First, what’s in a name.
Actually, what’s in two names – “Emmanuel” and “Jesus”? We hear both this time of year as we approach the Nativity. What did our ancestors hear when these names were used – what did they mean to them? What do they mean to us today?
Oh come, oh come, Emmnauel. How else did our ancestors hear this name? What did it mean to use the ancient prophet Isaiah’s words, “Look, the virgin (young woman) shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel”?
In Isaiah, these words were being spoken by God to one of the earlier kings of Judah (Achaz) who wasn’t so strong in his faith, had fallen off the wagon you might say, and who needed some assertive reminding that evil plans against God’s people would fail, empires trying to dominate the kingdom would not endure, and the earthly king (and his subjects) needed to stand firm in their faith and trust God. To signal the imminent truth of God’s promise, he would send a sign… not a miraculous sign, but a rather ordinary one – the birth of a child in their community with a special name.
Emmanuel. It means “God is with us.” In it’s original context, that was reassurance that God was with the faithful of
Invoking of the name Emmanuel at Christ’s birth is a way of calling forth a reminder of God’s covenant, God’s divine pledge of assistance and protection. If you read the lyrics of the popular song from the Middle Ages, “Oh come, Oh Come, Emmanuel” it’s clear that invocation of this name is meant to call to our minds liberation from oppression, salvation from all things hellish, and light breaking through any dark shadows.
“Jesus” Both Mary and Joseph, in their own separate encounters with the divine, are told to name their soon-to-arrive child, Jesus – Joshua / Yeshua. “For he will save his people from their sins.”
Indeed, “Jesus,” or Yeshua in Hebrew means Yaweh (God) saves.
In contrast to this child being simply a sign of God’s promise, as in the case of the coming of a child named Emmanuel in Isaiah’s time, we’re lead to see that the child being given this special name – Jesus – is divine, an incarnation of God with us in a very intimate and imminent form to save us.
Now, does a real Nativity scene still smell as sweet?
Recently, I was invited into the home of Charleen and Dale Shipps to enjoy a tour of their inspiring collection of nativity scenes from all over the world. Their joy and discipline in collecting and displaying these hundreds of representations of the Nativity really got me thinking about how we imagine that night.
Perhaps like me, when you first imagine the Nativity, there’s this quiet, still image of Mary and Joseph neatly robed and calmly posed by a clean, smiling baby staring up at us from nicely tucked swaddling. All of this set in still relief while there’s calm Christmas music in the background, perhaps “Silent Night.”
Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright… Really? What if we were to imagine the Nativity scene more realistically as it might have been… and what might that tell us about God’s relationship to us?
Yes, surely this night was holy. But was it silent, calm, or bright? I doubt that it was calm and silent considering what was happening. And I wonder how bright it was literally or figuratively, considering the pain, noise, dirt, perhaps momentarily panic, and oh so many smells surrounding them in this dark place.
In other stories (Luke), we’re told that an angel had earlier appeared to Mary, a woman of simple means who has yet to consummate her marriage to her husband, and announced that she would bear a child of God who will become great and reign over the “house of Jacob” (read: Israel) forever. We honor Mary for faithfully accepting this role… but imagine what anxiety and concerns the soon-to-be mother might have carried with that faithful choice to serve the Lord. She’s not yet married and she’s got to somehow explain to her husband how she has become pregnant and risk everything – her reputation, her security, her relationships, and her life (Deut 22:20-24). And tonight she is somewhere unfamiliar on a dark roadside about to give birth to God-knows-who; what does she imagine this will mean to her marriage, what is true about who this child will become, and what this might mean to her and her community.
I wonder how silent she was as she contemplated the implications of all this.
In today’s story, we see part of this scene from her husband’s perspective. Joseph is an honorable man, we might imagine. He has been given the same name as the famous son of Jacob who was sold into slavery by his brothers, but eventually rose to become a powerful, albeit flawed, leader of exiled people in
Exposing the apparent truth of this situation would expose both of them to ridicule and shame, and actually put Mary’s life in danger. The laws at the time (Deut 22:20-24) might have lead Joseph to at least kick Mary to the curb… is would have been justifiable, in fact, to take her to the gate of the town and have her stoned to death. But we imagine that Joseph loves and honors Mary and wants to favor his compassion for her more than subjecting her to harsh judgment.
We’re told that his initial plan is to “dismiss her quietly” – perhaps handing her off to strangers somewhere outside his community where she wouldn’t be judged too harshly and might have a chance at a decent life.
But just as he had decided to do this, he received a message from God in a dream (not so coincidental that this message comes in a dream, as the more famous Joseph was known to be an interpreter of prophetic dreams). God’s message is not a harsh admonishment or threat; like the message delivered to Mary, it begins with “Do not be afraid.” The angel in his dream explains that the child in Mary’s womb is blessed and has a very special mission – to save people from their sins.
When Joseph awoke, he had enough faith to follow these holy instructions…. but, like with Mary, I can only imagine how he also had to manage his own ambivalence about what was going on, his fears and concerns for the wellbeing of Mary, this child, and their future together.
“Away in the manager, no crib for a bed…” Here we have Mary and Joseph who have come to this strange, uncomfortable place in their lives. They’re huddled together in an unfamiliar place along a roadside, where animals are kept. It’s cramped, not particularly comfortable, and doesn’t smell so great. Amid the harsh circumstances they’re in and the possible risks of their situation, they’re being held together by love for each other and faith in words of reassurance from God.
As Mary went into labor, a mother is gritting her teeth and perhaps screaming as she gives birth. A supportive husband is there with both worry and wonder on his face. If any of you have experienced a natural child birth, you can imagine what this scene must have been like, there in a dark barn, near the animals and their feeding trough. Curious animals are coming near to sniff, and the smells and mess are about to increase.
I imagine this Nativity was neither silent, nor calm. But was is it bright?
God came to them, and to us, humbly and innocently amid the visceral messiness of childbirth, in an awkward situation, and in less-than-ideal circumstances.
There’s amazing grace and hope in knowing that God comes to us like that – chooses to come to us particularly amid the messiness in our lives, acknowledging our fears and doubts, while also assuring us that we need not fear.
Is there anything going on in your life, or around you, that you experience as a stinking mess? Have any of you been given unbelievable news in the last nine months? Have any of you been told recently that “there’s no room for you here” and been forced to make do with whatever shelter and safety you can find? Are any of you moving forward with some faith, but also wondering how it’s all really going to turn out?
This week, invite ourselves into a more realistic Nativity and recognize what this means for God’s relationship with us. No matter what situation you find yourself in, see that Emmanuel comes, Jesus is be born into your lives amid the messiness… and there need be no shame or fear in that – it’s as God intended it.
See that our Emmanuel comes to us with the wonderment and innocence of a tender child amid all our adult anxieties. We can’t help but be awe struck by this Christmas gift – God’s love coming to us tender and mild, even when we’re in pain and stressed out.
God is coming to you - a light piercing through even the distance and darkness of this winter solstice…
Jesus is being born - a flame of hope that continues flickering even when worldly circumstances are otherwise very dim…
The Spirit is with us – giving us enough light to see hope through any darkness and witness the birth of our redemption and salvation.
“Son of God, love’s pure light. Radiant beams from Thy holy face, with the dawn of redeeming grace.”
Christ our savior is born.
No comments:
Post a Comment