A different Nativity

And is it true?

And is it true,
This most tremendous tale of all,
Seen in a stained-glass window's hue,
A Baby in an ox's stall?
The Maker of the stars and sea
Become a Child on earth for me?

And is it true? For if it is,
No loving fingers tying strings
Around those tissued fripperies,
The sweet and silly Christmas things,
Bath salts and inexpensive scent
And hideous tie so kindly meant,

No love that in a family dwells,
No carolling in frosty air,
Nor all the steeple-shaking bells
Can with this single Truth compare —
That God was man in Palestine
And lives today in Bread and Wine.

John Betjeman (1906–1984)

incarnation

What we find in the message of the Christmas story is the idea that the Sacred, the Spirit of Love, is incarnate in the world; incarnate in that most profound symbol of new life, of possibilities, of hope—in a child. This was not a once and only event. The incarnation of Love was the very creation of the beginning of time—it happened before the birth of Jesus, it happened then, and is happening now. It is present and active in all things and all people—at all times and everywhere. Wherever hope abides amidst despair; wherever joy abides amidst sorrow; wherever love abides amidst hate; wherever peace is spoken amidst war; Love is happening there. This is a compelling truth of the story. This is what the child announces to us. In this time and this place, for us and for all beings—a love at once particular and universal draws us to a life peace and hope. We gather with friends and family at Christmas to be inspired by the possibility that in a time of rampant war-making the idea of peace on earth and good will toward all may become more than a slogan, may somehow take hold. For this is the time of the year that we most dare dream of renewal and peace, most dare to hope boldly. Let us know that Love whispers to us all, in every breath calling us to remember that each night is holy and all life is sacred. ~ Beth Johnson

He was in the beginning

Haiku of the coming

In the beginning.

They are indivisible,

the Logos and God.

Into the nothing

the Logos-God mystery

find their voice and speak.

The word, now spoken,

all creation comes to be.

Here is wonderment.

The Logos brings life;

life and light for humankind,

defeating darkness.

Logos, always there

in the world he created,

passes through, unseen.

Among his people

he finds no welcome nor home.

The loss is their own.

Yet some received him,

believed, and living by faith,

were made God's children.

To be born of God,

transcending earthly limits;

this, then, is glory.

The Logos took flesh,

our flesh, and lived among us;

full of grace and truth.

© Ken Rookes 2016

A wondrous yarn

Haiku of an often told story

There are no records

of the birth of the Messiah;

just an old story.

An anxious couple

seeking a place of shelter.

The time is at hand.

In a crowded town,

a stable, strangely, becomes

a delivery ward.

A baby is born,

this thing of joy and wonder.

Happens ev'ry day.

Shepherds tending sheep,

angels winging in the sky;

a fabulous yarn.

Go and check it out!

The baby in a manger,

with his mum and dad.

The infant is found;

it was as the angel said.

They are all amazed.

The shepherds return

singing, “Glory!” praising God,

They tell everyone.

© Ken Rookes 2016

Found to be with child

Haiku of mysterious birth

The birth of Jesus,

as befits a Messiah,

was less than routine.

Matthew's birth stories

are designed to assure us:

things are in order.

Isaiah the prophet

provides a girl giving birth

as a sign of hope.

Found to be with child!

One way of looking at it;

the girl was pregnant.

With child, and engaged

to a man not the father.

It's complicated.

Her husband, Joseph

is a good man. He still cares,

does not want her shamed.

Dreams can be useful

to spark possibilities

and provide answers.

The angel appears,

reassures the sleeping man:

somehow God is here.

Do not be afraid,

take the girl to be your wife;

the child is from God,

When the man awoke

he took the angel's advice;

brought her to his home.

When the day arrived

the girl delivered her son.

They named him Jesus.

