Word in the Hand

Gospel Luke 2:15-20 House shrine Assisi When the angels had gone from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they hurried away and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw the child they repeated what they had been told about him, and everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds had to say. As for Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; it was exactly as they had been told. It may be a surprise to learn that the word ‘hospitality’ doesn’t mean what we think it means –like many words it has lost something in translation and in tradition.   These days we imagine that it means having friends and loved ones around the table. To be generous to those we love; to celebrate togetherness. As hope...

Another back story The shadows are  where you are safest. These long nights at the turning of the solstice are a boon to me. From the shadows of the inner wall I watched with measured breath as the soldiers set their weight to the city doors, silencing the rasping hum of the desert winds. I waited as one man flexed the muscles in his chest and biceps, a preening gladiator, whilst the other picked up the longspears and held one arms length, a javelin against the other's chest. Words were spoken, rumbling laughter, then they strolled off with the rolling gait of the weary, arms circling their helmets like baskets of bread or fruit. Guards with their guard down, for there was no-one left on the midnight streets of Bethlehem.  To that, even I would agree. It has occurred to me before now that 'No-one' is a very fitting name. The curse of a misbegotten body has refused my humanity. Beggar, homeless, unclean, it is all very much the same. No-one that matters.  And so I l...

Because, like Luke, I wonder about the back story. Nathaniel surveyed the morning morass of disheveled rugs  and cushions surrounding the tables piled high with breakfast dishes and tide-lined bowls of yoghurt. Stretching his shoulder muscles back and forth until he felt his spine click, he yawned and yawned 'til the last bit of breath came out as a disgruntled harrumph. Then he set to work. It was the last day of the census and his guests were making the most of the early start. Travelling back into the hill towns was a risky business even by daylight; that shepherds had been in the town had not escaped their notice. They wouldn't want to be meeting up with the likes of them on a lonely road. They had all left at first light, hoping to be back in their own homes well before dusk. The census, albeit enforced by the Roman authorities, had given families and friends a chance to come together and his guests had made the most of it; sharing stori...

There are many characters in the story of the Nativity but one that we rarely hear of is the Fourth Shepherd. When the angels came that night to bring the Good News, they began with the most unlikely. Shepherds were a tough lot, weathered and self-reliant,  who had to survive out on the hills protecting their flock from the weather, the wolves and their own stupidity.  Once the shepherds had gotten over the shock and wonder of the glory of heaven shining all around them, they immediately wanted to go and find the baby; the lights of Bethlehem beckoned as brightly as the stars – ‘Come and see’. The could barely stop to wrap their cloaks around them. They took hold of  their staffs and each caught a light from the fire.  All except one. One young shepherd remained seated, looking into the fire. When the others asked him why he wasn’t ready, he replied that he was; he was ready to stay behind and take care of the flock. The other shepherds ...

Gospel Matthew 2:1-12  After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judaea during the reign of King Herod, some wise men came to Jerusalem from the east. ‘Where is the infant king of the Jews?’ they asked. ‘We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage.’ When King Herod heard this he was perturbed, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, and enquired of them where the Christ was to be born. ‘At Bethlehem in Judaea,’ they told him ‘for this is what the prophet wrote: And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, you are by no means least among the leaders of Judah, for out of you will come a leader who will shepherd my people Israel.’ Then Herod summoned the wise men to see him privately. He asked them the exact date on which the star had appeared, and sent them on to Bethlehem. ‘Go and find out all about the child,’ he said ‘and when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go and do him homage....

Gospel Matthew 2:13-15,19-23 After the wise men had left, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother with you, and escape into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, because Herod intends to search for the child and do away with him.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother with him, left that night for Egypt, where he stayed until Herod was dead. This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: I called my son out of Egypt. After Herod’s death, the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother with you and go back to the land of Israel, for those who wanted to kill the child are dead.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother with him, went back to the land of Israel. But when he learnt that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as ruler of Judaea he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he left for th...

A lovely telling of the Christmas Story. A beautiful crib. There is comfort in the repeating of this tradition year after year and it’s not always easy to see the awesome wonder of it. Our God, a child in the arms of a young woman. Why a baby? After thousands of years of a vengeful, furious, demanding, overpowering, all powerful God, a God that burns cities, parts waters, brings down plagues and even causes the death of children. Why now, a baby? And this is no sudden change of plan, this is no whim. Before this night God hadn’t spoken to his people for hundreds of years. The Jewish people were distraught, blaming themselves for some unforgivable sin that silenced Yahweh. A fear that made them refine their rules and their tradition until there was not a move they could make without sanction from the priests. They were God’s obedient children, following his commandments, competing for his approval, laying the blame on the sick, the paralysed, the poor; living in fear of his wrath. Livin...

Opening Prayer Here I am Lord, Listening Speak to me within my heart and soul. I am listening. Romans 10:8 (The Message) The Word that saves is right here, as near as the tongue in your mouth, as close as the heart in your chest. Reflection If I hear ‘How long have you got?’ one more time – someone will get hurt. A week, actually…The longest week of my life. Never mind the nine months that went before; the planning; the waiting and wondering; the ‘Yes!’; the thrill of telling everyone; the realisation that there is no going back. Never mind the sickness; the spreading waistline; the doctor’s appointments; the scans; the bloodtests (I’m scared of needles); worrying about results; the realisation that I really am pregnant. Never mind the ever-spreading ‘everything’, insomnia and nesting urges; reading horror stories; writing birth plans; imagining all kinds; making space; finding room; the realisation that somehow, soon, you will be born. Because, really, I’d be quite happy for yo...