The emotions of Christmas

The church does a joint Sunday School on Fifth Sundays. I was asked to do an introduction to the topic of "Keeping Christmas." Here are my thoughts. Keep in mind they accompany group reflection.

There is a huge let-down after Christmas. Many stores are closed. All of the presents have been given, all the stories have been told, all of the cookies have been eaten.

The holidays feel totally over and as often as it feels like a relief to have gotten through all of the stress and anxiety of the holidays, it also feels a little sad.

The excitement of Advent and Christmas filled up this big balloon, and Christmas is when the balloon popped and those days were exciting and fun and loud. But now the balloon has been popped and it lays, deflated on the ground.

How do we keep up the excitement of Christmas? We are so energized at Christmas and we have this whole “peace on earth” attitude going. There is a strong desire to give to others. How we capture that after Christmas and hold that throughout the year?

First of all, the secular world wants us to get over Christmas. As soon as the 26^th hits, the after-Christmas sales begin as does the ramp up to New Years. The secular world has its own liturgical season, and this matches up with Advent well. We both approach Christmas with lots of anticipation and excitement. But once Christmas is over, that’s it.

This is not the case for Christians, because, for us, Christmas lasts until Epiphany on January 6^th. Christmas is not just the celebration of one day, it’s part of season in the liturgical calendar. That’s why we can get away with coming to worship the Sunday after Christmas and singing a bunch of carols.

But we’re looking at making the feeling of Christmas last, not just the season. I know that you’re going to be surprised, but in cases like this, I find it helpful to turn to Scripture.

Luke 2:41-51.

Now every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.” He said to them, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said to them. Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

As I read this passage, I see that it gives us a method to approach the time immediately following Christmas. This is a story about Jesus getting left behind in Jerusalem when he and his parents make their yearly pilgrimage to the town. It’s kind of a surprising story, but it has some instructive parts. Notice the feelings, emotions, and actions in the story. They are strong.

Mary and Joseph as they searched – great anxiety.

When Jesus’ parents find him after searching for three days – astonished.

Everyone who heard Jesus – amazed.

When Jesus talked – understanding versus not understanding

Mary – treasured all these things in her heart.

When we read this story, we see a lot of the emotions that we might imagine as we read the birth story.

There was an incredible amount of uncertainty on the part of Joseph, Mary, the shepherds, the magi, Herod…everyone was anxious.

There was certainly astonishment – the shepherds, Joseph, Mary.

Some people in the stories seemed to understand what was happening, while many of the characters didn’t understand.

This passage ends the same way that the visit of the shepherds does in Luke. Mary treasured all these things in her heart.

I think that this passage is telling us that our faith and the way we live after Christmas should look the way it does as we prepare for Christ in advent. We are being told to experience the same emotions after Christmas that we do – these emotions of anxiety, astonishment, treasuring. To feel the same way about our lives after Christmas as we do before, we can follow the Biblical method – fill ourselves with the emotions we experience at Christmas throughout the entire year.

How do we do that?

Return our thoughts to the four weeks of Advent – Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. =

By revisiting these four themes, we can discover a method for reviving these emotions within us. These themes can stir the feelings of anxiety, astonishment, sometimes a lack of understanding. They can give us life.

Christmas Eve Monologues

These are two monologues I wrote for the late service at First Presbyterian in Albemarle. One of the youth and one of the college students read the parts and I thought they did so marvelously. The Joseph part I wrote out of reflection about his situation. The Mary part is my rewrite of the Magnificat.

Joseph                                 

It seemed as though I figured out how to get by. I figured out what life was all about. I understood

things. My life felt like my wood working. I could build things with my hands and I had total control of

what they looked like. Just like with a piece of wood which I could turn into a table, or a chair, I could

determine how things would work out, and how they would look in the end.

This is how I had control over my life, as well. I figured out how I was going to be able to support myself

and my new wife. I knew what our marriage and our lives would look like. I was just starting to get a grip

on how this whole thing was going to work out when I was thrown off-kilter.

I feel as though I was once standing on solid ground that has been removed. I feel as though I was in a

house that was solidly built, and all of the sudden, the land gave out underneath me. Everything upon

which I had built my life seemed to shift unexpectedly.

The birth of this child is so unexpected. I had this marriage planned out, and everything was going

according to that plan. With all that has happened – the surprise of this pregnancy and the reassurance

of the visit of a messenger – I don’t know where to place my feet next. My path ahead seems veiled. I

don’t know what my next actions should be.

We have come to this town because we were forced to. We find ourselves in this dirty stable because

there was no other choice. Mary lays our child in a feeding trough because there is nowhere else! It feels

like we have no say in this whole thing.

I’ve come to a point where I can no longer resist. I can only be guided, directed, and pushed so many

times before I realize that I am not the one in control. And you know what? I finally realize that that is

a comforting thing. This plan certainly isn’t my plan, but I can tell that Mary has been chosen to mother

this child, and I have been chosen to help her raise him.

What can I do now? Try to care for this child. I can try to comfort and protect this baby. I don’t know

what the messenger meant by saying this child would save his people from their sins, but I know that I

can do my best to protect him.

I don’t know what’s going to happen next, Lord. I don’t know how this whole thing is going to work out,

and I have a feeling it’s not going to be easy. I just ask you to protect us Lord. This is my prayer to you.

Mary

 Oh how my soul magnifies the Lord!

How my spirit rejoices in my God, in my Savior.

Who am I? I must be the least important person God has ever blessed. There are people who are much

holier than me. People who have lived lives more extraordinary than my own! Why is it that God has

seen fit to pick me, out of all the servants of the Lord?

All people, from this point on, will surely call me blessed. God has done such incredible things for me.

