We’ve walked with Mary and Joseph as they packed for their
journey to Bethlehem in compliance with the ‘decree that all should be
registered’. We’ve looked at what we might pack, spiritually for Advent. Last
week, we pondered their journey and how it was not an easy trip, nor is our
life’s road always smooth and straight.
Now we arrive, with the couple, in Bethlehem. It is a small
town. There are not many public places to stay. Even the private homes are full
to bursting because of the influx of travelers for the census. No wonder Joseph
is found wandering from door to door in the Hispanic tradition of Las Posadas.
That is a time-honored retelling of the story of the Holy Family’s arrival in
Bethlehem and finding ‘no room in the inn’. As we hear the story, we may think
of ‘inns’ in the modern way of a motel. That is not at all what Mary and Joseph
would have found. At best, there would be a place to bed down in the lower part
of a home where the animals would also be. At worst, it would be a fenced-in,
but open to the elements, area again milling with animals and other people.
Hardly the place to go into labor or deliver a child.
In fact, the offer of a stable, or more likely a cave where
animals sheltered was probably very welcome. With our modern sensibilities, we
think we wouldn’t want to bed down in a barn. In fact, a barn would have been a
warm and cozy place. It would have been sheltered and dry. Probably there was
straw on the floor, or straw could be laid on the floor to make a softer bed.
Getting to
your destination is always a mixture of relief and bustle. There is unloading the
car and getting settled into your room. Whether the couple found shelter with a
distant family member (as in my book Mary,
My Love) or in a stranger’s spare cave, Joseph would have needed to tend to
the donkey and see that Mary was comfortable.
We don’t know if Mary was actually in labor upon their arrival, or if that came a bit later. Certainly
walking 100 miles, or riding on a donkey, could be enough to hurry labor pains
along if she was close to delivering. Of course, tradition says that she was
imminently giving birth when the couple arrived in Bethlehem. That is why they
couldn’t just bed down in the open caravan yard.
Luke tells us it was “While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her
child.” So we can interpret the timing as we choose. Even if Mary was not yet in labor, she would be especially
grateful to stop moving. Walking 100 miles when you are ‘heavy with child’
would be tiring for anyone, even a strong young woman.
Sit quietly and re-read the Luke account. “In
those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be
registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was
governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also
went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called
Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went
to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a
child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And
she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid
him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”
In the Lexio Divino tradition of Bible meditation,
it is suggested that a passage be read at least 2 or 3 times, pausing to think
about it each time. Using a different translation can sometimes open new
thoughts on a familiar passage. The internet makes it easy to find different
translations.
Then, try to put yourself in the sandals of Mary or Joseph as they arrive in Bethlehem. Normally it is not a quiet town, but now,
it is very busy. There are people and animals everywhere. Imagine the noise-the
shouting and pushing. Can you hear the bleating of the sheep and the snorts of
assorted camels? Dogs everywhere are on high alert and barking at the
multitudes in the homes and streets.
Inhale some of the odors in Bethlehem. Do you smell
various animals and smoke from cooking fires, the scent of food, mixed with the
rising dust from feet trampling along the street? Is that a tantalizing hint of
spice?
What do you feel as you walk down the street,
strangers in an unfamiliar place? Can you even get someone’s attention to ask
directions? And when you do find your way to someplace that may have lodging,
you are told “no room”. How do you feel when you hear that there is no place
for your wife to rest?
In the enactment of this scene during the annual
Las Posadas in Hispanic communities, esp. in the Southwestern US and Mexico, the
couple stop at many homes along the street, always hearing the same refrain.
Often it is played out over several evenings with a different home being
visited each night. At last, the couple find refuge and a cradle for the Child
to be born.
As you contemplate the citation from Luke, enter into the
relief of the pair as they finally do find a place to stay. Sit with Mary and
Joseph as they settle in to their temporary home. At last they can stop walking, unpack the
donkey, and rest. Even if Mary was not yet in labor, she would be especially
grateful to stop moving. Walking 100 miles when you are ‘heavy with child’
would be tiring for anyone, even a strong young woman.
Take time this week to sit and wait for the
coming of the Christ Child. There was a thought-provoking prayer/poem Kimbely
Knowle-Zeller on Episcopal Cafe on December 12 that you may want to read. She reminds us that even
though we may get tired of waiting, “this waiting is just the beginning/A
beginning of love coming down”.
