A homily by Fr. Gene Tucker, given at Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois on Christmas Eve, December 24, 2010.
“HUMBLE AND QUIET BEGINNINGS”
(Homily text: Luke 2: 1 – 20)
Perhaps it might be good for us to reflect on the ways in which God works, as we consider the very familiar passage we have before us tonight from Luke’s gospel account.
No doubt, many of us could recite from memory (maybe even in the King James Version) Luke’s account of Joseph and Mary’s trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem, the birth of Jesus, his being wrapped in swaddling cloths, and the manger. We could also fit into our recitation the account of the shepherds in the fields, and the angelic host which said, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men.”
As I have said on more than one occasion, sometimes I think that the pages of Holy Scripture tend to “flatten out” when we read them. Especially that might be true with a very familiar text that we hear again and again, such as Luke’s text tonight. The fact that the persons in the account were real people, people like us with hopes, dreams, problems, troubles, and challenges, often tends to get lost in our understanding of the meaning of the text. Put another way, the text often tends to lose its real, human dimension.
So, as the theme for this homily, allow some reflection on the ways that God works with people, allowing people who have been chosen by Him to be the agents of His will.
By reflecting on the people who are in tonight’s account, we can gain some insight into the ways God works, and we might learn something about the nature of God, as well.
We begin with Joseph.
We know from Holy Scripture that Joseph was a carpenter. It was a trade which his son would also take up as time went along. I think we’re safe in assuming that Joseph probably ran a small, family business, working with wood. What is certain is that Joseph worked with his hands. I believe we can be relatively sure that Joseph was not a member of the upper classes of society. Indeed, in the social strata of the time, he was probably closer to the lower end of things, than the upper end.
Of Mary’s stature, we know little from the pages of Scripture, though I think we can assume that she was of a similar station to Joseph. Usually, one did not marry too far outside one’s own social station in ancient times.
The community in which they lived, Nazareth, was apparently not well regarded. Recall with me Nathanael’s words to Philip, on learning that Jesus is from Nazareth, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1: 46).
So, despite the fact that Luke tells us that Joseph is “of the house and lineage of David”, Joseph is probably either a member of the lower class, or perhaps the lower end of the middle class, and he lives in a place that seems to be a little bit like “the other side of the tracks”.
Now, we turn to the matter of the shepherds in the field.
Most of us probably have an idyllic image of shepherds. Maybe the famous painting of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, carrying a sheep around His shoulders, influences our thinking. But the truth is that shepherds in biblical times weren’t well regarded. They were definitely of the lower and less desirable classes of people.
But it was through Joseph and Mary, who came from that less-than-desirable place Nazareth, and through the witness of the less-than-desirable shepherds, that God worked His will in bringing Jesus Christ into the world.
Hmmmm……
Why did God choose to work this way, through people who were of little or no account, at least in worldly terms?
Could this tell us something about God’s very nature itself?
I believe so.
Here, I offer some personal reflection (or maybe even a confession): Oftentimes, as I consider the problems and situations we face in the world today, and as I contemplate the challenges that are part of being a Christian in the year 2010, I often find myself wanting God to do something. Perhaps I ought to clarify: I want God to do something big!
My thoughts could be summed up in the following phrases:
“Come in and solve our problems, please,” is how I often find myself wanting to pray.
“Do it all for us, please.”
“Usher in a golden age for the world, and for your Church.”
“Solve the seemingly unsolvable problems, won’t you?”
Does any of this sound like your desires, as well? Maybe so.
I will admit to you that my hopes are often shaped this way, as I express them to God.
But what does the Christmas story tell us about God?
Just this:
- God works with ordinary, fully human people to carry out His will. Joseph, Mary and the shepherds in the fields are all good examples of this truth.
- More often than not, the beginnings of God’s great plans have humble beginnings that go unnoticed at first. Surely, the coming of Jesus Christ had humble beginnings (He was born in an animal barn), and His arrival was marked by very few people (Joseph, Mary, those who attended Mary at the birth, the shepherds, and perhaps a few others). Yet the great plan of God’s salvation began in just this quiet and humble way.
So, in closing, I offer some ideas for your own reflection, as God’s plan of salvation unfolds in your own lives, and in mine.
- In what ways is God quietly working to bring us more and more into the image of God?
- What humble beginnings can be found in our hearts and minds, in which God has begun a new thing?
- How has God used people, ordinary people, to be agents of His will for our lives, as we interact with them.
- How have we, as servants of Christ, been agents of God’s working in others’ lives?
