christmas Day. The Advent Wreath is
supposed to be removed on Epiphany Sunday and replaced with the
Nativity Scene which should remain until Transfiguration Sunday. If
you need proof this is found on page 262 in The United Methodist Book
of Worship. I plan to preach the Matthew passage but from the stand
point that Jospeh and Mary had to start new beginings they had to
start over in Egypt and once again in Nazareth but God was in the
center of their new beginnings and he should be in the center of ours.
Kathy in NC
I am focusing on the vulnerability of God and relating it to the
concept of Jesus being able to sympathize with us (Heb 4). Title: When
God Ran
BTW, I wonder if those who have the courage to censor God's word as an
attempt to protect children also have the courage to use their
position to preach against the much more graphic violence found on tv
and in video games. If you really want to make a difference in kid's
lives, edit Saturday morning cartoons, not Sunday morning Scripture!
Sam in Ga.
Thank you Sally for your input. You're are totally correct on assuming
that seekers will ask the question "why didn't God just stop Herod." I
might talk a little about the gift of free will. I am also trying to
develop my fear, run, and hide motif. It seems to me that Jospeh and
Mary characterize the ideal, in the sense that they both follow God's
will and go to Egypt. But what about the ones who run to Herod (who
represents in the story the life-taking character). Many people
seeking God today have run to the wrong god before they came to the
Christ (alcohol, greed, etc.) But because of Joseph and Mary's
faithfulness they received Grace and life in their new born Son. I'm
not there yet, but would appreciate more input on this text. Vicar
John in Chicago
(Thanks for all your previous comments - this was written ten days
ago, but I couldn't upload it for some reason. Blessings to all)
Writing from Australia, this text is a poignant reminder that the
Kingdom of God, (and indeed the people of faith) sometimes have to
flee, or fly in the face of the governmental authorities that would
persecute and kill them.
Some would dispute the historicity of the flight to Egypt. Either way,
it's a powerful story of the status of Jesus as a refugee, a stranger
in this world, one who challenges authority.
What do I do, as a person of faith, living in a country run by a
government that recently won election by running a horrific scare
campaign about the dangers of refugee boat people coming to our
shores. A government that locks up everyone who would seek asylum in
my country, locks them up in ghastly concentration camps in the middle
of our most inhospitable and arid regions.
What do I do? And how do I preach on this text, given that I feel so
strongly about this issue, without making the issue the gospel. James
1:27 is one of the key texts of my life, but as my wife reminds me,
saving refugees, treating them humanely is not the sum total of the
gospel.
I'm thinking of heading towards hospitality, exploring the christian
history and understanding of this as a faith practice for us as a
community. I'd love to hear other people's thoughts on this...
particularly from Australia, but also from others across the world.
Grace and blessings to you all at this time. Luke
About the Wreath issue...
The tradition we follow (common in a lot of Episcopal Churches) is to
change the colored candles to white (natural) on Christmas Eve and
light the four and the central white "Christ" candle beginning at the
Christmas Eve services; all five are lighted through the 12th Day of
Christmas, i.e., the Feast of the Epiphany, Jan. 6. Then on the
evening of Epiphany, burn the natural decorations (trees, wreaths,
etc.) We've not had a Christmas Tree burning at my parish for many
years because of dry conditions and we probably won't again this year.
I miss it - it was a fun way to end the season. At my high school (an
Episcopal private school), we had a community-wide Christmas Tree
buring on Epiphany night.
Blessings, Eric in KS
Thank you Sam in GA for sharing about this passage. We preachers need
to ask God to place within us the courage to preach the word of God
and then allow Him to work in the hearts and lives of the people. It
we do not preach the Gospel on the whole, then we are doing the people
a disservice, by not feeding them the bread of life. The children need
to know what is in the Book too! TF in GA
I too, worry about the exposure of children to too much violence. It
would seem that they are filled with anxiety regarding the Sept 11
events. Perhaps this is an opportunity to help them know that God is
in control and was going to save us eternally, no matter what evil
others may do. Once following a tornado in our town a father of one of
my confirmands talked with me. He said that during the tornado his
daughter felt no fear and he questioned her about it. She said that
Pastor--- had told her that death can be a painful thing, but through
it we go to a better place. The important thing is to keep trusting
that God is in control in the end and God loves us. Like all of us
children usually fear death. To cover it up does not help us deal with
it. fisherfolk in OH
Kathy in NC. I like the idea of new beginnings. Perhaps if we focus
less on the innocents and more on the actual events. New beginnings =
new year = resolutions. What is the resolution that we make each year
- perhaps the earlier contribution regarding NIKE can shed some light?
