Rev. Arthur Lavoie

It is the day before Christmas, and it is a magical moment for all of us.  There is so much that makes this a special time.  For some of us, especially the children, we might be excited about the presents we are about to receive.  For some, this time of year brings us together with family and friends, some of whom we might not have seen in a long time.  Some have just finished an eight day celebration of Hanukkah and some may be getting ready to celebrate Kwanza.  And I imagine we are all looking forward to the return of the light and the days starting to get longer.

And then there is Christmas, and the story of the birth of Jesus more than two thousand years ago.  Here is a story that captures us every year, a story of myth and legend that still has much to teach us.

The poet Carl Sandburg writes:

            The silver of one star

            Plays cross-lights against pine green . . . .

            And sheep raisers on the hills by night

            Watching the wooly four-footed ramblers,

            Watching a single silver star—

            Why does this story never wear out?

            And a baby slung in a feed-box

            Back in a barn in a Bethlehem slum

            A baby’s first cry mixing with the crunch

            Of a mule’s teeth on Bethlehem Christmas corn,

            Baby fists softer than snowflakes of Norway,

            The vagabond mother of Christ

            And the vagabond men of wisdom,

            All in a barn on a winter night,

            And a baby there in swaddling clothes on hay—

            Why does this story never wear out?

                                                            excerpts from “Star Silver” by Carl Sandburg

Why indeed do we never get tired of the Christmas story? 

What is the magic and miracle here that grabs our attention and our hearts year after year?

Here is the story of the birth of a baby who would grow up to change the world.  Jesus was wealthy.  He was not a military or political leader, but he was a fairly simple man who preached a perhaps not so simple message of peace and love. 

But, you know, our world is no more peaceful or loving than it was in his day.  The daily news continues to bombard us with talk of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, wars and conflicts everywhere, murder and violence on our streets, and an increase in poverty and destitution in our city and throughout the world.

Here we are once again on Christmas Eve, and soon we will all stand and sing Silent Night.  It is the classic Christmas hymn.  It brings tears to my eyes every year.  But sometimes I ask myself the question, “How can we sing the words “Silent Night, Holy Night . . . sleep in heavenly peace,” when there is anything but peace in our world, and perhaps, in our hearts?  How can we celebrate a season whose primary emotion is joy, when so many live in fear and misery? 

We will never really know what happened the night that Jesus was born two thousand or some odd years ago.  But we do know that every child, every one of us, is special and every night a child is born is a holy night.  And we do know that whenever families and friends come together to pray, to give thanks, and give gifts, and celebrate, it is a sacred moment. 

And we do know that this time of year when light begins to emerge from darkness is a wondrous time that has been celebrated and mythologized in every culture in the northern hemisphere.

So, why do we celebrate, why do we sing to our children and each other to sleep in a heavenly peace?

I think that we sing for peace because we must.  It is in our nature to be a people of hope and possibility, and we will always find a reason to hope for the future, a reason to love, and a reason to rejoice with our friends and families.

The Christmas story is one that always reminds us that goodness and holiness, peace and love, are simple gifts that we give to each other.

This, my friends, is the season of hope and possibility where heaven touches earth, and the stars shine, and the birth of children is celebrated.  These are the shortest days when darkness and light do battle for our psyches and for our souls.

As with the Three Wise Men, we are on a journey.  We don’t always know what star guides our path, but we believe, we hope, that on this night especially, our path is a good one, and it is worthwhile, and it is holy.  We believe that there is a reason to be here, and we pray to whatever God, or star, or angel, or family member or friend who watches over us that we be guided through this perfect night and through every night that follows.

And we bring our own simple gifts, gifts of our lives and our loves.  We are reminded today to bring of all that we are to each other, the gift of our presence is always more important than presents.  The story of this holy day reminds us not to leave anything out, and not to take anything for granted. 

The story of Jesus’ birth tells us that we are all special, and if we remember that, we can live lives of peace, and hope and joy.  If we remember that we are all children of God, we can bring love to our lives and to our world.  We too can make a difference, each in our own simple and special way.

Merry Christmas!