Evil



I never thought I'd be writing on evil at Christmas time. But I also never dreamed that a nightmare like the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy could ever take place.

Ironically, such evil is also found in the Christmas story.

"When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: "A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more."

- Matthew 2:16-18

This is the world Christ was born into.

It was a dangerous world, a fragile world, a world where Herod was king. Herod was known for his brutality and for letting nothing stand in the way of his desire for power; so much so that he killed one of his wives and two of his sons when he felt they were plotting against him. Jesus was born into a world where Herod was king.

This is the world in which we live.

It's a world where sometimes unspeakable evil happens. Rabbi Harold Kushner once wrote that what makes something truly evil is,  "it prevents people from believing in God's goodness"  (When Bad Things Happen to Good People, p. 53).

This is the world Christ came to redeem.

This is world he came to save. This is the world he came to love. This is the world that needs his light. And this is the world he will return to to transform.

Evil will not have the last word. God will. Love will. Christ will.

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness will never put it out. This is at the heart of Christmas.

Prayer: Help us to cling to faith and hope, O God, even in the face of evil. In the name of our crucified and risen Savior. Amen.



The Wise Men warm Joseph & Mary to flee Herod.



(The thoughts above are taken largely from a message by the late Dr. James I. McCord, former president of Princeton Theological Seminary.)

Extra Credit:

A Prayer for the Sandy Hook Tragedy
By the Rev. James Martin, SJ - Jesuit priest

Where were you, God?

We are crushed with grief, God.
We cannot bear to think of so many people killed.
We cannot bear to think of children being killed.
It is unthinkable to us, the worst tragedy.    Children.

Where were you, God? How could you let this happen?
Why is your world like this? We are sad and angry and confused.

But God, we know that you know what it means to have a child die.
For your Son died a violent death.

And we know that your Son understands grief.
For he wept bitterly when his friend Lazarus died.
And he was moved with compassion when he saw suffering.
His heart broke like our hearts do. He cried like we do today.

We know too that your Son raised Lazarus from the dead.
And that you raised your own murdered Son from the grave,
As a sign of the eternal life you have planned for us.
The life into which you now place the victims, whom you loved. And love.

We know that you understand our terrible anguish.
You accept our bitterness and our confusion too.
And we know that your Son is beside us, weeping with us.

We know that you are still with us God, in the darkness.
In our compassion for the families and friends of the victims.
In the love that moves us to care for one another.
In the anger that drives us to strive to put an end to violence,
As your Son tried to do in his time with us.

Most of all, eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
And let perpetual light shine upon them.

You said, "Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted.
Comfort them, Loving God.
Comfort every grieving parent, every scared and confused child, every first responder.
Teach us your ways, and lead us toward your everlasting light, that light that always shines and that the darkness can never put out.  Amen.



"I believe in the sun, even when it is not shining.
 I believe in love, even when I don't feel it.
 I believe in God, even when there is silence."
 -Words scratched on the walls of a cellar in Cologne, Germany by a Jew hiding from Nazi persecution.

Advent

I have a friend who does all his Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve. He says he finds the challenge exhilarating. While I can appreciate the adrenaline rush, I prefer to plan ahead. I'm not fanatical about it but I start thinking about gifts before Thanksgiving. I spread out my Christmas preparations over 4 - 6 weeks. I like it that way.

I think it's best to prepare spiritually for Christmas in the same way. It's too big of an event to just get started on Christmas Eve. That's why we have Advent. Advent means "coming" or "arrival." It's the season that helps us prepare for the advent of our Lord, both his first and second comings. Advent is the first season in the church year. It begins on the 4th Sunday prior to Christmas.

Advent is a season of prayer and reflection, of time of pondering like Mary. We focus more on our relationship with God. Often a devotional guide is a part. We light candles on the Advent wreath at church and maybe even at home. We reflect on the gifts that Christ brings to us - hope, peace, joy and love. We wait and prepare for the Light of Christ is be born in us anew.

