|
Rector's
Messages
Advent
and Christmas 2005
"She
gave birth to her first born son … and laid him in a manger because
there was no room for them in the inn." --Luke 2:7 (NRSV)
The wind wanted to shoo us along home after school; but the cold
was no competition for the displays of the season. The main street of our
town was strung with Christmas lights. Store windows displayed toys,
seasonal merchandise, and festive decorations including, of course, the
Christmas tree. No matter how cold the weather, Commercial Street at
Christmas time was a routine detour on the way home from school. However,
there was only one display that really signaled the arrival of Christmas
itself. It was the appearance of a large outdoor manger scene on the
church grounds. First, a few weeks before Christmas, the manger was put in
place, framed with rough wooden beams and filled with straw. The front of
the manger was covered with a clear pane of glass. Then, just prior to
Christmas Eve, appeared the figures of animals, shepherds, angels, Mary,
Joseph, and the Christ child. The Nativity scene remained in place well
into the season of Epiphany, long after the merchants had packed away
their Christmas displays.
The
debate over the naming and ownership of symbols can be as heated as apple
cider. Is it a Christmas tree or is it a holiday tree? Perhaps it's a case
of a rose by any other name. However, The Nativity scene is a symbol that,
for Christians, goes to the heart of the matter. Much more ancient than
the Christmas tree, the use of a manger in Christmas services probably
pre-dates the Middle Ages. St. Francis of Assisi is credited with
developing The Nativity scene as an object of popular devotion. The
population of the Gospel story surrounds the Divine infant and family.
Angels and animals keep company with poverty stricken shepherds from the
hills of Judea. Later magi will arrive. The kingdoms of this world really
will become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ.
Symbols
have the power to challenge us. The Nativity scene is no exception. The
manger is outside because there is no room inside. It's a stark reality
that continues to confront the poor, the homeless, refugees, displaced
persons and the vulnerable. Christ in the manger is all of these. Yet the
one born on the outside creates an inside for all people in the kingdom of
God. The Christmas season provides an opportunity to contemplate the
Nativity scene in church, in pageants and drama, on Christmas cards and in
carols. May our contemplation make us more aware of the great welcome God
extends to us in Christ; and may God create a welcoming heart within us.
The
Rev. Canon Rod Gillis
Advent
& Christmas 2005 |
