2nd
Sunday of Christmas
A few weeks backs Caden and I
received tickets to the Bills game. Our
seats were in the lower section of the stadium not too far behind the Bills
bench. What I liked best is that the
seats were right at the end of the aisle— there was no having to climb over
folks to get out to the bathroom or the concessions stand and you could stretch
your legs a little bit into the aisle. We also had prime seats to watch people
climbing up and down the stairs –which at times was as much fun as watching the
football game.
Early on in the game there was a
break in the action and people began streaming up the stairs toward the
concession stands or bathrooms.
I immediately noticed two burly-
unshaven men rambling up the stairs-- they were dressed in Texans’ jerseys and
cowboy boots. I imagined they had flown in from Houston for the weekend to take
in the game. The only thing missing from these
two guys that would have said Texas more would have been Stetson hats.
Many more people streamed by when
I noticed three men walking up the stair towards us--- they were quite
obviously of middle eastern descent --they men were dressed all black in really nice clothing, not the typical attire for a Bills
game-- they had black hair and black beards—the first thought through my head
was not the typical folks you see at a football game—it had only been a few
weeks since the attacks in Paris and at the sight of these men I also had a tinge of fear course through me.
I immediately felt guilty for that
feeling and I was deeply disturbed that I would think such a thing.
I then spent the next few moments
trying to figure out why I reacted the way I did.
As I was thinking my reaction
over – I then thought those three men probably look a lot like Jesus would have
looked given his ethnicity as a middle eastern man---In fact they probably look
a lot more like Jesus might have looked
than the green-eyed, brown haired guy who I see every morning in the mirror.
As I have reflected on this experience
over the last few weeks—I am reminded that often we find Jesus in the most
unusual places and often in people very different than ourselves —How might our
attitudes be different toward men of Middle Eastern descent if we began to see
in their faces--- the face of Jesus?
What would it be like to see them not as a potential terrorist meaning
to do us harm, but folks who have the same wants and needs as you and I--who
deserve our respect and dignity.
Today our lectionary story
presents us with another set of folks who challenge us- who we might be a
little bit fearful – the refugee—
Are not Jesus, Mary and Joseph
refugees?
Remember a refugee is a person
who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution,
or natural disaster.
King Herod and his threat against
the Holy Family puts them squarely in refugee status. They could have stayed and took their chances—but
as we know the story wouldn’t have ended well.
The story begins I imagine in the
middle of the night—the three wise men have just left and in fact the gold, frankincense, and myrrh are
still on the kitchen table when Joseph hurriedly tosses them into a sack
gathering provisions for the journey across the desert . Joseph had been awakened by a dream that that
the Jewish king, King Herod meant to do them harm.
The Holy family quickly sneak off
under the cover of darkness and out of Bethlehem. A short time later Herod
soldiers arrive in Bethlehem and the massacre begins-- every boy under the age
of two in is executed because Herod is afraid that a king has been born who
someday might challenge him.
Our lectionary has been sanitized
and has left much of this part of the story out.
Jesus and his parent having had
advanced warning flee escape the massacre and find refuge and safety in Egypt.
I imagine the decision to leave
one’s home and homeland because of a
dangerous regime or because there are no opportunities is a difficult one, but
I also imagine it is one made because there are no other options for one’s
family.
How might our attitudes be
different toward refugees if we were to remember that the Holy family we
celebrate this Christmas season were once refugees simply fleeing for their own
lives- simply looking for a better
life—looking for a safe place because of a violent regime wanted to snuff them
out.
Might we look at refugees differently
if we were to see Jesus in them-realizing that our savior dealt with a similar
situation that Jesus, Mary and Joseph could have easily been wandering Egypt
for years trying to find a place to settle.
King’s Herod’s decision to
slaughter the innocent children of Bethlehem is made because he is afraid of
losing power. He’s afraid of losing something important—so often
isn’t that the basis of our fears—we don’t want to lose something important.
Fear is powerful and makes us do
and act in ways that maybe we might not want to otherwise.
One of the constant themes throughout
the Gospels is to not be afraid.
When the angel Gabriel comes to
Mary- he implores Mary not to be
afraid—when the angel appears to the shepherds in the fields after Jesus birth
his first words are “be not afraid. When the disciples are in the boat and being
rocketed around because of a storm when Jesus approaches walking across the sea
they exhorted to not be afraid.
Almost daily I am challenged by
these words to not to be afraid, particularly of the people whom I encounter who
are different.
Sometimes its three men walking
toward me at Ralph Wilson—sometimes it’s a homeless or mentally ill person I
encounter on the street ----sometime they are simply folks who think quite differently than I do.
Maybe if I see Jesus in them—
maybe I might be a little less afraid and maybe
if I can remember that Jesus was a middle eastern Man and a refugees I might better be able to treat people
in those categories with the dignity and respect that they deserve maybe I
might better be able to advocate for them.
“Be not afraid” that is our
challenge.
AMEN
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