“The Birthplace of Joy”- Sermon on Dec 15, 2013
Dec 15, 2013
Scripture: Luke 2: 8-20
In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.”
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”
So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
Sermon: The Birthplace of Joy
by Rev. Doreen Oughton
When I was in the eighth grade, I had a part in the school play – the Pirates of Penzance. I think I had a few lines, but my role was secondary, and I mostly just sang along with everyone else. When it came time for the curtain calls, the players stepped out two by two and took their bows. When my partner and I stepped out, there was a noticeable escalation of applause and whooping. It was delightful, I thought, to be partnered with someone so popular to receive such applause. But later my sister told me that the increased applause was inspired by me, not by Jay. Apparently there were many people in the audience who considered me a friend and were there to support and encourage me. I could scarcely take it in.
When I worked as a therapist, my department decided one year to include peer evaluations in with the yearly job performance reviews. We were each assigned to give feedback to one colleague and receive feedback from another. And so I went to hear from my friend and colleague Mary Ann, and she wasted no time. She addressed several areas of responsibility, and in each one, she gave concrete and specific input, and all of it was of very high regard. She praised me over and over again. At one point I put out my hand – enough, enough. It was really too much to take in.
I tell you these stories not to boast about how well-liked and regarded I have been at times in my life, but to describe how difficult it was to wrap my mind around it, how far from my awareness it was that I could possibly be worthy of such admiration. Has anyone else had that experience – of just being blown away by the vision another person offers you of yourself? It requires some adjustment, doesn’t it? I won’t say it is unwelcome or bad in any way, just disconcerting and challenging in some way.
I wonder if the shepherds in this story experienced something like that. Now I think because of the prevalence of shepherds in the bible, those centuries and centuries of song and stories about them – the Lord is my shepherd, the good shepherd lays down his life – we tend to romanticize the shepherds. But in Jesus’ time they were held in very low esteem. They were not allowed in court to be witnesses, and Jewish law actually says that no help should be given to heathens or shepherds. Part of their shunning was because they were not able to attend services or keep the rituals and ceremonial laws. They didn’t practice their religion. They weren’t helping the nation of Israel achieve righteousness.
And yet they were chosen as the first, after the family, to receive this direct revelation from God. Can you imagine? You are on night duty with the flock, with a few of your mates, alternating watching and resting. While on watch duty you and your partners keep an eye out for predators, make sure the flock stays close together, no one wandering off. The others are in the tent, resting up for their turn at watch. The scripture says simply “then an angel of the Lord stood before them” which sounds pretty low key. One commentator says that the Greek makes it sound much more dramatic, like and BOOM, and an angel stood before them. The angel showed up suddenly, dramatically, out of the darkness of the night. Of course they were terrified. And the angel quickly tries to calm their fears. He has come, he says, bearing good news for them and for all people. The birth of a Messiah. The angel tells them what to look for – a child in a manger. And then, BOOM, a multitude of angels singing in the sky. How long did they sing? What did they sing? Was it words, or just heavenly music? What did they look like?
And how long did it take for the shepherds to recover from their shock? When did they start wondering, why them? Why did they receive this message? They must have wondered, right? And Mary and Joseph, they must have wondered why God chose them. I suspect it is as common to wonder how we have come to be blessed with good things and good news as much as we wonder what we did to deserve the hardships. These are questions about our worth as individual, and these questions can lead us to think of all the ways we fall short. We not only feel badly about the things we’ve done, mistakes we made, we can feel badly about who we are, or who we aren’t. We get caught up in comparing ourselves. We might look at ourselves through the eyes of someone who has been contemptuous or critical of us – a harsh parent, a frustrated teacher, a cruel playmate or sibling, a domineering partner. The assessments ring over and over in our minds – lazy, stupid, fat, ugly, loser, bully, clumsy. In the face of such questions about our worth, we experience shame and a deep sense of vulnerability.
