Epiphany with Artaban: For the Sake of a Little Child

 We continue our journey with Artaban, the Other Wise Man, to see what he might teach us about finding God in our times. We have trekked with him from Persia to Babylon where he stopped to help a dying man, and missed his meeting with Casper, Balthazar and Melchoir.

He sets out “over the dreary undulation of the desert, high upon the back of his camel,” according to author Henry van Dyke. He arrives at last in Bethlehem. “It was the third day after the three wise men had come to that place.” He finds the streets deserted. In one home he encounters a young mother who tells of the visit of “strangers from the Far East.” She tells him that the family was rumored to have fled to Egypt. As Artaban eats, and the baby in the house sleeps, there are screams “The soldiers! The soldiers of Herod! They are killing our children!”

Artaban stands blocking the doorway. When the captain approaches, he states, “I am all alone…waiting to give this jewel to the prudent captain who will leave me in peace.” Greedily, the captain takes the offered ruby and turns the soldiers away.

However, Artaban is devastated. He prays, “I have said a thing that is not, to save the life of a child...I have spent for man that which was meant for God. Shall I ever be worthy to see the face of the King?” He feels guilty for ‘wasting’ the gift he planned for the Messiah, even though his action saved the life of one child.

I wonder how often I think my talents and money and other gifts must be given directly to the service of God by giving them to some religious cause? Or, I may think that what I offer is too small. Might there be some use for even the smallest gift? 

We hear, “the gifts of God for the people of God,” during the Eucharist. The simple gifts of bread and wine are made holy in their use. We prefer rules, even if they build walls rather than show love. Once when the Pharisees confront Jesus because his disciples are picking grain on the Sabbath, he reminds them of David’s actions centuries before, “He entered the house of God, when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and he gave some to his companions.’ Then he said to them, ‘The sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath; so the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.’ (Mark 2:23-28) God's lawas are for the good and use of humanity, not as a barrier. 

Jesus had very little patience with those who want to make their actions look holy by saying they are for God, when neglecting what God, through the prophets, like Micah, says is more important: to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8) In Matthew 23, Jesus confronts the Pharisees about this. He asks, You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?...You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former…You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.

The religious leaders of Jesus’ time were scrupulous in following the rules of Torah, sometimes at the expense of truly caring and loving. We should not be too hard on them. We do the same things when we say only the properly trained people can do some task at church or when we frown at a child being too rambunctious in church.   

Artaban used the ruby, which he had designated as a gift for the King, to save the life of a child in Bethlehem. He is afraid the action makes him unfit to find the King. He forgot that God is in and of all things, whether precious by human reckoning or worthless. The gift God most wants is a humble and contrite heart—a lesson Jonah learns in the Hebrew Scripture reading on Sunday (Jonah 3:1-5, 10). Even the people of Ninevah are forgiven when they repent because of Jonah’s preaching. No one and no thing is outside of God.  

What do I name as God’s and try to protect at all costs?

Who do I think is not good enough to serve God, or be loved by God?

Walk With Jesus: Holy Week 2020-Wednesday

This week, I'll be posting a study: Walk with Jesus: Holy Week 2020. You can download the entire study, or just visit this page every day. (If you download the pdf, you should be able to print it 2 pages to a sheet (8.5 x 11) if you set it to landscape.)
We'll journey through Israel, pausing to read and reflect at various events of His life and ministry. These events took place at specific locations, so you’ll learn a bit about Israel in 30AD, too. There are questions to inspire you to meditate on your response to Jesus’ ministry and how that may be different this year due to self-isolation and social distancing. After completing the daily study, take time to reflect and journal on the questions. If you are doing this study with friends, share you insights with each other. Each session has an activity to do as well to help you move faith into action.
Close each session with the prayer in the lesson.

Opening Prayer

Lord Jesus, walk with me and open my heart to what you would have me learn from these lessons. Amen.

