"THE ORIGINAL CHRISTMAS CAROL"

 “THE ORIGINAL CHRISTMAS CAROL”

Yes, Advent is here, arriving yesterday on the First Sunday in Advent.  It begins a run of 37 days until the 12th day of Christmas ends on the date of the Georgia run-off election for control of the U.S. Senate, January 5.  The next day, January 6, begins the season of Epiphany, when the U.S. Congress gathers to certify that the Biden/Harris ticket won the presidential election.  For those who think that I am being too political here, please note how the Gospel of Luke begins his version of the Christmas story:  “In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered.  This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria” (2:1-2).

The Christmas story is filled with political intrigue as God’s work to restructure our imaginations begins at the margins of life, not in the halls of power.  In Matthew’s version of the Christmas story, King Herod is infuriated that a perceived threat to his power comes not from the elite of Jerusalem but from the hick town of Bethlehem. Herod knows how the world works, so he sends soldiers to Bethlehem to kill all the baby boys two and under.  

     “How odd of God” is a phrase attributed to several poets, including Ogden Nash, but it is definitely appropriate here in the Christmas story.  God begins not in the courts of Jerusalem or in the council of the High Priest, but rather in the Gentile-laden, Gallilean town of Nazareth.  Here She calls on another female, a young woman named Mary, to start the new chapter in God’s work with bringing a new vision of life, justice and love to the world.  Mary is engaged to be married, and when the angel Gabriel asks her to become pregnant with the child of God, it not only scandalizes her but also threatens her life.  Her fiancé Joseph could have her stoned to death for infidelity.  That law was rarely enforced at that time, but it was still on the books, so who knows what a Brett Kavanaugh or an Amy Coney Barrett would do if it came before them?

    There is a reason that God chose a woman as the bearer of this great good news, and a reason that She chose this particular woman.  The unmarried, soon-to-be-pregnant-before-marriage (and in danger of the death penalty) Gallilean named Mary – she says “Yes.”  It will begin a huge and dangerous and heart-breaking and yet exciting adventure for this young woman from Galilee.  Though it was unlikely that she realized all the implications of her decision, she did realize the radicality of this movement by God.  She sang this song in response to her decision to accept God’s request, a song inspired by the song of Hannah in First Samuel 2.  Here is what she sang:

“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my savior,

For God has taken note of my marginalized status,

From now on all generations will call me blessed,

For God is mighty has done great things for me, Holy is Her name,

God’s mercy will be on those who honor Her from one generation to

      another,

God has stretched out Her mighty arm and has scattered the proud with

      All their plans,

God has brought down the mighty from their seats of power and has

     Exalted those on the margins.

God has filled the hungry with good things

And has sent the rich away with empty pockets and hands.

God has kept the promise made to our ancestors and has come to our help,

God has remembered to show mercy to Abraham and Sarah 

And to their descendants forever.”

    This is the original Christmas carol, so take it in and lift it up! In this crazy time. In this time of Covid and Trumpdemic and the surging power of racism, let us recall these Advent and Christmas stories, and let us make room for them in our hearts.  This is not a sweet, sentimental story.  This is the story of our lives and our times, with all the violence and danger and despair and anxiety. It is always contemporary, and let us set aside some time in this season to allow both the radicality and the Good News of this story sink in.  Because we know the power of Herod so well in these days, we desperately need the courage of Mary, the visions of Joseph, the ecstasy of the shepherds and the dedication of the Magi.  Let us open our hearts to receive these gifts of the season.