Aleppo and Newtown and Bethlehem

We rarely hear the story in church so most of us aren't familiar with it....The Slaughter of the Innocents....but it's right there in Matthew immediately following the visitation of the 3 Magi.

In fact it was the visitation of the Magi that prompted this horrendous demonstration of the abuse of power.  The clueless Magi decide it is a good idea to stop by Herod's palace to get directions to the place of birth of the King of the Jews.

They go to the current ruthless ruler, who rules over the conquered people of Israel, and put him on notice that a new king.....the rightful King of the Jews....has been born.  Could you tell us the way?  We have every reason to believe that Herod was oblivious to the prophecy and its intersection with history that was taking place right under his nose.  Hey King...the real King has been born!

Matthew then says, "and Herod was nervous....and all Jerusalem with him"  Of course everyone was nervous because when Herod ain't happy, heads roll.  In the end, it was the heads of all the innocent boys age 2 and under who were living in Bethlehem at the time.  The Magi had provided Herod with a nice window of time even if they couldn't point out the specific prophecy fulfilling child.

So Herod killed them all.  All the male children younger than two....all but Jesus who escaped in the night to flee to Egypt. This bloody episode concludes with this haunting quote

 "a voice was heard in Ramah, 

weeping and loud lamentation.  

Rachel weeping for  her children

 and she will not be consoled

 for they are no more"  Matthew 2.18

Oh yes, there are places in the Church where this story is called the Martyrdom of the Innocents, but I don't want to pretty it up even that much. When we look at the faces of the victims at Sandy Hook Elementary School....the beautifully young and hope filled faces of the children....there is nothing pretty and the grief is beyond bearing.  When we glimpse the dust covered faces of children fleeing the carnage of Aleppo, there are no words.  Only grief.  Deep, abiding grief.

And just perhaps, a hint of why it is Jesus came to be among us.......to save us from ourselves.

Reformation Monday: Luther's Christmas Day sermon, 1530

Besides the opportunity to gather and sing some of their favorite hymns, Martin Luther wanted his congregation to walk away with several important truths.  First, Jesus was born of Mary and second, Jesus (and Jesus alone) is Lord and Savior.

"...it is a high article to believe that this infant, born of Mary, is true God; for nobody's reason can ever accept the fact that he who created heaven and earth and is adored by the angels was born of a virgin."  

To whom is this joyful news to be proclaimed?  "Those who are faint-hearted and feel the burden of their sins, like the shepherds, to whom the angels proclaim the message, letting the great lords in Jerusalem, who do not accept it, go on sleeping."

As hard as it may be to believe, this is what we preach..."Mary bore the child, took it to her breast and nursed it, and the Father in heaven has his Son, lying in the manger and the mother's lap"

Luther is concerned that Mary as the mother of Jesus can or has become an idol, elevated above the child she bore.  We hear some of that in this language....

"So great should that light which declares that he is my Savior become in my eyes that I can say:  Mary, you did not bear this child for yourself alone.  The child is not yours; you did not bring him forth for yourself, but for me, even though you are his mother, even though you held him in your arms and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and picked him up and laid him down.

"But I have greater honor than your honor as his mother.  For your honor pertains to your motherhood of the body of the child, but my honor is this, that you have my treasure, so that I know none...who can help me except this child whom you O Mary, hold in your arms.  

"If a man could put out of his mind all that he is and has except this child, and if for him everything - money, goods, power, or honor - fades into darkness and he despises everything on earth compared with this child, so that heaven with its stars and earth with all its power and all its treasures becomes as nothing to him, that man would have the true gain and fruit of this message of the angel....'for unto you is born this day the Savior.'"

Luther wants folks to take Jesus as a gift to and for them.  Jesus is a gift 'to you' and 'for you' 

May you O man, "learn that Christ, born of the virgin, is the Lord and Savior, but also accept the fact that is your Lord and Savior...he is more mine than Mary's, for he was born for me, for the angel said, 'To you' is born the Savior."