Prayer: Help me to spiritually prepare for Christmas. Amen.

Extra Credit

The Advent Wreath is a German/Lutheran tradition that goes back to the 16 Century. It may have even been used in pre-Christian times as a pre-winter symbol of hope - as the days grew shorter another candle would be lit. The wreath, of course, is in the shape of a circle, a symbol of eternity. It's made or covered with evergreens, a symbol of God's faithfulness to us (ever-green). Candles are lighted on the four Sundays prior to Christmas, with the Christ candle lit on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day to celebrate the gift of Christ, the Light of the World.

Thanksgiving

 

"If the only prayer you ever pray is 'Thank You,' that would suffice."

- Meister Eckharrt, 1260-1328

 

Prayer:

Gracious and Loving God,

Thank You.

Amen.

"It's just not normal, Rich," he said emphatically. "Homosexuality is not normal."  To which I replied, "Of course it's not normal to you, my friend - you're not gay!"

I know of a large family made up of several sons. Two of those sons happen to be gay. Both of them are faith-filled committed Christians. One believes it's best to remain celibate. The other does not.

Here's a thought: maybe we should let gay folks decide for themselves, and the rest of us should just mind our own business.

As a Christian and lover of the Bible, however, I can't ignore what it says. Yet when I read the Old Testament passages on the subject (Gen. 19:5, Lev. 18:22 & 20:13) I can't help but be reminded that these same books instruct men to shun menstruating women, and avoid pork (and all animals with a cloven hoof) as well as shellfish. At the same time these books allow for slavery and polygamy. So it shouldn't surprise me that the ancient Israelites (3500 years ago) weren't up-to-date on everything.

The Apostle Paul mentions the issue (perhaps) in three passages (Rom. 1:26-27, I Cor. 6:9 & I Tim. 1:9-10). But here's the thing - Paul never knew Jim & Billy, two friends of mine who've been together for over 25 years. Listen to what the late Harvard Chaplain, Rev. Peter Gomes says:

"The homosexuality Paul would have known and to which he makes reference in his letter, particularly to the Romans, has to do with pederasty and male prostitution, and he particularly condemns those heterosexual men and women who assume homosexual practices . . . All Paul knew of homosexuality was the debauched pagan expression of it . . . . 'Sodomite' as we now know, refers almost exclusively to a male prostitute, and is not a Pauline synonym for 'homosexual,' as we understand that term."

So St. Paul is not condemning Jim & Billy! He's condemning very pagan and immoral practices (heterosexual men visiting male prostitutes in pagan temples. Yikes. I'd like to speak out against that as well.)

Prayer: Gracious and Holy God, thank you for your love for all people. Forgive your church for not always welcoming all people. Teach us all to love as you love. Amen.




         

Heilsgeschichte

There are some words you just never forget. "Heilsgeschichte" is one of them. It's German for,  "salvation history."  It's pronounced, "Hiles-ga-schick-ta." Trust me. Heilsgeschichte is something Biblical scholars and theologians notice in the scriptures.

In the Old Testament it's the redemptive history of God and the Jews. In the New Testament it's the savings acts of Jesus Christ.

Scholars believe that this is the first and therefore the oldest telling of the sacred history:

 "A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous.  When the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, by imposing hard labor on us, we cried to the Lord, the God of our ancestors; the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders; and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land
flowing with milk and honey."       - Deut. 26:5-9

The Jews also sang their holy history. Psalms 44, 68, 78, 105, 106, 114 all retell the sacred story.  The story of Jesus' life, death, resurrection and return is the heilsgeschichte of the New Testament. We retell it at every communion service.

Sacred history culminates in the Return of Christ. The idea of heilsgeschichte is in direct contrast to the ancient Greek view that history is meaningless. The biblical view is that God is working in human history, and that history is heading somewhere - to the coming of the Kingdom of God.

