From the Margin to the Center (a meditative midrash on the nativity stories in the gospels of Matt and Luke)

It all began simply enough:  Boy meets girl… girl and boy become engaged. 

Mary was betrothed to Joseph:  betrothal is a covenantal arrangement in which a couple are promised to one another in marriage.  As customary in first century Palestine, once the betrothal was settled, Mary left her family and moved into the home of the Joseph’s family, to become part of their household.  The wedding would take place at some time after her initiation and incorporation into her new family.  As I say, it all began simply enough…but then it began to get complicated.: Mary, turns up pregnant.

 Now, it was not all that unusual for a young woman to get pregnant between the betrothal and the marriage… the child of such a union was considered to be legitimate.  But here’s where it get’s problematic:  Joseph knew that the baby was not his!  Mary had some wild story about how an angel appeared to her in the kitchen one day, telling her that she would become pregnant by the spirit of God, and would give birth to God’s child. 

 Joseph seriously doubted that.  Being a kind soul, he determined to dismiss her privately and quietly. 

 

But, this child was to be neither quiet nor easily dismissed.

 

An angel visited Joseph and confirmed that Mary’s pregnancy was, indeed the work of God, and that he should not be afraid to take her as his wife.  And so, he decided to stand by her.  Scandalized, Joseph’s family could not accept this.  They expelled both Joseph and Mary from the family compound, forcing them to make it on their own.  They lived as outcasts as Mary’s belly grew. 

And so it was, that when Emperor Agustus called for a registration, Mary and Jospeh set off on the three day’s journey to Bethlehem by themselves instead of in the company and safety of their extended family.  When they arrived at their destination, they found all the rooms filled by large family groups, and no one willing to share with them. 

When Mary went into labor, they found their way to a stable, where she gave birth to her first born son without the aid of mother or midwife, but with her husband at her side.  This pushed them even further to the margins, as a woman who had given birth was considered ‘unclean’ and now, by extension, so was Joseph because he had assisted in the birth.   

 

But this was not to be a child who observed divisive categories of clean/unclean, saints/sinners.

 

Exhausted and feeling quite alone in the world, the small family huddled in the stable, with the infant wrapped and sleeping in the manger. 

In the middle of the night, their solitude was interrupted by the animated arrival of a group of common shepherds, fresh from the pasturelands.  As the shepherds excitedly approached the child, they told his bewildered parents that a great host of angels had appeared in the night sky to them and told them about the birth of this child… and that this child was the Messiah, the one who would save Israel.  Mary and Joseph had hoped to keep this a private matter…

 

but this child was not to be a secret for only a select few.

 

 A few weeks later, Mary, Joseph and the baby, whom they named Jesus, were visited again.  This time it was not lowly shepherds who came, but scholars and wise ones from lands far away.  These pagans, these non-Jews, came to celebrate the child’s birth, and to offer him gifts fit for a king. 

 

But this child was not to be a King of the ordinary kind.

 

And so it was that the ministry of Jesus began.  Even before he was out of diapers, the Messiah had gathered a new family… a family that included peasants and scholars; Jews and gentiles.  Thus began his life’s work of healing and reconciliatio, and inaugurating the Kingdom of God.    

…in Jesus’ creativity and life, in Jesus’ gathering of prophets and prostitutes, soldiers and lovers and lawyers and losers and any who would break bread with him, in Jesus’ healing and teaching, in Jesus’ forgiving and reconciling enemies… is what … has been the very heartbeat of the world from it’s very beginning.  And in Jesus’ life – in what he said and did throughout his life – we can see what this God whom Jesus proclaimed, this God whom Jesus incarnated, is about in the world. 

Jesus’ life in its wholeness showed us that … everything really could be made whole.  God is whole.  And Jesus, who was broken by the worst our brokenness could dish out, is whole.  [1]

 

We come to the manger tonight from a world with more than its share of war, turmoil, disease and poverty.  We come as rich and poor, saintly and sinful, believing and skeptical, to gather again around the manger, and there to renew our joy and to give thanks for the amazing thing that came to life that night so long ago in Bethlehem.  And may we, on this night, also renew our commitment to the mission of the one we have come to worship — Christ the King, the One in whom all things hold together. 