How wonderful is God for the gift I have been given. It seems like mercy flows forth to those who trust

in God, and all that is required is our faith!

God has done such incredible things. Those who have thought themselves better and above all the rest

and overly proud in their achievements have been reminded of their place before God.

The Lord has taken those who abuse power and think themselves almighty and removed them from

their high thrones. The downtrodden have been lifted up out of the mud and have been given new

worth.

Those who are hungry, the Lord has fed with many good things, and those who are over-indulgent – God

has sent away empty.

God is present with the people, no matter how far they may stray from the path. There was a promise

made to our ancestors, and this child is the fulfillment of that promise.

But that promise is not coming true into a world that is beautiful and clean. My child is being brought

into a world filled with war and chaos.

My child is being born into a world full of sin.

My baby is being born into a world that will try to kill him.

Lord, please protect my baby. As you have been my guide and my solid place, so guide him. This is my

prayer to you.

Bond of Trust

There have been many responses to the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary in the past week. I have been unable to process what happened, and I'm nowhere near being able to definitively say anything substantive. I find that when I am unable describe how I feel, it is helpful for me to turn to songs.

I love music, but I'm not that good at writing it. I rely on others to write the music, but I find myself typing out lyrics without a second thought. The only response I have been able to come up with in the light of such violence and despair is this hymn. I had in mind the Sacred Harp song Windham when I wrote it, but the scheme is 8.8.8.8., so it could be applied to other songs.

To me, it is a psalm of lament, but I found it ending on the basest form of hope I can find: God's presence in the midst of pain.

Bond of Trust

Our hearts and souls they seem to ache,

When we such horrors witness bear,

The bonds of trust they start to break,

Lives tossed aside without a care.

How can there be such senseless death?

Why must our tears so freely fall?

We cry to God with all our breath,

And hear no comfort when we call.

My hope on nothing seems to rest,

my strength begins to give away,

In all the pain I try my best,

But terror is what now holds sway.

Though stranded and alone we feel,

As though beyond all sort of aide,

Our Lord has promised presence real,

In pain and woe, when we're afraid.

To the Lord's presence tight I hold,

When nothing else have I to do.

Through the valley of shadow cold,

Only my God can pull me through.

©Matt Drumheller 2012

Reflection on Advent

As we draw closer to the end of this Advent season, I have been reflecting upon one aspect of the holiday season. At the beginning of this month my wife and I went out and bought a Christmas tree. After setting it up in its stand we spent a number of hours stringing lights onto the tree. As Christmas Day approaches, many people are putting up decorations around and inside their houses. One of the most popular decorations is strings of lights. These lights are often the classic yellow, but they are sometimes interspersed with all kinds of lights. Some people hang up stings of multi-colored lights. Some go so far as to hang up lights shaped as everything from elves to chili peppers. I find myself asking, “Why do we cover our houses, our yards, and our Christmas trees with lights?”

We have a fascination with light in general, but this fascination seems to increase during the Advent and the Christmas season. Lots of churches light candles in their worship spaces, counting down the weeks to the 25^th. Many churches also hold a candlelight Christmas Eve service, in which people turn the lights off in the sanctuary and raise their candles into the air, mesmerized by the spectacle. What is the deal with all of these lights?

A passage from Isaiah that is often read this time of year says, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness – on them light has shined.” Light is extremely important in the Old Testament. Light is the first thing that God speaks into creation in Genesis 1. Before there is anything else, there is light. Maybe we are fascinated with light because it is rooted at the very beginning of our creation.

But this is not the only part of the Old Testament in which we find light. Light was taken away from the Egyptians in the 9^th plague while the Israelites were being held captive. A physical darkness which could be felt was experienced by the captors, while the Israelites had light before them.

The New Testament is also filled with light. A passage from the second chapter of Matthew is commonly read early in January. It describes the journey by wise men following a star to find the newborn king of the Jews. They follow a beacon of light through the darkness of night to try to find a source of hope. When they are unable to find this speck of light their path falters, but when the star appears again, they are lead to the child Jesus.

In the beginning of the Gospel of John verses 4 and 5 say, “And the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” Light language is used throughout the Gospel of John culminating in Jesus’ statement in chapter 8: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”

All of these Biblical images of light tell us why we find light so important. It reflects and symbolizes the power of creation. It has been the hope for us since the beginning of time, even during times of deep trouble. Light became a metaphor to describe Christ, and Jesus spoke of himself as a light.

But why is this symbol so present for us at this particular time of year? It may be the experience that we in this hemisphere have in December. As the days grow colder we are reminded that it is truly becoming winter. We are approaching the winter solstice which occurs on December 21^st. The winter solstice marks the day in the year with the least amount of daylight. Perhaps this is one of the reasons light is such a strong symbol for us during Advent and Christmas. This is a time of year when it is barely light outside when we wake up, and it becomes dark before many of us eat dinner. Along with this season of short days comes cold weather. Maybe we long for light during this season of long, cold nights.

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.” We are often people who walk in darkness because we experience darkness all of the time. But as Christmas approaches we begin to see and feel the light that is Jesus. This is where the calendar gets interesting. The length of daylight steadily decreases until the winter solstice. December 21^st has the shortest amount of daylight in the year, and this means that every day after the winter solstice the amount of light in the day increases steadily. It works out that this is when Christmas occurs: right we the light starts to overtake the darkness in number of daylight hours.

So it is that hope is found in the coming of Jesus during this holiday season. Although light may be significant for us because of the darkening days, we find that the hope this symbol brings with it in the birth of Christ is even more powerful. We face the darkness of winter, but God is going to become incarnate, light will break through, and the darkness will be overcome.