Power of Christ (Wednesday): Bethlehem & Bethany

Power can have many meanings and connotations. The people of Israel in Jesus’ time had good reason to fear the powerful, esp. the Romans. A soldier could coerce anyone into working. The average person had no rights. Beatings and death were common ways power was exerted. Currently, the Coronavirus has a certain power over our actions. It is also causing us to try new ways of doing things, so it is both good and bad.

Power is also positive. We need electric power to run our homes. The power of nature can awe us, even though it can be destructive. Jesus had spiritual power, which he used to heal and also to confront the religious establishment. It got him into trouble.

Do you think of Power as mostly a positive or negative thing? How about the Coronavirus?

The southern part of Israel, called Judea, was under control of the Roman procurator, Pontius Pilate. Rome had installed Pontius Pilate as procurator in 26CD to keep the fragile peace. His uses of power to keep order were hated by the Jews. It was in this area that Jesus performed his greatest works of power.

Read  Luke 13:1-9

Jesus uses the example of those killed by Pilate and by the disaster of the tower falling to urge repentance not revolt. How do you respond to evil in the world?

What good do you see could come from the current Coronavirus responses?

Bethlehem is a little town nestled in the hills five miles south of Jerusalem. It is closely linked to the capital. The name Bet Leven means House of Bread and the wheat grown here is used for the shewbread in the temple.

The nearby hills are home to the temple shepherds and their flocks. The little fat-tailed sheep that dot the hills provide lambs for the temple sacrifices. They must be entirely white, without any spot of another color. During lambing season, the numerous hill caves are used to shelter the ewes and newborn lambs from the chill spring winds.

Bethlehem is revered as the ancestral home of the family of David. No Hebrew child in Israel is unaware of the story of Ruth from Moab. This famous great-grandmother of King David came to Bethlehem with her mother-in-law, Naomi, after both women were widows. In obedience to the Law, she gleaned grain in the barley and wheat fields during the harvests. Here she met Boaz who offered her the protection of marriage.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem during the rule of Herod the Great. His birth caused a great tragedy in the area.

Read  Matthew 2:1-18

Being of the house of David was an honor to the ancient Jews. How much greater honor is it to be of the ‘house and lineage’ of Christ?

What harm do we do, knowingly or unknowingly, out of fear?

North of Bethlehem lies Bethany. This small village is almost a suburb of Jerusalem. The name means “House of Dates” because of the many date palm trees in the area. The branches are used to make the booths during the Feast of Booths (Succoth) every fall. The leaves are also used to make baskets and for thatching the roofs of the houses.

Scribes and some temple priests make their home in Bethany because it is so close to Jerusalem and the duties of the temple, without the dust and crowds of the larger city. Many wealthy families live in the estates in and around the town. 

Bethany was the home of Jesus’ friend Lazarus who he raised from the dead. This miracle was the catalyst that convinced the Jewish leaders that Jesus had to die.

Read  John 11:45-53

The priests were trying to protect the status quo. Is there something you are protecting?

Are you afraid, or do you have confidence in Christ at this time?

Take Action:

Prayer is a powerful activity. Use the Doxology and pray through the alphabet, adding 3 or 4 things for each letter that offer praise to God. For instance, for ‘A’:

Praise God from whom all blessing flow, praise God all [anteaters, anglers, angels, and albatross].

Praise God above you heavenly host, Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

(Then continue with ‘B’, ‘C’, etc.)

Prayer Today

 Lord Christ, I want you to be in charge of my life, but I can become fearful that you will ask too much of me, so I try to save my life just like the Roman and Jewish leaders did. Help me to trust you with my life. Amen.

Prayer for Wednesday of Holy Week

Lord God, whose blessed Son our Savior gave his body to be whipped and his face to be spit upon: Give us grace to accept joyfully the sufferings of the present time, confident of the glory that shall be revealed; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Pentecost: Ordinary Women: Ruth & Naomi

We are continuing the series on Ordinary Women. Women through whom God acted. Women like you and me. Today we go back 4 millennia to a time not long after the Exodus ended and the Children of Israel entered the Promised Land.