[1] Sarah Dylan Brewer web meditation for Christmas 2006.  www.sarahlaughed.com

Light in Darkness

One of my favorite Advent/Christmas scriptures is John 1:5 “…the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”  Anyone who has experienced the extreme darkness of Mammoth Caves knows what a hope-filled image this is, for even a single match can provide orientation and illumination in the yawning darkness. 

And so, during this advent season, I want to lift up and celebrate the many ways in which our “one church in many locations” gives witness to the light of Christ.  I give thanks for all who feed the hungry, clothe the naked, support and equip those who are un/under-employed, care for the homeless and the alien, visit those in prison, etc. 

But this year, when the darkness of war, a struggling economy, and loss seem so strong, I am particularly grateful for those of you who witness to the light via services of healing and hope.  Some time ago I was bemoaning the ‘fact’ that so few churches engage in intentional and explicit services of healing.  And then God opened my eyes… I have become aware that there IS a balm in Gilead… and in Cherokee Presbytery!  From Longest Night and other special worship services, to regular services for healing and wholeness, to free clinics, to the caring companionship of counselors, chaplains, Stephen Ministers and Christian friendship, you let the light of Christ shine for those who are swallowed up in the darkness of grief, illness, pain, depression, fear, anxiety and crisis. 

Thank you for these, and all the many other ways you make God smile!  

Shalom,

Rebecca

A Grace-filled Experience and an Intriguing Book

Several weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend a gathering/conference in Philadelphia.  One of the reasons that I went is that it was being held at Broad Street Ministries, which is housed in the building of a congregation that was closed during my tenure on the staff of the Presbytery of Philadelphia.  When we closed the congregation, the Presbytery decided to hold on to the facility, since it was located in a particularly interesting area… smack dab in the middle of a vibrant and diverse community of movers and shakers, artists, students and the homeless.  We dreamed of many things that the facility might be used for… a community center, a shared space for the Presbytery offices and the University of the Arts, a new worshiping community, etc.   And so I went to Philly curious to see what had become of the place.

The first time that I entered old sanctuary, I was amazed.  The old pews had been removed and replaced with circles of chairs.  Above,  the ceiling had become an amazing art installation that included windmills and origami swallows.  The stained glass windows remained as did the somewhat tattered appearance that comes from years of deferred maintenance.  The walls contained other original artworks, including a contemporary re-working of the Lord’s Prayer.  Elsewhere, the facility contained space for eating, gathering and serving the community at large.

When our group gathered for worship and the piano began to play a meditative “Fairest Lord Jesus” I found myself weeping.  Tears of joy fell as I realized that ‘it had come to pass’… God had blessed the wild imaginings of that Presbytery and had brought something new and wonderful out of the ashes of that old congregation.  What a gift to be able to come full circle and see how God’s faithfulness is at work in even the most difficult struggles that we face. It gave me a comfort and hope to sustain me in the sometimes difficult work that we all undertake together.

Broad Street Ministries is not a congregation, but a ministry that serves the community with food, conversation, social services and yes, upwards of 250 people gather there for worship each week.  Their staff includes an Ambassador of Welcome, an Arts Marshall, a Dean of the Center for Subversive Theology,  a Director of Social Services, and others.  If you’d like to find out more (and I recommend that you do), you will  want to check out their website: www.broadstreetministry.org

And now, for the content of the conference :  The title of the gathering/conference was “Pastoral Leadership Gathering.”  We — well, OK, they — were mostly under 30, mostly white,  mostly pastors, and mostly skinny.  We gathered to  experience and then to theologically explore the work of Peter Block, particularly his book, Community: The Structure of Belonging.  I am very excited about this work and the possibilities that it offers for Christian leaders.  Though he insists that he is not a Christian, most of us concluded that Peter Block is in denial about that… we found his work to have a deep Christology at its core, and he admits to being heavily influenced by Walter Brueggemann.  If that’s not enough to interest you, let me offer the following tid-bits from his work:

  • The core task of leadership is to build community.
  • Creating Community requires the courage to acknowledge that we need each other.  It is also a choice for restoration over retribution; connectedness over fear.
  • Leadership chooses relationship over technology, gifts over deficiencies, and possibility over problem solving.  Leadership is about being host, not hero.
  • Communal transformation occurs in public, in assembly, in meetings, when we are reminded we are part of something larger.