Malia in CT
I have found the comments of Australian theologian Bill Loader
helpful. Here is a part of what he has to say about this week's
lesson:
"The narrative is packed with allusions. It can be quite enriching to
explain to people today what these are. Better to take the risk of
seeming too much to be a teacher and giver of information than simply
to leave the story without helping people face its mythical quality.
Otherwise, as so often when teaching fails, people will assume that,
yes, this is supposed to be real history and their faith will just as
unreal, uncritical and unconnected with the world in which we live.
"The answer is not to try to squeeze the essence out of the rich
allusions of the text in the hope of producing some kind of statement
of meaning reduced to words and definitions. These stories invite us
to play, but we need to play them over into our own territory. To the
sensitive imagination the threatened ruler absurdly massacring the
helpless has allusions to events in our own age. Matthew, is, after
all not telling us about the baby and not just telling us about the
past history of the adult Jesus but also reflecting the pain which his
own community has faced. This pain belongs in the Christmas season if
Christ is not to be trivialised. We have our stories of infants stolen
from their families."
You can read his whole essay at
http://wwwstaff.murdoch.edu.au/~loader/MtChristmas1.htm
Blessings, Eric in KS
Certainly, we are faced with a challenge as pastors for this Sunday
with a poignant text that cuts to the heart and forces us to look at
the lengths of violence our world uses to erradicate the one who
threatens to bring real peace, real love. I too, had read the
commentary from the New Interpreter's, and to some extent found it
helpful in addressing the dilemma of a God who seemingly has little
regard for suffering children. Yet I find its dismissal of the story
through lack of historical evidence unsatisfying. Though this may well
be true, we cannot deny the fact that the Bible is full of violent
images-- the crucifixion of God's own Son to take the most obvious
example. (I remember distinctly how striking it was to hear children
singing the song in our church "From the manger to the cross" in tones
like a lullaby.) We, as a church, need to address and not deny these
images are real lest we lose all credibility as proclaimers of "the
truth". This text is difficult, and part of what makes it difficult is
that it forces us to deal with the concept of evil. And let's not
forget that Herod did not act alone. He had many hired men (and
women?) to do his dirty work of killing babies-- good people just
trying to put food on their tables for their family-- people just
obeying the law. Once we personalize Herod things get more complex.
How does Herod play out in all of us? How do we worship the status
quo? How do we "just do our job" without looking at what is happening
around us? How many babies die each day for lack of food that we could
prevent if we really cared? How many children die is sweat factories
to make our Nikes? Someone once said to me that they never asked God
why there were so many starving people in the world because they
feared God might ask them the same question. We can not dismiss this
text or make it into something more palitable. This is the Gospel.
Let's deal with it.
ML from Salinas, CA
Hello, friends, exciting stuff really it is. Lord of the Rings, yes,
even the Harry Potter popularity is pale in comparison to what we have
here. But often this is avoided, too embarrasing even scandelous.
I will make reference to the warnings of danger withour dwelling on
the massacre.
The magi are exciting. Magic right here in the gospel. Not only are
they gentiles, astrologers and strangers who find the chirst child,
God is speaking to them in dreams too. wow!
Manzel
the reason the second half of the story is first is to put the magi in
the season of epiphany while treating the danger as part of the
Christmas story
Manzel
Jesus the multi-national.
Egyptian cultural influence is an exciting thing unless one is trying
to pretend that Jesus had no cultrural influences.