Ruth and Naomi are an amazing pair of women. The Bible book is named for the younger woman, but without her mother-in-law, she would not be known. It was the older woman, Naomi, who bore the brunt of the loss of husband and sons in a foreign country. It was Naomi who decided to return to her hometown of Bethlehem hoping that the Mosaic tenet to care for widows and orphans would apply to her. It was Naomi who allowed Ruth to return to Israel, even though she was a foreigner. It was Naomi who encouraged her to seek out Boaz and force his hand. It is Naomi at the end of the Book of Ruth who names the child Obed. Naomi, despite her grief clung to some dim hope that God would help her.

Most people know the story-or think they do. They know that Ruth told someone “where you go, I will go…your people will be my people…” If you did a poll many would respond that she was talking to a man because that citation is often used at marriages. They may not know that she was speaking to Naomi, her mother-in-law, or the circumstances that led to the conversation.

In the Biblical Book of Ruth, we hear that “in the days of the Judges” there is a “famine in the land”. It was then that Elimelech, “a certain man of Bethlehem…went to sojourn in the country of Moab [with] his wife and his two sons.” (Ruth 1:1) Elimelech and Naomi go back across the Jordan and settle somewhere in Moab. Elimelech dies and “she was left with her two sons”. (Ruth 1:3) The the sons meet and marry women of Moab but after 10 years they, too, die. 

Naomi then hears that “the Lord had visited his people and given them food” (Ruth 1:6). She sets out for Bethlehem. She tells her daughters-in-law, Orpah and Ruth, to go back to their families. Orpah does eventually turn back, but Ruth ‘clung to her’ and recites her famous lines. “Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die—there will I be buried. May the Lord do thus and so to me, and more as well, if even death parts me from you!” (Ruth 1:16-18)

Naomi gives in, and the pair travel to Bethlehem. It would not have been an easy journey for two women alone, and likely they joined some caravan going in the right direction. Upon arriving in Bethlehem Naomi bewails her fate, saying “Call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.” (Ruth 1:20)

In chapter 2 of the Book of Ruth we learn how Ruth goes to the fields around Bethlehem to glean (gather the leftover bits of grain at the edges of the fields) and encounters Boaz. Boaz, it turns out, is actually a distant kinsman of Elimelech (and son of Rahab of Jericho). He takes an interest in the stranger. This prompts Naomi to send Ruth to ‘lay at his feet’ during the threshing. Obediently, the young woman does so and Boaz says, “I will do for you all that you ask…I will do the part of the next of kin for you.” (Ruth 3:10-13).

Sure enough, in the morning, at a meeting of the town elders, Boaz offers a fellow kinsman “a parcel of land which belonged to our kinsman Elimelech…if you buy it you are also buying Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of the dead, in order to restore the name of his inheritance.” (Ruth 4:3-5) The other man defers his right to Boaz who then marries Ruth. Ruth then has a baby. Then “the [village] women said to Naomi, ‘Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without next of kin…he shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has borne him.” (Ruth 4:14-15). “They named him Obed; he was the father of Jesse, the father of David”… and subsequently the ancestor of Jesus.  

What can these two women of faith teach us? Ruth remained faithful to her mother-in-law and together they persevered through hardship. Naomi trusted the word of God, spoken in the law given to Moses. She used that law to her benefit to ensure the future for Ruth and for herself. By gaining a son-in-law and then a grandson, she was assured of being cared for.

Naomi’s griefs from the deaths of her husband and sons were healed in the new life of her grandson. She may have let herself feel despair when returning to Bethlehem, but she didn’t let it stop her from acting to secure Ruth’s future.

Have you ever persevered through hardship and seen good come out of it?

Would you have had the strength to do as Naomi did and journey back home, hoping that something good might happen? 