"If St. Bartholomew or St. Anthony or a pilgrimage to St. James or good works save, then they surely are my savior....But then what is left of the honor of the child who was born this day, whom the angel calls Lord and Savior....If I set up any savior except this child, then he is not the Savior.  But the text says that he is the Savior.  And if this is true -and it is the truth - then let everything else go."

To sum it up:  It is Jesus.  Only Jesus.  All Jesus....and nothing else.

Text is taken from Martin Luther's Basic Theological Writings, edited by Timothy F. Lull, 1989, p227-35

Mary: servant of the Lord

and Mary said, "I am a servant of my God....."

What if she had said, "OK, I'll take the job"?  Would that shift the way you imagine Mary?  Would that help you understand that she had a voice?  That she made a decision?  That she willingly became a partner with God in the great human drama called Jesus?

Would it help you give up this false image of Mary: Meek and Mild?  Because at her core, Mary was a revolutionary: she signed on to this great adventure because she thought it would change the world.  It would lift up the lowly and put the haughty in their place.  It would feed the hungry and send the rich away empty.  It would cut the arrogance of the proud and protect the downtrodden.  Mary signed on because she thought .......just as the Hebrew scriptures had taught throughout the centuries........that finally the world was going to turn.  The coming Messiah (the anointed one, the Christ: they all mean the same thing) would finally bring justice to earth and that was her objective. (see Luke 1.46 ff)

Don't believe me?  Well, read on in Luke chapter 1 and listen as Mary declares her praise and thanksgiving.....not because she is going to become the BVM (Blessed Virgin Mary) but because the people of Israel, who had long waited for God to right the wrongs of this world, would realize the great promise of YHWH.

Mary's wonderful song known as the Magnificat (from the Latin for the first words "my soul magnifies the Lord") sets out this agenda.  The coming of this promised one was never, ever about Mary; it was always about God's promises to Israel and the coming of peace and justice to the world.

Mary was the human agent in this drama.  She was not necessary for God's plan to come to fruition; if Mary had said No, someone would have said Yes.  But that is how God works in this world, through human agents whose actions further the coming of the kingdom.  God brings justice in this world through all those, who having come to know Our Lord Jesus, now act out the peace, forgiveness and justice they have experienced in him.

We are all servants of someone or something....our family, our boss, our jobs, our health, our hobbies.  Mary chose to be a servant of her God and the Cosmic Plan God was about to unfold.

It's time for Mary to stand on her own two feet in our story just as she did in God's.

A blessed Christmas to all who take the time to read my passing thoughts here at Word this Week.  I pray you can hear the angels and know the strength and faithfulness of Mary as you walk into your unknown this year.  PW

Let it be to me.......

Let's pause in our frantic run-up to the craziness of Christmas celebrations to consider what the so called meek and mild Mary actually said............

Let it be to me according to your Word.

For centuries this phrase has been glossed over; it just sounds so pious, exactly what one would expect a Bible story figure to say.  But what exactly is Mary saying?

Let it be:  ok God, I'm in with this plan.  Mary is not mindlessly going along to get along.  She is not cowed into agreement.  This is now her plan as well.  She will be a partner in this crazy scheme.

Holy God, with you all things are possible?  Then let's see how this 'overshadowing of the Holy Spirit" thing works  out.  We'll know in a couple of months either way. And let's not lose sight of the fact that the 'it' is a child, a son (if the angel has that  right) and it's about to begin life deep within my womb....

.......and yet he will not be like any other living being.  He will be the singular intersection of human and divine.  One of a kind.  A king in a maiden's womb.

according to your Word.....At first glance, we read this as "we will follow the plan as you have laid it out".  God said it; she agrees to it;  let's get this plan  started.  Lord, if this is your plan, then you need to be in charge.  You have a responsibility in this as well.