© Ken Rookes 2016

A Baby named 'Save'

"So Matthew prepares us right at the edge of Christmas. He gives us an angel's message in a dream that is beyond our control or expectation. He tells us that it is God's Spirit who makes all things new through this baby, and he names the baby twice. The baby is named Save, and Jesus saves from all that kills and is flat and sad. He names the baby God is with us, and we are not alone. Notice that this story does not ask us to do anything. But I believe it invites us to be dazzled. It invites us to ponder that, while our world feels unsavable, here is the baby named Save. Our world and our lives often feel abandoned, and here is the baby named God with us. So we are to be ready to have our lives and our world contradicted by this gift from God. We may rest our lives upon the new promise from the angel and we may be safe and we may be whole and made generous because Christmas is coming soon."
Walter Brugemann - http://day1.org/622-a_new_world_birthed

The vulnerable Divine

We celebrate this child that is called the Christ but I wonder how much we understand it. When we find our hearts softened when we look at a child we are receiving a profound message about the nature of ourselves and the spiritual power of the child.
This Christmas many of us are feeling pretty vulnerable ourselves. The human race seems hell-bent on its own destruction and the destruction of the planet. As a Christian I continue to be horrified at the way our nation is treating asylum seekers and at the wars and cruelty that continue to plague our world. The church is also in a time of great vulnerability and uncertainty. As individuals I am sure there are many of you facing personal challenges that confront you with your own mortality and weakness.
In these times especially the subversive message of Christmas couldn’t be more significant. The message of love and vulnerability that this child is bringing is to transform the world. It is to bring a great light into the darkness. It is to tell that the power of the divine is not in powerful structures or domination, but that true power lies in vulnerability and love.
The way the Bible tells it, the baby worked a kind of magic on the surrounding world on the night of his birth. Here is a new image of this ‘God’ not as an all-powerful God but rather as a helpless, vulnerable infant. The magic that surrounded the baby lifted people above the misery, cold and darkness that surrounded them so that all they could think about was the birth of this child. But it did something far more powerful than that. It was a message of hope that God is present in the small, shy places of the world. Today, Jesus would be more likely to be born in Aleppo in Syria, or in an indigenous community in Central Australia, or in Palestine. This is a message of hope to the powerless of the world. Our God is not only on our side but lives with us. At the heart of this sacred time lies the message of a God that is Emmanuel - God-with-us!
Christmas is about an event that many believe changed the world but also one that continues to have the ability to do so. It is a day to celebrate. I urge you to pay attention to your inmost self sometime on the day. Take time to give honour to all that is vulnerable, innocent and holy within you and in the world around you. Christmas is a time of the heart. Allow the spirit of the child-Christ to lead you on a journey to the manger where the tender and vulnerable God lies.
And in this may you find blessing and hope this Christmas.
Rev Gordon Bannon

Haiku for Advent

Christian faith is an
unexpected weed growing
in a polite field.


© Ken Rookes 2016

Magnificat: a haiku sequence.

Haiku for a revolution

A young teenager,

so the ancient story says,

offered up a song.

The girl is with child;

this is a thing of wonder,

of hope and of joy.

Nobody special,

she is God's lowly servant;

humble, accepting.

Magnifying God,

she sang with praise, rejoicing

at God's strange favour.

Mercy unconfined,

across the generations,

for those who trust God.

God's strength surprises

to scatter the great and proud

in their vanity.

From their noble thrones

the powerful are brought down.

Let the day come close.

The poor, down-trodden;

these will be elevated

to God's chosen place.

The hungry will eat,

they will dine upon good food;

the rich will miss out.

From this young girl's lips

came words of revolution.

Most disconcerting.

© Ken Rookes 2016

When John heard in prison

Haiku of enquiry

 

We missed you, Baptist;

your amusing desert rants

made us think again.

The authorities

were less amused; took offense,

waited for their chance.

If you'd stopped and thought

you might have backed off, instead

you're locked in prison.

So you sent your mates

to find out what's happening.

They seek out Jesus.

They ask: are you he,

the one we are expecting,

or do we still wait?

Open up your eyes,

what do you see, and hear,

as you look about?

The blind see again,

lepers are being made clean,

the lame are walking.

And as for the poor,

they're hearing the good news

with joy and with hope.

Go, tell the prophet

that God's kingdom has come near.

Tell him: be at peace.

© Ken Rookes 2016