Lurking in the shadows of the Christmas story is a message of revolution. It’s easy to miss, until someone or something shines a light into a dark corner and discovers an unexpected presence.
Mary Magnificat
From the Book of Old English Songs and Ballads: "Our lady sings Magnificat, with tones surpassing sweet." Illustration by Eleanor Fortescue Brickdale (1872-1945). (Public Domain Photo via Wikimedia Commons).
Mary’s song, The magnificat, is as clear as you can get: The Lord “...has shown strength with his arm, he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, he has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away.” In our devotion to Mary we often forget that Rome and Israel were at war. These are revolutionary words! They do not take the side of Rome. But for Mary they gave birth to a surprising hope.
The Magi: “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him.” Joseph’s dream: “Rise, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt.” Herod’s rage: “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation.” In the drama we often miss the cosmic dimensions. This is a revolutionary event. And it gave birth to a surprising hope.
From the beginning the Christmas story has been about a clash between empire and God. Its context was the Roman war against the Jewish people and the collaboration between religious leaders and the Caesars. It is a story poverty of against wealth, of the powerless against the oppressor, of hope against fear, of light against darkness, of new life against decay.
Our Christmas pageants are about children and a baby, about faithful parents in a complicated world, about animals and visitors with gifts, about a star and heavenly music, about God. And they should be. But lurking in the shadows of this lovely story is also a message about a divine intervention, an interruption of business as usual. In a word, a story of revolution.
There is a warning here: whenever and wherever economic, military and religious power get tangled up; whenever and wherever those powers get personified in one person, a caesar; whenever and wherever a leader becomes an oppressor; whenever and wherever the prophetic voice is silenced; then the dark side of empire is exposed. And, then the lovely, seemingly benign Christmas story reveals its revolutionary message, and with it hope for the poor, hope for the oppressed, hope for the victim.
In those times when empires clash and the “little people” get caught in the middle, and in those times when “leaders” forsake their sacred trust and the faithful are yet again victimized, the Christmas story reveals its revolutionary side. In a challenge to empire the Christmas story yields a surprising hope: that the mighty will not be able to hold on to their thrones; that the proud will be scattered in the imaginations of the hearts; that the mercy of the Lord will endure from generation to generation; that we may be born anew to a living hope. This is very good news indeed. Hallelujah!
The Rev. F. Richard Garland is a retired clergy member of the New England Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church. This post is republished with permission from his Facebook page.