Joseph being a craftsman who spent 3 years in Egypt must have been in
great demand as the Roman City of Sephorous was being built only 4
miles from Nazereth. In all likelihood Jesus was exposed to all kinds
of social differences and social conflicts before he was even 10. What
a great preperation for the prince of peace. Manzel
I am not sure anyone would be interested in a dialogue over the verses
preceding this lectionary passage other than myself. I am looking at
the sermon title, "Dreams That Redirect." Intersecting the dreams of
Joseph, we find a dream sent to redirect the Wisemen's journey. I am
curious about the times both ancient and present that God sends a
dream that redirects our paths. Any thoughts? TN Mack
In our DISCIPLE II bible study last night, a member of the class
mentioned his discomfort with the fact that in the Exodus story, the
Angel of Death killed all the firstborn of the Egyptians and that
Pharoah and his entire army were killed when God let the "waters back
upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots and chariot drivers." It is
difficult for him to understand a God of love in the midst of such
devastation.
In the story of Jesus, Joseph and Mary fleeing to Egypt, we again hear
of rampant killing of children. It is difficult for us to understand -
fantasy (as one contributer puts it) or fact. In the midst of what we
are living today, how can we not believe that Herod (we've read and
heard the stories of this Herod and his lust for blood) could
proscribe such an act? Someone had it right - Osoma-bin-Herod.
Osama-bin-Ladin killed thousands for his cause and it probably didn't
turn a hair on his head.
But the Jesus whose birth we just celebrated tells us that God has
numbered the hairs on our heads and we are precious to God. Back to
the DISCIPLE class, in our video presentation, there ws a dialogue
between Rabbi Stephen Fuchs, and Rev. William Willimon and they
mentioned the death of Pharoah and his army. Rabbi Fuchs said there
was a Midrash regarding that story and that the angels were rejoicing
at Pharoah and his army dying. But God made them be quiet as tears
streamed down God's face and God said, "They, too, are my creatures."
The first one to shed tears at the death of any of God's children -
innocents or not - is God.
The reality of it is that our lives are full of violence - we are just
living it more closely these days. May God be with all of us as we
share the Gospel this week. Let God speak and our message will come
forth loud and clear. We serve a God of love and grace in the midst of
uncertainty and war.
Betty in Upstate NY
Betty in Upstate NY -- thanks for the Red Sea midrash -- it's a very
powerful story and could be easily applied to this Gospel lesson.
Blessings, Eric in KS
Getting a little ahead of myself but I just finished running this
weeks bullitins. I asked everyone to write their New Years resolutions
down and seal them in an envelope and write their nems on the
envelope. At the close of the service we will lay them on the altar.
I'll collect them put them in a minila envelope and seal them up until
next year and we will thwn pass them out and see how we did. I
suggested such things as better church attendence, inviting people to
church, more attentive to their spouse and children, reading the Bible
through in a year Etc. I'm going to use Robert Frost's Poem "Stopping
in the woods on a snowy eve"
Harold in Alabama
Vicar John in Chicago - be careful to distinguish between running from
real danger, and running from (avoiding) something good. Joseph's fear
was justified. He was protecting his family... and God was leading him
to safety. DGinNYC
This text has just exhausted me. I am still struggling on a theme.
I've listened to the advice of a few of you in here and I think I
would be doing a diservice to the text if I went with the running and
hiding motif. Sally in GA was right, many people are going to ask the
question, "why didn't God stop Herod?" The question that keeps dancing
in my head as a sermon title might be "Why does God let bad things
happen?" Why did God let innocent children die? Why didn't God tell
all parents to run to Egypt? The truth is that I'm not sure, and I
imagine people in the pew wonder why as well. All of us have witnessed
the 'unfair' reality of Sept 11. Can anything make sense of violent
events. Of course, there are many attempts at justifying: God doesn't
cause evil, but humans do. This seems logical enough, but it doesn't
give an answer for an indiscriminate tornado, or the child sick with
AIDS. Many people wonder why there's so much evil in this world, and
as a preacher sometimes we have to wrestle with the tough questions,
otherwise we fail our congregations. Well, I'll keep at it. God bless!