Because you see, Lord, I am trusting you.  I have no idea how all this is going to turn out; the neighbors are not  going to keep quiet about a pregnancy that comes before the final marriage vows, so I am trusting you.  For these first 9 months, and then for however long it takes for your whole  plan to come into being.

according to your Word.....but even more importantly, Lord, I am trusting that all the promises made by the prophets, all the visions of justice and equity and peace they have painted for us.....Lord, I am trusting that you will not fail us in this.  I am trusting that I will be contributing to the salvation of the people Israel.  Nothing less than what you have promised through the ages will do. I am trusting that your Word will be a Word of hope and life and peace.

Listen to Mary's words once again, Let it be to me according to your  Word........and hear her hope and longing and love and fear and determination and strength.

What were  your words the last time God asked something of you?

"Never happened" you say?

I sincerely doubt that.  Maybe you just didn't recognize the angel.

Mary: meek and mild

Or maybe not.   Have you ever noticed how all the Marys in the nativities are sitting or kneeling in postures of adoration? All of them.

Don't you think it is time that Mary got to stand on her own two feet and take her rightful place as a strong and determined partner of God in this wild adventure called The Birth of Jesus: The Redemption of the World.

An angel shows up on Mary's doorstep and the ensuing conversation does a lot to bring the Mary: Meek and Mild myth to an end.  Certainly it is easy to allow Mary to simply nod her head and smile an enigmatic smile while focusing on all the hoopla of the angel. (and at the same time buy into the cultural expectations of women in general)

But what if you heard the angel talking like a Used Car Salesman (you know the type) who grins too widely and compliments you too lavishly?  Then the angel's  "Greetings, favored one!" takes on a whole new tone and Mary's response sounds a lot more suspicious, for Mary 'wondered what sort of greeting this was'.  And wonder she should.

In rapid fire, the angel lays out the whole plan in one breath (or at least in one long run on sentence)...  a child, Son of the Most High, from the house of David who will reign over an everlasting kingdom.

Once again it is easy to think that Mary simply allows this outrageous news to wash over her, submitting to it without regard....that is until you hear her question  "How can this be?"  Mary was a farm girl; she knew how babies were made.

Does this make her less of a servant of God?  Does this make her less of partner in the work of bringing in the kingdom?  Does the fact that she has a couple of reasonable questions and a touch of common sense suspicion make her any less than what she is.........the chosen one of God?

Mary has been a model for women and mothers over the last 2000 years - and yet the picture that has been painted of Mary is of a passive, submissive figure who has no place at the table and no voice in the proceedings.  She does what she is told, what her biology demands.

Is this the Mary you find in Luke?  A woman with no voice?  no opinions?  no will of her own?  This news to Mary is far more radical than it is a Hallmark greeting card.

The King of all Creation is going to be born to a young woman.....and from that moment on, the world is about to turn.

Meek and mild my eye.

Reformation Monday: From Heaven Above #268 ELW

From heaven above to earth I come

to bear good news to every home
Glad tidings of great joy I bring

to all the world, and gladly sing.

To you this night is born a child

of Mary, chosen virgin mild;

this newborn child of lowly birth

shall be the joy of all the earth 

These are the two opening verses to Martin Luther's Christmas hymn.  Like so many of Luther's hymns it is intended to teach.  By the time you  have sung all 14 verses, you know both the story of Jesus' birth but also Luther's particular interpretation of that event for the salvation of all creation. Here are two more verses to give you a flavor of his hymnody.

The blessing that the Father planned

the Son holds in his infant hand,

that in his kingdom, bright and fair,

you may with us his glory share.  v4

Ah dearest Jesus, holy child

prepare a bed, soft, undefiled,

a quiet chamber in my heart,

that you and I may never part.  v12

There are many old (16th century) German hymns in our current hymnal beyond our perrenial favorite  A Mighty Fortress is our God (based on psalm 46).  Luther authored 17 of them; Phillip Nicolai (a contemporary of Luther) wrote another three.  Most of these lack the catchy tune and lively meter of modern music but in the meat of their message is the core of Lutheran teaching.  