That is a hard thing to tolerate in our society. Strength and invulnerability, positive self-esteem, confidence, having it all together – these are the things that are encouraged for success. These are the often seen as the keys to good mental health and positive functioning in life. And so it is interesting to look at the story of Jesus’ birth against these values. Mary and Joseph were incredibly vulnerable – a pregnancy out of wedlock, not even Joseph’s child. How much whispering went on about that, how many people avoided associating with them after that? Think about them traveling for the census, being turned away place after place. What message does that give you about your worth? I’ve watched movie depictions of Jim Crow laws in action, people being turned away from hotels and restaurants, being sent around to separate entrances, separate drinking fountains. I can’t imagine the build up of shame when you are told over and over again, you are not worthy, there is no place for you. And remember, this is how the shepherds were typically treated.
Is there a reason Jesus was born to a family fraught with vulnerability, in a place fraught with vulnerability? I think that there is. Because the thing is, as difficult as it is to feel vulnerable, it is from that psychic place that the best things for us evolve. You see the best things for us are not financial gain, not an easy life, not even independence. The best thing for human beings, much research has shown, is connection with others. Deep connections, the sense of being known, accepted and appreciated for just who you are. And you can’t possibly develop these deep connections if you are unwilling to reveal who you truly are, warts and all, vulnerabilities, fears, shortcomings, bad attitudes, insecurities, mistakes and everything. Not to everybody, by no means, but to somebody.
Brene Brown is a researcher and now a public speaker who has studied vulnerability and its gifts for many, may years. One of her TED Talks is posted on the church website. If you haven’t seen it yet, I encourage you to take a look. She says that vulnerability is indeed the core of shame, fear and questions of worthiness, but it is also the ONLY place we can work through those things in a way that brings us what we truly need, the need that is hard wired into us, the need for connection. It is the birthplace of belonging and love and creativity and joy. It is so interesting to me, how some faith teachings have dealt with the vulnerability of Mary. They are so concerned about the worthiness of this young girl that a doctrine was developed that her own conception was immaculate, so that she was born without original sin. Personally, I am more taken with the idea that she was an imperfect and vulnerable human being, and yet worthy of God’s favor, worthy of bearing his light and love into the world. I believe that is how it works. We acknowledge the shadows of ourselves, the doubts and insecurities about our worth. We share them with other trusted people, we share them with God. Because if we don’t go there, to that vulnerable stable, to that rough manger, we are left to wander the deserts in a way. We need to bring all parts of ourselves, those we despise, those we fear, those we cherish, those we are confused about. We need to let something be born anew in us, and then leave the stable, as the shepherds did. Its hard to stay vulnerable. The shepherds were afraid of what happened to them,I imagine even after the cherubim and seraphim departed. What was it like, having had this vision, going off to search the city for this baby wrapped and lying in a manger. How do you even begin that search? How vulnerable did they feel? It probably helped that they had each other, that it was a shared experience and they could encourage and support one another in the truth of it.
Too often we don’t look for a partner in vulnerability. We don’t reach out and share our doubts with someone who might have them too, with someone who might be able to identify and relate and affirm our worth. And it’s so hard to stay vulnerable on our own that we have all kinds of tricks to avoid it. Brene Brown states that we are the most in debt, obese, addicted, and medicated adult cohort in U.S. history. We try to numb ourselves from feeling vulnerable. Or we cling to certainty. Instead of allowing ourselves to wonder or debate something, we pull out our tablet and google an answer as fast as we can. Religion and politics is becoming more divisive, seeking to determine who is right, who is wrong, instead of appreciating complexities, instead of standing on the ground of not knowing for sure.
` And again, all this keeps us from connecting, which is what we are actually created for – for connection, for being truly seen and loved, and truly seeing and loving others, recognizing our oneness. The shepherds stepped up, met mystery and fear and uncertainty with a vulnerable trust, and found at the end of it joy that they couldn’t contain. What will we do with our vulnerabilities?
