The Word became flesh

First Sunday after Christmas, 29 December 2024: Isaiah 61:10-62:3; Galatians 3:23-25; 4:4-7; John 1:1-18; Psalm 147 or 147:13-21

Today’s Gospel is one that I love to listen to, but never fully understand. I will think I understand one sentence, and then the next sentence leaves me baffled. In some ways the center of it is the acknowledgment that when understanding Jesus, we face great mystery. And we need to be comfortable with mystery. For those of us who seek certainty in life (and that is most of us) living with mystery is difficult. But it is central to the Christian life. We can, however, find pieces to hold on to.

In the beginning was the word: God called the world to being with words, and God has been talking to us ever since. We (collectively) have not always listened, and the biblical story is one of humans’ repeated failures to listen, and God’s continuing willingness to talk to us. But throughout history, we have also been talking to God: in thanks, in grief, in hope. As we read the psalms every Sunday, we hear all of these emotions. And words do not just form a way of connecting (if imperfectly) to God, but also to each other.

John starts his gospel by reminding us of the power of words. What we know is that words can both bind us together and drive us apart. Learning to listen, to both God and to each other, is critical.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us. The incarnation is a surprise. First a baby, born to a young woman who was traveling and unable to find lodging. So vulnerable. And the baby grows into a man who, at the age of 30, starts teaching around the Sea of Galilee. His teaching are, like the song his mother sang with her cousin Elizabeth, fairly standard Jewish teachings. He reminded his listeners of God’s love, the importance of protecting the poor and marginalized, and the inclusion of all. He asked his followers to be neighbors to those they encountered.

That God took the form of a person was unexpected. But it is a continuation, John suggests, of the long conversation God had been having with his people. God is among us, talking to us. We just have to listen. The challenge, as it has been for God’s people throughout the centuries, is to know who we should listen to. All sorts of people claim to speak for God, and they say many different things.

In sorting through the noise, it helps to remember the start of the story: God speaks to us of connection, of love, and of mercy. God’s word calls us together, and does not separate us. God is among us, calling us to welcome the stranger, feed the hungry, and set the prisoners free. God calls us to include, not exclude. God, Mary tells us, turns the established world upside down.

As we encounter the mystery of the incarnation, we can grab corners to understand. May we listen carefully, and respond. And then keep up the conversation with God and each other.

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