If you are intrigued (and I hope you are), I invite you to join me in the following:  Buy the book and read it over the next 6 weeks.  Then, let us gather for food, fellowship and conversation around these ideas in late January.  (I’m thinking Jan. 27th).

Feel free to post ideas/comments here on this post, to share with others on this topic.

Shalom y’all!

Rebecca

A Progressive Thanksgiving, Part 3

Well, yesterday was simply PACKED FULL of joyous events.  The day began (for me) at the multi-cultural service of Thanksgiving at Ray Thomas Memorial/Bethany Presbyterian Churches.  Worship and praise were shared in four languages:  Portuguese, Spanish, Korean and English.  I was privileged to give the sermon (in English… the words were translated into Korean by Rev. Choi and on projection screens in other languages).  As you might expect with this crowd, the music was wonderful and the sound of praise in so many languages was surely a foretaste of the worship that we all anticipate in heaven.  Sadly, I had to leave prior to the meal in order to go to another very special event… in Dawsonville.

Baptismal Font, Grace Presbyterian Church

In Dawsonville, we gathered to charter the newest official congregation of our Presbytery… Grace Presbyterian Church.  A little over five years ago, a group of people began to gather in Dawsonville with the intention to establish a local PC(USA) congregation.  And yesterday, it came to pass.  Over 125 people petitioned the Presbytery to become charter members of this new congregation, a petition that moderator-elect Elder Velma Tilley granted at the conclusion of the service.  The service of chartering included worship, ordination and installation of elders, two adult baptisms, re-affirmation of faith, a sermon by Rev. Dana Hughes, and a celebration of the Lord’s Supper.  The many gifts of the congregation were in evidence in the banners made by their liturgical arts guild, a newly crafted baptismal font by Gary Pichon, and the gracious (and delicious) hospitality following the service.  In recognition of our Scottish ancestry, we processed and recessed led by a bagpiper, and many in the congregation sported kilts and tartans.

Banner - Grace Presbyterian Church

 

In addition to these two celebrations, over in Calhoun, the first child of new pastor Rev. Pete Ullmann was being baptized, and at Eastminster Pres. in Marietta, Alan Gibson was ordained into the ministry of Word and Sacrament.

Indeed, Cherokee presbytery has MUCH to be thankful for!!

A Progressive Thanksgiving, Part 2

Marietta First Turns 175!

On Sunday the 14th of November, Marietta First Presbyterian Church celebrated their 175th anniversary with a day of worship, music, food and thanksgiving to God.   Psalm 78:3-4 provided the theme for the day:  “What we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us.  We will not hide them from their children:  we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done.”  Following a call to worship by Executive Pastor, Rev. John Wells, a bagpiper led a procession of members with banners, special guests (the mayor among them) and former pastors. 

Revs. Jim Speed, Denise Beltzner, and Keith Gunter shared a three part sermon focusing on God’s work in the congregation’s past, present and future.  A new anthem, “God, Our Father, You Have Led Us” was commissioned (from T. Fettke) and presented magnificently by the choirs of the church.  A new banner (seen in photo above) was also made to commemorate the day (banner by Cheryl Vanture Davenport, Suzanne Brooks Harvin, Rita Allgood Tubbs, Marian Michaels McClanahan; flagpole and stand by James Barrett McCloud, and Timothy Durel Nelson). 

I was pleased to be able to bring greetings on behalf of the entire Presbytery at both services of worship.  Following worship, I munched on treats and explored an amazing, museum-quality display of the church’s history (including recreations of the original log cabin church and the second “clapboard” facility).   

Truly, God has richly blessed Marietta First, and through them, God has blessed the city of Marietta and Cherokee Presbytery. 

Next week, we celebrate the third part of our Pregressive Thanksgiving, as we officially constitute Grace Presbyterian Church as a congregation of the PC(USA).  

God is good — all the time!