December Reflection 2011

In the Bleak Midwinter

The shortest day and longest night of the year is the winter solstice. This year it is on December 22.  Because this is an astronomical phenomenon experienced throughout the northern hemisphere, many cultures and faith traditions observe this annual event.

Beginning on December 21, Jews celebrate Hanukkah to remember the  Maccabees who drove the forces of Antiochus IV from the Temple in Jerusalem in the 2nd century BCE.  The people found that they only had one day’s supply of oil left to sustain the lamp in the Temple.  Yet the lamp burned for eight days.  So Jews celebrate the eight nights of Hanukkah, lighting a candle each night, to remember the courage of the Maccabees in resisting oppression and that God did not leave them in darkness.

Christmas is the holiest day of the Christian calendar and the celebration of the birth of Jesus.  It is celebrated on December 25 as established by the Roman calendar.  Christians rejoice in the person of Jesus sent by God, who came to bring the Gospel, the good news of hope, love and liberation to a broken world.

In the northern hemisphere, we are in the deepest, darkest days of the year.    The world is probably no more nor less broken that it was when Jesus was born.  Yet somehow the suffering we see and experience around us can be overwhelming.  Every day the news is mostly bleak.  New figures on sexual and domestic violence confirm that both continue to be common experiences for women. The global economy continues to limp along with no recovery in sight.  The US Congress continues to confuse obstructionism with leadership.  Armed conflict persists around the world.

As a Christian, I struggle with Christmas because of what it has become in North American culture:  a consumer’s extravaganza, a political football for the right wing which attacks anyone who doesn’t celebrate this particular holiday, and a difficult time for many families who bear the history of abuse.

So I have come to focus my spiritual reflection during this time of the year on Mary’s Magnificat found in
Luke 1: 46-55.  This is Mary’s speech in response to the news that she was pregnant with Jesus.

“My soul proclaims your greatness, O God,

And my spirit rejoices in you, my Savior. . . .

For you, the Almighty, have done great things for me,

And holy is your Name.

Your mercy reaches from age to age

For those who fear you.

You have shown strength with your arm;

You have scattered the proud in their conceit;

You have deposed the might from their thrones

And raised the lowly to high places.

You have filled the hungry with good things,

While you have sent the rich away empty.

You have come to the aid of Israel your servant,

Mindful of your mercy ---

The promise you made to our ancestors ---

To Sarah and Abraham

And their descendants forever.”  (Inclusive Bible, 2007)

A young out-of-wedlock woman whom God has told will bear a Savior is given the voice to proclaim God’s promise to God’s own people.  She proclaims light in the midst of darkness.

So this year, even as we rage against the darkest days, let us also remember the glimmers of light in our midst:  the war in Iraq has ended, millions of people are sharing what they have with their neighbors, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to three remarkable and courageous women who continue to insist that there will be no peace or security in the world until women are fully present at the table, and thousands across the globe refuse to accept that dictators and the rich have the last word.

So we live in promise:  the light will return, the oil will be sufficient for our lamps, the mighty will be cast down, the hungry will be fed, the rich will be sent away empty.

And it is our job to remember that the darkness never wins.

Rev. Dr. Marie M. Fortune
FaithTrust Institute
www.faithtrustinstitute.org