Journey to Bethlehem: At the Manger

On December 24, there are celebrations of all kinds in Christian churches around the world. From the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem itself to tiny congregations of only a few people, the birth of Jesus is celebrated with the words from Luke. “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.”

Over the past 3 weeks, we’ve journeyed with Mary and Joseph from Nazareth, along the Jordan River Valley to Bethlehem. It has been a time to look at what we bring to the journey and what we might be better off leaving behind. The road of life is never as smooth as we might wish. In fact, it is often more like a labyrinth with twists and turns rather than a straight path.

Last week, we paused to be with Mary and Joseph as they arrived in the bustle of Bethlehem and looked for a place to stay. Now, we come to the manger and sit in awe of God’s gift of Love. As Ann Voskamp wrote on Dec. 18 “Christ doesn’t reveal the outcome of what we face, but He reveals to us His Face. This is the gift of Christmas that flickers in the pitch black…Advent means that we meet whatever comes to us — with this brazen belief that it is Love that Comes Down…[Do we prepare for Christmas] by readying the heart to receive the gift of every moment — no matter what the moment unexpectedly holds — as a gift of His love?...No matter the barrenness you feel, you can always have as much Jesus as you want.”

We’ve journeyed with Mary and Joseph and maybe considered our life’s labyrinth this Advent. The truth we believe and live is “the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father's one and only Son. (John 1:14 New Living Translation)

Now we come to the manger to welcome the Holy Child. What is your response to the ‘love come down at Christmas’? What do you bring to the manger?

As Christina Rossetti wrote in her famous poem My Gift:

What can I give Him,
Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd
I would bring a lamb,
If I were a Wise Man
I would do my part,--
Yet what I can I give Him,
Give my heart.

Perhaps in 2018 we'll give more of our heart to Christ Incarnate in the world around us and in the people we meet. Perhaps in that way we can give a glimpse to the hurting world that 'Love HAS come down'. 
A new series starts in 2018. See you then.

Advent Journey to Bethlehem: Arrival

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”. 

Advent Journey to Bethlehem: What to Pack

Today is the first day of the Season of Advent, a time of preparation for the coming of the Christ Child. It is a time of new beginnings, because it is the Church’s New Year. Advent is a time to pause, if only briefly, amid all the secular preparations and be amazed that the Holy God loves us so much that God became incarnate (was made human) to reconcile us to relationship.

This Advent, I invite you to come with Mary and Joseph on their journey to Bethlehem and explore what parallels there could be to our own Advent journey.

We know the story of Mary and Joseph’s travels from the second chapter of the Gospel of Luke. “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.”

The Gospel account is pretty sparse in details. What did everyone think when they heard of the census? I can guess that there was a lot of grumbling and likely even some cursing about the government wanting to count the conquered people. Very likely there was a prayer for Messiah to come. The Messiah as envisioned by the people would overthrow Rome and restore Israel, as had happened under the Maccabees a couple centuries earlier.

On an individual level, though, there was preparation. Because you had to return to your family home, Luke tells us, “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.” There were many routes the family could have taken, and we’ll look at that next week. This week, we are looking at the preparations for the journey.

What do you do when you are getting ready for a trip? Are you one who plans out every detail and packs what is needed for rain or shine? Or are you more laid back and just toss in a few changes of clothing and underwear and hope for the best on the adventure?

Let’s think about what Mary and Joseph might have packed for a journey of about 100 miles (about 10 days). They had the additional planning for the likelihood of her child being born while they were away from Nazareth. We don’t know if they needed to arrange for someone to care for any animals they might have owned. Possibly they owned a sheep or 2 or a goat for milk. They might have had a dog around the house and a cat in the wood shop to keep down the mice. These weren’t the pampered pets we now have. They would have been much more self-sufficient, especially the cat.

