It is still Christmas! Yesterday whilst Andy and I were
walking the pugs we saw a sad sight. It was a Christmas tree lying discarded by
the roadside awaiting collection. It still looked a good, healthy tree. I felt
sorry for it, (I know a bit sad feeling sorry for a tree!) I even mentioned
taking it home and making it feel wanted but Andy quickly vetoed that
suggestion.
Yet, that sad tree was a poignant reminder of how we rush
from one season to the next. On Christmas Eve I noted that certain stores in
Ithaca have already started putting out Valentine’s Day chocolates. Let’s
linger with the season and enjoy “now” rather than rushing to “tomorrow”.
One of the things enjoyed in Britain are the Christmas
Specials on TV. They were part of my childhood and I continue to enjoy them
today. So far we have seen the Christmas Special of Downton Abbey, Dr. Who, Catchphrase, Mrs. Brown’s Boys, Carols from
Kings, The Boy who Wore a Dress and Call
the Midwife.
On Christmas Day we enjoyed the Vicar of Dibley’s The Christmas Lunch first shown 25th
December 1996. Even though we could anticipate every line we still laughed. It
amazes us how the Christmas Specials can swing from hilarious to serious in a
few moments yet carry a strong Christmas message. They are full of the good
news of unconditional love, sacrifice for one’s friends, dedication and the
message that Christ is incarnate in human form.
The lectionary gospel reading today is about two old people,
Simeon and Anna. Their stories are also those of dedication, love, sacrifice
and the news that Christ is incarnate in human form.
Anna we are told is 84 years old and has lived in the temple
for probably 64 years. (I am assuming she married at 13, lived with her husband
till he died when she was 20). Anna, we are told, never left the temple but had
given her life to prayer and fasting. In the Call the Midwife Christmas episode one of the story lines is about
a young girl probably about 20 who wants to take up the religious life. I won’t
say anymore about the plot, or who the character was, as I don’t want to give
away any spoilers. Sufficient to say as the young girl bravely faced her future
choices it showed the myriad of emotions, in both herself and her friends,
connected with her decision. It made me think of Anna in our text today, the
young girl who chose the religious life. She dedicated herself to prayer,
fasting and serving others.
Her contemporary Simeon did not live in the temple. Yet, he
too lived a committed life. We are told he was a righteous and devout person. How
is that for a great character reference! The text tells us that he had been
told that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah. His life was lived in
expectation of seeing the Christ.
Another factor of Christmas Specials is that they often tie
up loose ends. The story lines that had been going on throughout the previous
season are brought to a conclusion. This year that was particularly true of Downton Abbey. Again I offer no
spoilers, but suffices to say lots of things were concluded ready for a brand
new start in series six.
Anna and Simeon stories are placed right at the beginning of
the gospel yet feel they are tying up loose ends. They are making sure the
reader is ready to launch into the history and life of Christ, a new beginning.
Personally, I think the writer of the gospel wanted to be sure the message was
firmly established. They wanted to leave the reader in no doubt as to whom the
babe was. Just in case the stories of the apostles were not sufficient, here
are two people, two new witnesses confirming that this babe is the Messiah.
These were witnesses who were presumably well known to the temple worshippers. They
had credibility. Anna who had lived in the temple in prayer and fasting for 64
years and Simeon who is known as devout and righteous. They were chosen by the
author of the gospel to bear witness to the Christ child.
This is the last Sunday of 2014. This is a good time to
think back over the year. Perhaps, like the Christmas specials the loose ends
are tied up and we are ready to move into the New Year with excitement and anticipation.
Or maybe, like Anna and Simeon we are still waiting and
hoping. The human life is about choices, we are continually re-assessing and
considering what we are doing or where we are going. We may be pondering a
decision, trying to decide what is the best thing to do, we may be waiting and
wondering about various things in our lives. We may feel that we have lots of
loose ends needing some conclusion.
However, unlike Downton
Abbey they are not all going to be solved in a two hour Christmas Episode!
Real life isn’t like that! Life is not static, life is a living, moving
adventure. Anna and Simeon give us hope we may have to wait a long time, but remember,
they saw Christ incarnate!
Perhaps, the important thing to learn from them is not how
long we wait when we are making life choices but how we wait. Maybe, that is
the lesson from today’s text. Not a hint that Anna and Simeon were impatient or
disappointed. Not a hint that their lives had been wasted as they were elderly
before they saw what they were waiting for. Look again at the way they are
described, devout, righteous, praising, thankful and blessing those around
them.
Let’s not discard Christmas too soon. Enjoy the next eight
days of Christmas living the message of unconditional love, sacrifice,
dedication and Christ incarnate.