Vicar John in Chicagodear friends, g'day Luke this is from another
Australian who is struggling with the present Federal Government's
actions against refugees, especially those from the middle East - if
you are white South African or from Zambia that is OK but don't be
swarthy! Back to the scripture - we have to be true to the story -
Jesus entering our world was not all sweetness and light - you
Americans use too much corn syrup - the reality is that Jesus causes a
reaction - the Hymn in John's Gospel said it "the world did not
recognise him". Jesus comes into the world and creates a reaction by
evil - I am thinking of referring to the reaction of Herod - "the
Government" and suggesting a simmilar reation in Australia is an act
of Evil - Like my brother Luke I may find there a lot of protest from
the frightened and comfortable white congregation ! Blessings Koala
George
On the question of it seeming to be unfair that Jesus escaped while
all the other baby boys in Bethlehem died, remember that Jesus was
spared at this time precisely so that he could die later, at the hands
of Herod II. He died for all those slaughtered babies, and for the
soldiers who slaughtered them, and for Herod both I and II, and for
Pilate, and for you and for me. -- Mike in Maryland
It was to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet. The
text tells us why they fled to Egypt and why they came back. What can
we point at in our congregations that we could say, this happened to
fulfill God's will for us? BD in Chicago
The questions is not so much "why" as where is the point of
identity... One of my elders said, in reflecting on the September 11
and anthrax attacks, that this was the first time in his life he felt
that someone out there wanted him dead. (I quickly pointed out that he
must not have teenagers...) But even Jesus had to live in a world
where his life was in real danger. God became part of this world in
order to redeem it... not by forcing good behavior, but by becoming
one of us and leading us in a different way.
We don't have a full sermon this week. We're also singing carols. I
think we all need a break!
God's blessings. DGinNYC
I don't believe it to be either Marcionite nor Jacksonian to leave out
verses 16-18. That still leaves the threat of Herod in v.13, but
spares the tender ones of any age from the graphic details. I would
also leave out the 1st 5 words of v.13, beginning with "an angel of
the Lord appeared..."
It all depends on what message you want to preach. If you want to talk
about "Osama-bin-Herod" and how the human solution to problems is
often "kill them all, let God sort 'em out". then you need to leave
the violence in. It is not gratuitous. If you want to preach on God's
guidance of Joseph, or Joseph's trusting response to God, then get
them to Egypt and back again. It doesn't matter what happened in
Bethlehem in the mean time.
On the candle issue- I unwittingly chose fast burning purple candles
(they were on sale) and Advent 1 burned down to vapors in the holder
on Advent 4 Sunday. So I am, as Eric advised, replacing them all with
white candles. On the other hand, I like the idea of replacing the
wreath with a nativity scene. I somehow failed to commit to memory
page 262 of my UMBOW. Maybe I'll put the shepherds in this Sunday and
add the Magi next week. tom in TN(USA)
Next week is Epiphany. Following the example of the Magi we, being
wise folks, will come to worship the newborn king bringing a little
something to help mother and child. We will have a baby shower for
Jesus (Seems like the only one we didn't get a Christmas gift for!)
I'll remind the congregation tomorrow that while they are out
returning gifts this week to remember the one name left on their list
and buy a baby gift. We will bring diapers, lotion, powder, outfits
(especially premie size) and other baby essentials (no myrrh, please).
These will be donated to Miriam's Promise, our conference's Crisis
Pregnancy and Adoption Service.
This week I will preach on Joseph and all he gave up to take care of
Mary and Jesus. First it was the untimely pregnancy, of someone else's
child, and now the upheaval and removal to a foreign land. Do you
think he trudged all the way to Egypt muttering, "What next, God? I
had all these plans..."
There is a song on the Country stations by Brad Paisley, "He Didn't
Have To Be", about his Step-father. He recounts how taking on a wife
who already has a child is a job many men wouldn't want, but being
that child, his life was changed by a man willing to be the dad "He
Didn't Have To Be". No doubt Jesus was shaped by spending much time in
prayer with his Heavenly Father, but his earthly dad must also have
formed his character somewhat. What of Joseph can we see in Jesus? We
can also change the world through the shaping of children by
fostering, adopting, mentoring, or by supporting those who do. Maybe
God needs your help raising some child to do great things. How much
are you willing to give up to help God raise his children? And so
on...enuf for now. tom in TN(USA)
Tom in TN wrote: "So I am, as Eric advised, replacing them all with
white candles. On the other hand, I like the idea of replacing the
wreath with a nativity scene. I somehow failed to commit to memory
page 262 of my UMBOW. Maybe I'll put the shepherds in this Sunday and
add the Magi next week."