Tradition says that they owned a donkey and that Mary rode that animal at least part of the way to Bethlehem. A donkey can carry about 100 pounds for a distance. If Mary rode, there wasn’t much opportunity to pile the packs on the animal, too, so Joseph would have needed to carry their supplies himself. An average man can carry 50-60 pounds, so the couple would need to keep that in mind as they packed. Let’s imagine that they could only take as much as can be put in a suitcase without paying extra weight charges at the airport.

For the trip, they needed something to keep them clothed. It is likely that they didn’t own very many changes of clothes, so it was not as onerous a task as it is when we decide to pack for a trip. Perhaps a clean tunic and a heavy outer robe that would also serve as a blanket would be all the extra items needed.

Perhaps they carried along mats of some sort to sleep on at night, so they wouldn’t have to lay directly on the ground. Maybe Joseph even included the supplies for some kind of small tent to protect Mary from the nightly elements.

Food for the trip was a necessity as there were not convenient McDonald’s along the route to grab a snack. Nor were there handy WalMarts to stop at to pick up supplies left behind. They could shop or trade in village markets when they passed through, if they had the coins or items to barter with.

Joseph probably took at least a few of his tools so that he might earn some money or food by doing odd jobs along the way.

The couple would have taken some swaddling cloths and blankets for the soon-to-arrive baby. However, they wouldn’t have been laden with all the paraphernalia and gadgets that we think are essential for infants.

What do their preparations for the trip tell us about our preparations for this Advent journey?

What kind of clothing do we need for our journey through Advent? Do we need food or shelter? Are their tools we might need or special items that we should take along?

Isaiah 61:10 tells us what kind of clothing God has prepared for us. “…He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” That’s pretty fancy clothing for a trip. However, this isn’t just any trip. We are going to meet the King of Kings, our Bridegroom, the Son of the Living God! We don’t have to worry about what to wear because God’s love already has us covered.

What about tools? Let’s look at Ephesians 6:13-17 for some things we can add to our outfit and carry as tools. “Put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Our journey may be to the Wedding Banquet, but it is not always an easy trek. Therefore, we need to be prepared with truth, righteousness, and peace. Most of all we have the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit for protection.

Do we need to pack food for our Advent journey? Food is a huge part of the secular celebrations of the season. What spiritual food should we pack? In Isaiah 25:6 we hear, “The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, And refined, aged wine.” Jesus tells his disciples, “I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.” (John 6:51) And of course, we have the Eucharist to feed us as instituted by Jesus at the Last Supper.

In Exodus, the Israelites complained that they didn’t have food, and God sent manna for them. It was a food they simply had to gather and consume. We are offered a similar feast on our Advent journey. God will provide the food we need for the journey, if we are open to accepting it. If we take time to be on this journey, we will find that we are fed, and clothed, and led.

Do you have ideas of other things you would pack for this Advent journey with Mary and Joseph? 

Next time, we’ll consider the actual road trip that Mary and Joseph embarked on. 

When God comes Knocking

In the past 3 weeks, we have entered the lives and emotions of four of the main characters in the Christmas story. We considered the responses of Elizabeth and Zechariah to God’s ‘yes’. We have walked with Mary and with Joseph as they encounter a God that comes too close and changes human plans.

This week, we’ll stop by the Inn in Bethlehem and explore how the life of a businessman was impacted by God. We’ll ask how his response might inform our own actions along the path of Creation spirituality. There is not a lot to go by in the Gospel record. Most of what we might think about the innkeeper comes from tradition and other stories. In fact, all the Bible says is “there was no place for them in the inn.” This implies an innkeeper, but no person is mentioned. The word translated in the KVJ and other translations as ‘inn’ is kataluma which may also be translated as ‘guest chamber’. (The NIV translation says, “there was no guest room available”.) A ‘guest room’ would imply that Mary and Joseph came to stay with family or friends and were turned away.

In my book, Mary, My Love, the couple does indeed come to a relative’s home. Because of the census, the house is full to overflowing with other descendants of David and so there is no place except the barn (cave) for the late arrivers.