Prayer. God of the ages, give me the faith to believe in sacred history, that life is not meaningless and that history will culminate in You.  Amen.

Hell

We were having a discussion one night at youth group about heaven and hell. I love talking about big issues with others, especially teens, because sometimes they say the most insightful things. That night a young man named Jordan said it best: "I believe in hell. I just don't think it's a very big place."

Some folks seem to think of it as just the opposite, which is quite a sad outlook if you really think about it. Brian McLaren once challenged this view with an analogy that goes something like this: If folks are being tortured in your basement, how much of a party can you really have upstairs in your living room?

I believe the point of heaven and hell is that this world matters. How we live matters. What we do with what God has given us matters.

Here's a thought: The point about heaven and hell is not the afterlife but this life. It's to motivate us for this life here and now!

Prayer: Loving and Gracious God, help me to live this day as a Citizen of Heaven. In Your Name. Amen.

Extra credit 

Somewhere in his writings C.S. Lewis wonders aloud if hell is eternal. Maybe it's a temporary place until something essential is learned?

Maybe in the end, it's as author Rob Bell suggests, "Love Wins." This view is called "Christian Universalism." It's the belief that Jesus Christ is indeed the Savior of the world and that everyone is saved because of him, regardless if they believe in him or not. His love and grace will have the last word. "As all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ" (I Cor. 15:21-22)

Let me give the last word at the moment however to Brian McLaren:

"It's none of your business who does and does not go to hell. It is your business to be warned by it and to run, not walk, in the opposite direction! It is your business to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, to love your neighbor as yourself, to have confidence in Jesus Christ and live as Jesus lived. Let the imagery of hell remind you that life is serious business, that there are real consequences to how we live and believe, that justice and injustice ultimately matter more than most of what people worry about. Now stop speculating about hell and start living for heaven!"

From A New Kind of Christian, p. 126

Heaven

Twila was always a very calm, even keel person. Nevertheless I asked her, "Are you afraid, Twila? Are you afraid of dying?" The doctors said she only had a few weeks. "No," she replied instantly; "I did it once before and it was absolutely beautiful."

From all that I've read and heard the accounts are all the same. Those who have died and come back say it's amazing on the other side, so much so that they don't want to return.

It is proof?  No.   It is evidence?  Yes.

I believe in Heaven because Jesus taught that we have a home with God after our life here is complete (John 14:1-3). I believe in Heaven because I believe that Christ's victory over the grave is a shared victory. It's shared with us.

But I also believe in Heaven because of logic and experience. I experience the love of God here and now in this life. So to me it logically follows that the eternal God's relationship with me (and you!) will not end when we take our last breath.

Former Princeton Theological Seminary President Dr. Thomas Gillespie once put it this way:

By raising Jesus from the dead, God gives us a 'sneak preview' of our own destiny. The risen Christ declares, 'Because I live, you will live also.' That is where our faith begins. And in this faith our hope is grounded.

Yet, contrary to popular opinion, faith is not blind. Faith believes in eternal life, not merely because it is written in the Bible. Faith believes in eternal life, not merely because it is taught by the Church. But rather, faith believes in eternal life because it is experienced now in this life. Faith believes because it knows.

Here's a thought: Heaven is perfectly consistent with the love of God.

Prayer: Thank You, Gracious God, that your love is eternal and therefore so is my life in you. In the Name of the Risen Lord.  Amen.

Extra Credit:

Martin Copenhaver is a U.C.C. pastor and author. He once wrote this about eternal life.

"God cannot be indifferent about our destiny any more than a mother can forget the name of her own child. To believe in eternal life, then, is not to believe in something in addition to believing in God. To believe in eternal life is to believe in this kind of loving God. There is another way to put it. If we believe in God--a God of justice rather than a God of indifference, a God who fulfills rather than taunts, a God who loves rather than torments--then eternal life is simply too good not to be true."