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The Rev. Amanda EimanThe 1st Sun after Christmas/The Holy NameJanuary 1, 2017Luke 2:15-21
The past few weeks in our Gospels, we have been hearing variations of the
familiar Christmas story. Two weeks ago we heard Joseph’s perspective -
how he had a dream, and in the dream an angel visited him, and told him to
take Mary as his wife, for the child conceived in her was from the Holy
Spirit.
Then last Sunday, Christmas Day, we heard the birth narrative from Luke –
Mary and Joseph returned to Bethlehem for the census, and while they
were there it came time for her to have her child. So she did, and she
wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger.
Today, we hear part of that story again, but this time, mainly the portion
about the shepherds. We hear that the shepherds reflect on their visit from
the angels who told them about the birth of the Messiah, and they decide to
go to Bethlehem to see this thing that has taken place. So they go with
haste and find Mary and Joseph and the child in the manger.
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But the thing about shepherds, which we don’t get simply from reading the
words of Scripture, is that shepherds, in first century Palestine were poor,
and rabbinic traditions label them as unclean. The shepherds, quite
possibly, would have been a little confused by an angel informing them, not
the high priests, kings, or wealthy people, about the birth of the Messiah.
They were outcast, and here they were, one of the first people to be
informed about this special birth.
But, even so, or maybe because so, after receiving the news, they decide
to go to Bethlehem to see this holy child, and in fact, they weren’t cast
away like the unclean people they were considered, but they were
welcomed in, welcomed among the holiness. They stayed to visit and then
as they left, they go about reporting their story and everyone is astonished.
As our Gospel puts it, they left “praising God for all that they had heard and
seen.”
Now of course what they had heard and seen was in one part the glorious
birth of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. And that in itself was worthy news to
share and about which to praise God. But also, largely due to our yearly
pageants, and perhaps other non-Scriptural sources and stories, most of us
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Christians have this idea that what the shepherds visited was a stable, or a
barn, and that that is where the Messiah was born. We believe that Joseph
was desperate to find shelter, any shelter because we think Jesus was
born the same night the holy family arrived. But, if we look closely, this is
nowhere in the text. All Luke writes is “While they were there, the time
came for her to deliver her child.” Perhaps Joseph had plenty of time to find
shelter, and that they were warmly welcomed by friends or relatives. – after
all this was Joseph’s hometown.
Yes, the child was lying in a “manger.” Mangers are in fact troughs from
which animals would eat. But most common Middle Eastern houses of that
period, and right up to the 20th century kept their animals inside their
houses at night, both for warmth and to prevent theft, not in a barn or a
cave.
Houses in Palestine typically had only two rooms. One for guests, the other
a “family room” where the whole family cooked, ate, slept and lived. Every
night the family cow, or donkey and sheep would be corralled into the far
end of that room, in the floors of which were often recessed mangers for
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feeding the animals. In the morning the animals would be driven outside
and tied up.
So, there may reason to understand that perhaps Mary and Joseph were
welcomed into a private home, and Jesus was laid in an indoor manger.
So, we may ask, where are all the unkind townspeople? and what does the
phrase “because there was no room for them in the inn” actually mean?
Well, in Greek the word used for “inn”, such as where the good Samaritan
takes the wounded man in the famous parable, is pandocheion. Literally, ‘a
place where all are received.” In this story the Greek word is katalyma
which means simply “a place to stay.” So its a katalyma that is crowded.
But what does this word mean?
The only other place in Luke it appears is Chapter 22 when Jesus tells his
disciples to enter a city and find a place for them all to eat together and
says, tell the householder, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest
room [katalyma] where I am to eat the Passover with my disciples?” This
precise meaning actually makes sense of this part of the story. Luke tells
his readers that Jesus was put in a manger in the family room because the
guest room was already full!
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So let’s go back to the shepherds. If they had found a stinking stable, and a
terrified young couple hovering over a newborn they would have said, “This
is outrageous! Come with us, our women will take care of you!” The honor
of the entire village would rest on their shoulders and they would have
acted.
Instead, the shepherds left the holy family giving thanks to God for Jesus’s
birth and for the quality of the hospitality in the house where he was born.
This is the message of the story- the child was born among common
people and for the likes of the shepherds—the poor, the lowly, the unclean.
Sinners just like you and me.
But it doesn’t end there, does it? Jesus also came for the rich, and the
wise, because “sometime later” (and next week we will celebrate this) the
revered Magi show up with gold, frankincense and myrrh. And, Matthew
tells us Magi enter “the house” where they see and give thanks for the holy
family.
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Unpacking this story a bit – and brining in some context around what the
shepherds may have actually found that day when they saw the child – can
help us more clearly understand this precious and holy story.
A member of the house of David was not shamed and rejected when he
brought his pregnant wife to his hometown. The people of Bethlehem
preserved their honor as a community. The shepherds were not a bunch of
guys refusing to help a family of strangers in need. And we, we are invited
to share this story with all – with our words, or by sharing this love with our
actions – to all people – rich and poor – alike us and different from us –
those with whom we see eye to eye, and those with whom we may
struggle.
Let me close with a quote from theologian Kenneth Bailey, who lived as a
priest in the Middle East for 60 years, and from whose book “Jesus through
Mediterranean Eyes much of this insight is drawn.
He says, “Jesus’ incarnation was complete. At his birth the holy family was
welcomed into a peasant home. These people did their best and it was
enough. At his birth the common people sheltered him. The wise men
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came to the house. When Jesus was an adult, the common people heard
him gladly. The shepherds were welcome at the manger. The unclean were
judged to be clean. The outcasts became honored guests. The song of
angels was sung to the simplest of all.”
Go and share this Good News.
Amen
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