So, let’s explore the response of the innkeeper, be they a family member or stranger, on their journey along the paths of Creation Spirituality.

The Via Positiva of Creation Spirituality is related to holy hospitality. The rich, cosmic, eternal hospitality of God who both creates and is within all of creation. Matthew Fox states, “the Creator God is a gracious, an abundant, and a generous host/hostess. She has spread out for our delight a banquet that was 20 billion years in the making. A banquet of rivers and lakes, of rain and of sunshine, of rich earth and of amazing flowers, of handsome trees and of dancing fishes, of contemplative animals and of whistling winds, of dry and wet season, of cold and hot climates…God has declared that this banquet is ‘very good’ and so are we, blessings ourselves, invited to the banquet.”

Born from the values of desert nomads, where hospitality can mean life or death to the traveler, hospitality was deeply ingrained in Jewish life. Remember the story of Abraham greeting his three visitors by preparing a feast for them. (Genesis 18:1-8). The widow of Zarapheth who cared for Elisha (I Kings 17:8-16) was also honoring that long tradition, even though she was not Hebrew.

When “a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered…All went to their own towns to be registered.” (Luke 2:2-3) Because many families traced their lineage to King David, many would travel to Bethlehem for this census. This was both an opportunity for hospitality by those in Bethlehem and a burden. I am sure that most residents opened their homes to other relatives and even strangers, as they were able.

Stop and Think: Are you someone who goes overboard for company, or are you more laid back? How does that fit with the extravagant, generous hospitality of God’s creation?

If hospitality is the Via Creativa in the story of Mary and Joseph’s arrival in Bethlehem, surely the inability to find lodging is the Via Negativa. I like to give the innkeeper/relative the benefit of the doubt. It is extremely possible that every spare room in Bethlehem WAS filled with travelers when Mary and Joseph arrived.

Some commentators hint that it was because Mary was an ‘unwed’ mother, they were turned away by their family. In fact, she was married to Joseph, at least according to Luke. Matthew simply says, “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.” As we saw last week, the betrothal was just as binding as the official ceremony.

For the innkeeper/relative telling the young couple that ‘there is no room’ must have been difficult. He had to admit that he had nothing to give in the way of hospitality. He had to admit to being ‘empty’. No one likes to admit that they didn’t plan well enough or ran out of supplies. I think that is why all the traditions and stories have the innkeeper offering the stable as an alternative. As something poor but at least out of the weather. This was one way to offer some form of hospitality.

Stop and Think: Are there ways you provide ‘just enough’ hospitality in some cases? Does hospitality extend to those who are different or in need?

Providing the stable or cave was a way for the innkeeper to save face. It also made him/her part of the new Via Creativa that was happening. The Gospel tells us, “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.” Mary gave birth to the Son of God in a humble place. God comes down to our level. In the dust of a stable and the sweat and struggle of a woman giving birth, God becomes Immanuel.

Meister Eckhart asks, “What does God do all day long? God gives birth. From eternity God lies on a maternity bed giving birth.” He goes on to say “What good is it to me if Mary gave birth to the son of God 1400 years ago and I do not also give birth to the son of God in my time and in my culture.” That is our call to action along the Via Creativa.

As we walk the Via Creativa ‘birthing’ God into the hurting and broken world, we become part of the eternal Via Transformativa. We give life, through our lives, to God with and within us. The good news of God made man changes the dynamic of the world.

CS Lewis explains how the Via Negativa can become the Via Transformativa in The Great Divorce, “They say of some temporal suffering, ‘No future bliss can make up for it,’ not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backwards and turn even that agony into a glory.” Lewis uses the same imagery in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Aslan (the great Lion and Christ figure in the book) tells Susan and Lucy, “though the witch knew the Deep Magic, there is a magic deeper still which she did not know. Her knowledge goes back only to the dawn of Time. But if she could have looked a little farther back, into the stillness and the darkness before Time dawned, she would have read there a different incantation. She would have known that when a willing victim who had committed no treachery was killed in a traitor’s stead, the Table would crack and Death itself would start working backwards.”

