The reading
Luke 2
When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord"), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons." Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, "Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel." And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed--and a sword will pierce your own soul too." There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.
The message
In the days leading up to Christmas this year, I had a few appointments and stops to make that required going past the Queens Center Mall. Some of the stores were open 24 hours, the streets around the mall and exit ramp on the lie nearby were backed up for blocks, often looking more like a parking lot then roads you could drive on. The sidewalks were almost unusable as well, every foot of space was crowded with people, bags, boxes, toys, tvs and other packages. Since I finished all my shopping already I didn’t have to actually go in the mall but I can imagine it was a rather uncomfortable place to be. On Thursday, Christmas Day, Knok from the Church of Grace to the Fujianese drove us home from his church’s Christmas celebration. We drove past the mall around 4 O’clock and it was closed. Things were quiet, there was no traffic, the sidewalks were empty, the doors were closed and the lights were all turned off. After the past few days of chaos, it was hard to believe I was even passing by the same place again, so much had changed there. It had gone from the chaos of last minute Christmas shopping to the eerie abandoned quiet of a totally empty space that was built for tens of thousands of people to work and shop in. I imagined that if someone did not know it was Christmas and he or she walked past the mall, they would know something very significant was happening to create that sort of change, that complete stop of all the activity of the past few days.
That’s why as I passed the mall on Christmas afternoon, I thought this experience would be a good way to look at what happened that day in Bethlehem, when the grace of God appeared, bringing salvation to all, when Christ our savior was born. I also thought it would be a good way to understand the encounter that Simeon has with the newborn Christ and his family that we hear reported to us in the Gospel reading. The scene at the mall, the story of Jesus birth in a barn on the outskirts of the world, and this moment in Simeon’s life when the promise that he would see the messiah is fulfilled are all connected since they are all times when everything suddenly stopped. At Christmas, over 600 years after the first promises of the Messiah were heard. God’s grace appeared, bringing salvation to all. Things would be different now, God’s promises would be clearly and openly for all people. God’s peace had come to the world, not a regular ordinary peaceful feeling, but one that can only come from knowing our sins are forgiven by God’s grace and that beause Christ is risen, we will arise. The shepherds stop, leave their lives behind and seek the baby that the angels sang about. Kings and leaders stop their regular business and concerns as they shake with fear, (as we will see when we talk about the story of the epiphany or three kings). Things would definitely not be business as usual between God and the world and us and each other. At Christmas, the relationship between us and God now has no room for confusion, it is one of grace, welcome and love. It is a life when God walks with us, so we can go in peace and live our lives in peace,
Honestly, this example of a mall on Christmas day as an example of God’s stopping peace entering the world is sort of lacking. Not because its bad but just because it is not big enough to show the power of Christmas. This Christmas marked the 100th anniversary of one of the most significant events of peace in history. In 1914, after the first few months of World War I were underway, There was a grassroots, naturally occurring truce in the trenches to celebrate Christmas. World War I just stopped. During that Christmas cease fire, enemies who a few hours before were killing each other in numbers never before imagined in war, were now celebrating Christmas together. Eyewitnesses report singing O Come all Ye faithful in Latin together, French and German carols going back and forth, small gift exchanges of cigarettes, books, candy, having an opportunity to pick up, properly honor and bury the dead. World War I stopped for a time, because it was Christmas. The soldiers had a few hours in the midst of where they saw their enemies as people, who understood that the people in the other trenches also had families, loves, faith, fear, and hope. Many wondered what exactly it was they were fighting for, After the prodding and encouragement of military leaders, World War I would restart after Christmas and continue for years until over 35 million people died.
If they stayed with it, If the soldiers on these front lines maintained this ceasefire, we are left to imagine a world where WW I ended after only 4 months and a few thousand deaths, a world where WW II may not have happened . Here we have a story, a short vision, a serious glimpse of what can happen when we take God’s message seriously, when we see one another as people loved by God, when we go into the world understanding and sharing Simeon’s words: "Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel”,
May the joy and comfort of Christmas, fill your hearts and minds with the peace only God can offer.
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