Year A - Christmas Day - December 25, 2022
The Tenderness of “Merry Christmas”
“9 Let the rivers clap their hands, *
and let the hills ring out with joy before the Lord,
when he comes to judge the earth.
10 In righteousness shall he judge the world *
and the peoples with equity.” Amen.
Merry Christmas!
So how did the present opening go this morning? Did you get the special gift you hoped for? I received more under the tree than I was expecting. It’s nice to have a college aged kiddo with a job! Today we celebrate the best gift God ever gave human beings: a savior in Jesus Christ.
When I was growing up there was a silly Christmas song that was part of every kids’ Kindergarten Christmas program we performed.
“All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth, my two front teeth, my two front teeth…” anyone else remember that little song? I remember thinking the kid was awfully short sighted.
What was he thinking? There were better gifts to ask for: world peace, an end to famine, a new BMX bike with a racing seat and handlebar brakes, for example. Everyone had two front teeth sitting right in your head!
I loved that bike. Months after Christmas I tested the brakes while flying down a steep hill, I went sailing over the chrome handlebars, and planted my face on the pavement. The bike survived unscathed. My front teeth, not so much. Suddenly, that kid singing his desire for two front teeth seemed really wise. What we take for granted about the health of our bodies, or the love of our parents, or the warm prayers of our faith family, can be what we truly desire most deeply.
Understanding that song better popped open a space for gratitude in my 9 year old self. Also, we had great dentist and my front choppers were saved.
Every time that song comes across my ears, I am nudged to reconsider my Christmas list and the reason we celebrate. It isn’t just a miracle baby that we remember today. The reading from John beautifully describes the fullness of God’s gift to us: John 1:3 “What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”
When we think of darkness it isn’t the quiet, calm nighttime kind of dark in our homes. It isn’t the fun, spooky kind of dark when we tell ghost stories. The darkness God sees in human suffering is the brokenness of hate and violence. That darkness of our despair can only be lifted by hope.
For Christians hearing someone desperately wish for hope, is like me hearing the song about two front teeth. Hope is already in you, it’s obvious. The Christian knows deep down that Christ is already present in the world and the end of history is will not be destruction, but abundant life. A life of joy and delight where everyone will reflect of God’s love. That is what the Gospel passage declares.
But, I assure you, hope is not to be taken for granted. Just outside our doors and maybe for some of us here in worship hope is nowhere to be found. It may have been ripped away because of trauma or violence, but many people in our community have never been offered hope.
Our children were denied societal protection these pandemic years. Parades, school parties, family gatherings, and unifying community events were first canceled and now fraught with antagonism. Child abuse skyrocketed as we sheltered in our homes and no one could step in to rescue little ones from harm. Our children suffer a pandemic of hopelessness. Loneliness, grief, and hardship are plagues in every generation, but they have been the staple experiences of adolescents for three years now.
We can change that. As you roll out of the frenzied holiday season, hold fast to the tenderness of Merry Christmas. Leave your joyful heart vulnerably open to caring for others. Continue those small, pure kindnesses. Keep up your patience and delight in children’s needs. Hand out cookies because they’re fun to bake. Show up to volunteer because it reminds you of Jesus’ love.
The only way for those trapped in despair to find a way out is for them to witness joy and get to know hope. That is Christ’s gift and as the Body of Christ, what we can give to those around us.
“9 Let the rivers clap their hands, *
and let the hills ring out with joy before the Lord,
when he comes to judge the earth.
10 In righteousness shall he judge the world *
and the peoples with equity..” Amen.
Dean Vanessa Clark+