Luther used whatever means he had at hand to teach his flock about the love of God in Jesus and the gift of salvation through him.  We all know how a song can stick in your head until it drives you around the bend.  Although Luther's hymns might not rival pop music in this regard, it was probably his most effective teaching tool.  From Heaven Above is one of the easier ones to sing.

 Here are a couple I know: 

263 Savior of the Nations, Come:  a lovely Advent hymn

517 Lord keep us steadfast in your Word: a favorite of mine

784  Grant Peace, we pray, in Mercy, Lord:  a chant reminiscent of his time as a monk

Luther's hymns remind us that the words or text of the hymn is telling a story, teaching something important. Many are beautiful poetry worth lingering and pondering.   As you sing your  favorite Christmas hymns, give the words a little more attention. How has your understanding of the faith been shaped by the hymns that you sing?  How do they strengthen your spiritual life?.

Check these out in the ELW:  263, 268, 370, 395, 411, 440, 499, 503, 509, 517, 594, 600, 743, 746, 747, 784, 868

and then there was Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah

David and Bathsheba.  We might not remember the story's details but the image of the King and a highly charged and beautiful woman has somehow managed to stick in most imaginations.  But please, pay attention to the story itself and not some man's interpretation of events.

David, from his perch on the highest roof in the kingdom, looked out over his kingdom and beheld the beautiful wife of his favorite general taking her bath on the roof of her house.  This was common and a decent man would have averted  his eyes.  Not David (who apparently had too much 'energy' for his own good).  He lusted after Bathsheba and ordered her to come to the palace.

She really didn't have a choice.  Really.  He was the King.  Furthermore, how was she to know that King David, honored by many in the nation, would behave so horribly.  But he did.  And she got pregnant.

Which left David in quite a quandary.  Uriah, his faithful general was off winning a war for him and David was home bedding his wife.  So clever David summoned Uriah home so he could spend some quality time with his beloved (and everyone could believe that Bathsheba's child was her husband's).  Uriah, however, was enormously loyal and he wouldn't satisfy himself while his King was in danger so he slept at David's door to protect him.

David had to go to plan B.  So he ordered that Uriah back to the front lines of the battle with the certainty that Uriah would be killed.  This would free up Bathsheba for David to marry and that is just what happened.  In a rather short pregnancy, Bathsheba gives birth to a son.*

I'll finish the story later.  Here's the point.  As much as Bathsheba was a pawn in a game between men, she is a pawn in Matthew's telling as well.  She isn't even named; she is only 'the wife of Uriah'.  It is that sin:  taking the wife of another man that is the greater blot on David's reputation and standing before God.  Greater than the rape of Bathsheba.  Israel's best king ever was an adulterer and there was no way to get around that piece of history.

So the beautiful Bathsheba shows up in Jesus' lineage if only by inference.  A pawn in men's games, and yet the source of life for another generation of God's people.  David, with amazing feats of faithfulness and stunningly nasty stories of greed, is a part of our great shared history with the people of Yahweh.  In this way, the dry and annoying list of who begat whom sets us up for a Savior who is more interested in loving the people into a new way of living than in picking apart their stories; more interested in their fidelity to God even as they trip up all the time.

Women are rarely named in the scriptures.  When they are, it is a good idea to pay attention.  Something important is being said under all the other words. In a time when women had no more status than the Buick in your driveway, God knew them and made them a critical sign of God's enormous love.

**The prophet Nathan confronts David over this episode, calling him out for his misuse of power and generally poor behavior. David's repentance is almost painful to watch. In the end, the child of this coupling dies.  The second son of Bathsheba and David is Solomon who would succeed his father to the throne.  2 Samuel 11.3