I get around this whole thing by having both the creche and the wreath
from Christmas Eve on... At our Children's Eucharist early Christmas
Eve, the kids and I set up the Creche and talk about the significance
of each of the figures ... The Baby Jesus figure is not put in (the
kids understand that he won't be "born" until "tomorrow") and the Magi
figures we put on a table in the Narthex. Over the next 12 days, I
move them to window sills and other places each day as they make their
way to the Stable. Then on Epiphany, they arrive; I think it's neat
that Epiphany falls on a Sunday this year as I can talk about their
arrival with the kids that morning. The Baby Jesus, btw, I put into
the Creche at the conclusion of the Midnight Mass and the congregation
sings "Silent Night".... this is a tradition many years' in this
parish and the last one I served. A bit sentimental, but Hey! It's
Christmas!
Blessings, Eric in KS
PS -- I think Tom makes valid points about excising vv. 16-18, but I
still wouldn't do it. I don't like it when the lectionary editors
leave verses out, unless there are very good literary-critical reasons
for doing so - obvious copyist errors, that sort of thing -- and
frequently will include those glossed over verses. I guess if I was
really pressed to defend my position I would argue that Scripture is a
"whole" and we need to read it and exegete it that way, not pick and
choose the bits we are comfortable with. . DGinNYC
I'm not a big fan of Bishop John Shelby Spong, but this comment about
Matthew's Gospel is, perhaps, helpful...
"When Matthew began to tell his story to his Jewish audience he
chronicled a similar account about Jesus' birth (Matt. 2:16ff). Once
again a powerful king posed a threat to the Jewish male babies. Herod,
having been deceived by the wise men, sent his soldiers to Bethlehem
with orders to slay every Jewish boy under two years of age. (They are
known in the Christian tradition as "The Holy Innocents.") Once again
the child of promise was spared. The holy family fled to Egypt. No
Jewish reader failed to hear Matthew's real point, which was not that
such an event literally occurred, but rather that this child was a new
Moses whose birth occasioned the retelling of a Moses story." This
Hebrew Lord by John Shelby Spong
Blessings, Eric in KS
Sally in GA- I ma lighting all the Advent Candles AND the Christ
candle and will until epiphany, when the Christmas Season is over
rokinrev in CNY
This is from Dan Christ, Chaplain at Bethany Home in Alexandria, MN.
When I read that joke last week, I recalled it and decided that it
would make a great introduction to my message. Thanks!
Merry Christmas to you on the First Sunday after the Nativity of our
Lord and the 5th day of Christmas.
It was the day after Christmas at a church in San Francisco. The
pastor of the church was looking over the cradle when he noticed that
the baby IHS was missing from among the figures. Immediately he turned
& went outside &saw a little boy with a red wagon, & In wagon was the
figure of the little infant, IHS. So he walked up to the boy &said,
"Well, where did you get Him, my fine friend?" The little boy replied,
"I got him from the church." "why did you take him?" The boy said,
"Well, about a week before Christmas I prayed to the little Lord IHS
&I told him if he would bring me a red wagon for Christmas I would
give him a ride around the block in it.
Well it is the Sunday after Christmas and we ask, Where are you giving
the Christ Child?
Today we heard a story about the Holy Family fleeing to Egypt. Mary
had given Jesus a ride around in her womb for nine months. Joseph
carried the infant Jesus and the Blessed Mother to Egypt. And then
after that he carried the Christ child back to Nazareth.
Where will you carry Christ?
Let me tell you the story of Emma who is a resident out in a Good
Samaritan Home in North Dakota. Emma had been at the Good Samaritan
Home for four and half years. She could recite poetry that she had
learnt as a child out on the plains in the one room school house. She
got around pretty well in her wheelchair for her age of 93. Her two
sons came back to see her from Minneapolis and from California usually
around Christmas. Her daughter was about 40 some miles away in Lisbon,
N.D. the town made famous by Lawrence Welk. She was married to a
farmer there and saw her mom Emma every week. Her daughter was in her
sixties and so was her husband but they did what they could for Emma.