Stop and Think: In what ways are you active in the Via Creativa of birthing God into the world?

Consider the words of CS Lewis. What does it imply for your life that ‘agony [will turn into] glory’ and ‘Death itself will start working backward’?

Next week, we'll take a quick look at the Shepherds

Kingship of Christ

What words, thoughts, feelings come to mind when you think of “king,” “ruler,” “soveriegn”? What about the term “monarchy”?

The southern part of Israel, called Judea, was the homeland of the historic kings of Israel, starting with David. Although the kingdom divided into Judah in the south and Israel in the north around 922BC, the people still remembered the glorious days of David. Messiah, prophecied and longed for, would restore the Kingdom and usher in a new and glorious reign.

Even though the area of Judea was given by Herod the Great to his son Archelaus, Rome exiled the inept king to Gaul because too many riots and incidents of civil unrest plagued his ten-year rule. Rome installed a procurator to keep the fragile peace. Pontius Pilate was installed in the year 26CE. The Roman presence was hated and the Roman fortress of Antonia was a constant reminder of the Roman occupation, overlooking the Temple itself.

As Jesus moved into Judea, toward the capital, he knew he would be challenged. He confronted the priests and rulers of the people with his parables and was perceived as a threat to the status quo. Some of these conversations are found in Luke 20:1-41.

Bethlehem is where it all started, in a stable 30 some years earlier. It is not recorded in the Gospels that Jesus ever returned to Bethlehem, but the town was important to all Jews as the ancestral home of King David. It was also the prophesied birthplace of Messiah. Jesus’ birth there was a link to the lineage of David-the once and future king. (Matthew 1:1-18) This postcard image from 1886 is an artist's rendering of the town at that time.

Bethlehem is a little town nestled in the hills five miles south of Jerusalem. It was closely linked to the capital. The name Bet Leven means House of Bread and the wheat grown here was used for the shewbread in the temple. The nearby hills were home to the temple shepherds and their flocks. The little fat-tailed sheep were raised to provide the lambs for the temple sacrifices. The animals for the sacrifice had to be entirely white, without any spot of another color. During lambing season, the numerous hill caves were used to shelter the ewes and newborn lambs from the chill spring winds.

North of Bethlehem lies Bethany. This small village is almost a suburb of Jerusalem. The name means House of Dates and indeed there are many date palm trees in the area. Scribes and some temple priests made their home in Bethany because it was close to Jerusalem and the duties of the temple, without the dust and crowds of the larger city. Many wealthy families lived in the estates in and around the town.

Bethany was home to friends of Jesus-Lazarus and his sisters. It is not surprising that he stayed here while visiting Jerusalem. His raising of Lazarus offered proof of his supreme power and was a threat to the rulers of the day. (John 11:1-44 )45-53. This miracle was the catalyst that convinced the Jewish leaders that Jesus had to die.

During class this week we had a very lively discussion, especially about “protecting the vineyard” (i.e. church, tradition, faith). It is a struggle to know how to be ‘good stewards’ of the vineyard. The priests of Jesus’ time were trying to protect the faith and life of Israel. Caiphas prophecied, “it is expedient for you that one man should die for the people and that the whole nation should not perish.” In his efforts to maintain the peace with Rome and preserve the nation of Israel, he was willing to hand over this troublemaking rabbi to death. We talked about the difficulty of determining where, when, and how to stand up for God vs. trusting God to bring everything to the proper conclusion. What are your answers to these questions?

The parable of the vineyard was a warning to the religious leaders of Israel. Are there ways you try to protect you corner of the vineyard?


Being of the house of David was an honor to the ancient Jews. How much greater honor is it to be of the ‘house and lineage’ of Christ?


Where is Christ’s reign found in your ministry?

Next week we will look at the Passover and Last Supper.