Across the pastor's Desk - December 21, 2007

It is somewhat surprising to many people that the day after the celebration of Christmas the Church commemorates the first martyr, Stephen, the Deacon. Two days later the Church remembers the Holy Innocents, the children of Bethlehem, whom the Gospel writer Matthew tells us were killed because of the fear held by the powers and the forces of this world at the time of Jesus' birth. It the midst of the celebration of the gift of life, the Church recalls the price for faithfulness that is always extracted by a fallen and broken world.

Most of us will never face the tests that early martyrs faced. Most of us face no formal opposition to our faith or its expression. More often than not there is apathy in the world around us. Perhaps ministering through that apathy will be the greatest challenge of our time. To do so we will need some of the same zeal and commitment of those who have gone before us in the faith. It will be our willingness to walk a different path than the paths of this world that will ultimately make a difference.

Stephen was among those first chosen to help serve the poor and needy in the community of faith. However, he did not miss any opportunity to witness to the reason for his service and it was that witnessing that lead to his death. On his day we are invited to serve others in need as well. In England this is Boxing Day, a day for gathering items to help feed the hungry and care for those who are without the necessities of life. It is not the day to hurry to exchange something we received as a gift that we do not want. Rather it is a time to be thankful for what we have and to share our abundance with others near and far.

To remember the Holy Innocents of ages past is to recall the innocents of this day and age who continue to die because rulers and leaders of nations are more concerned about themselves than the people they are called to serve. As we celebrate the Savior's birth, we seek for concrete, immediate ways in which we might witness to the kingdom of God in the lives of others who suffer injustice, poverty, and oppression yet today. We are encouraged to be the voice of the voiceless.

The days of Christmas become an opportunity to truly share the message of God's gift with the world. In celebration and in action, God's people proclaim the Savior's birth, a gift without condition and truly a gift for all. Despite our misgivings about the wisdom of the Church, the celebration of Christmas and the remembrance of Stephen and the Holy Innocents really do go very well together for the people of God.

Pastor's Pen - January 2008

Dear Friends in Christ,

Perhaps as you read this you have finally taken some time to enjoy all of preparations that you made for this Christmas holiday. All of the decorating, the baking, the hurrying and scurrying have passed and you actually have a moment to appreciate the greatest gift of all, the gift of God's love in the incarnation of the Word. It is good that the church holds Christmas to be a season of 12 days rather than just one 24 hour period. If it were just one day, it would certainly be lost in the message of the culture in which we live, a message of buying and consuming. Unfortunately, because the world has been promoting Christmas since the beginning of October at the very least, many are already done with the celebration. By now you have probably already seen Christmas trees relegated to the yard as the decorations of the season are taken down for another year. Instead of lingering over the days of Christmas we are encouraged to hurry on to the next "card and candy" event of the calendar.

It is true that eventually even the Church lets go of Christmas and moves on in the seasons of the year. But once again for that brief period of time when we are out of step with the world, we witness to the overwhelming love and grace that has been showered upon us in the birth of the Savior. God has taken on human form that we might no longer be afraid. God has become like us that we might more freely hear the word of love that God offers to all of God's children. God has become flesh that we might be confident of God's desire to make us God's very own. It is with that assurance and with that confidence that we face the world. It is with that confidence and assurance that we can live our lives contrary to the culture that surrounds us because we already have received affirmation from God. As a result, we do not need to conform to the false promises of this world in an effort to know who we are.

God's love makes us God's own. In that promise we have more than anything that the world has to offer to us. In hearing and living in that promise, we bring change to a fallen and broken world that awaits the return of the one who was made flesh. In our faithful witness, there come glimpses of the power and presence of the living God. In the believers the Word continues to take on flesh and be revealed to those who are in need. Mindful of God's love and God's gift, let us celebrate fully all of the days of Christmas.