But often if was Emma who did for others. She like to wake her
roommate up. She would ring a bell—not to get the attention of the
nurses or aides, but to wake up her roommate. And Emma liked to do
hand work –sometimes crocheting and sometimes knitting and most of the
time keeping up her voluminous diary. She loved to keep a journal
about her life and those of her kids and grand kids and great grand
children. She liked to make u scrap books for the grandkids from the
pictures she got from them as well as newspaper clippings that were
current at the time of the grand children’s photo.
She saved all this stuff in her closet and would take it out to show
her grandkids if they visited or the parents of the grandkids when
they were there. She was what you would call a loving woman and her
love was as I could discern because she was fully convinced that the
Lord Jesus Christ loved her.
It was not at Christmas, but in March or April, when the winter is
starting to get pretty old. When you live out on the prairie o N.D. by
the end of March and into April, you have had enough of winter. Well,
even so, Emma tried to be chipper and positive about life. When she’d
wake up in the morning, she ring her bell for the roommate and then
say, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in
it.”
Well it was not too long after that but Jennifer came into the room.
Jennifer was the newest nurse aide at the facility and she was a sweet
girl. Emma knew that Jennifer was a single mom with a little girl of
her own at home. And although Jennifer was usually a ray of sunlight
herself, Emma could see that the girl was looking pretty ragged and
run down, if not discouraged.
Emma said, “Jennifer, you look kind of sad or tired. What’s the
matter?” Jennifer said, “Oh, nothing. Everything is fine.” And after
helping Emma and her roommate get up and get going Emma went on with
her day and actitivies like chapel and knitting.
But along about 2:40 P.M. , Jennifer came back to see Emma who was
alone in her room.
“You know, Emma, “ Jennifer said, “ You asked if there was something
wrong earlier, I already punched out and your roommate is out, maybe
you can give me some advice. Can you listen to my problem?”
So for the next fifteen or twenty minutes Jennifer talked to Emma
about her problems with her daughter and her boyfriend who wanted to
marry her and the man who was the father of her child(they were
different men) and how much trouble she was having now with that man.
“What should I do? Emma, “ Jennifer asked.
Emma was silent for a while and then she said, “Have you talked to the
Lord about it?”
For the next ten minutes Emma told her about the Lord and how much
guidance she had had through all her hardships and troubles. And she
concluded, “Maybe we could seek the help from the Lord. Do you pray?”
Jennifer said, “I haven’t prayed since I was a little kid. Did you
think it will help?”
Emma said, “ Well, it can’t hurt and I know t hat the Lord Jesus has
seen me through every trouble and I’m still here. I’m a survivor.”
So Emma prayed as tears came down Jennifer’s cheeks and finally she
concluded, “In Jesus’ Name Amen.” And Jennifer said, “amen, for me
too, Lord.” And then turning to Emma, Jennifer said, “I think I know
what I have to do but I’m sure glad that you helped and that you
prayed with me.”
I tell you that story about Emma because that is how she carries the
Christ Child around with her. If Joseph carried the Christ Child to
Egypt and then to Nazareth, and the little boy in San Francisco
carried him in his new red wagon, the question for us is: How do we
carry Christ with us? How do we bear him to our neighbor so that he or
she too may know the blessing and favor of the Lord?
Merry Christmas!!!
I have divided this lesson up into the three different "scenes" in the
passage and will have the congregation sing a related hymn in between
each portion. I am also having a Watchnight type of opening to the
service--singing "O God, Our Help in Ages Past," with scripture
passage or prayer in between each verse. Sharon in Bethlehem
Here I am at 11:02 p.m. on Saturday night just finishing my sermon for
tomorrow (hacking and coughing and sneezing all along)... I don't
really like it; I wish I had more time to work on it ... but here it
is:
http://www.stfrancis-ks.org/subpages/asermons/xmas-1a-rcl-2001.htm
Blessings, Eric in KS
