Another Silent Night (Or, Why is He Away in the Manger?)
Here is our traditional picture of Christmas, sung so often on Christmas Eve, dark except for candle light:

 

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace  

The
calmness and peace is comfortable for us. Like I mentioned in the last
post, these lines are the typical "stuff" of our personal Christmas
icons. The warm, joyous images of Christmas are the ones we  envision
when we speak of "God with us". God is caring. God is Love. God is glad
tidings of comfort and joy.

Yet we forget one thing: For many, their
silent night is not a serene Thomas Kinkaid or Norman Rockwell. It is
another silent night. Silent prayer become silenced prayers from fear
of silence in response to prayer. Christmas
is cold and frozen. Dark and stormy. They are alone. Family and friends
is dead or just plain absent. Sickness limits the ability to connect or
enjoy the festivities. This time of year reminds them of what once was
or what could have been.  No work, or slow work mean money and presents
are scarce, so every commercial brings guilt and comparisons with the
Jones is embarassing.
Where
is God? Is God with these? Reality for them is different than ours.
They sing that "All is calm, All is bright" and the words seem hollow,
meaningless; false. 

 

 The stars in the bright sky
Looked down where He lay
The little Lord Jesus
Asleep on the hay

 

If
they do sing that verse, they laugh to themselves. Where is God? I'll
tell you, he's off somewhere sleeping like a baby. Not a care in the
world. Some God. 

 

The cattle are lowing
The poor Baby wakes
But little Lord Jesus
No crying He makes

 

It
is really hard for them to be convinced these lyrics describe Jesus. A
stoic from birth. How could Jesus understand my pain if he didn't even
cry like a baby?

What if Jesus cried at his birth, just as he cried other times? We read of this grown man later crying at the death of Lazarus, praying
so hard that sweat turns to blood, crying out moments before his
agonizingly slow, painful death comes "My God why have you forsaken me?
A God moved by the reality of being human.

 

 

Be near me, Lord Jesus,
I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever
And love me I pray  

What
do these lyrics mean when they are sung in the middle of suffering,
loneliness, loss? Jesus was indeed away when he was born in the
manger,. Christ the King was born away from anyone's sight, away from
extended family, born away from Nazareth, Mary and Joseph's home. Back
home, many no doubt would see Jesus as the symbol of a controversial
pregnancy. No doubt his parents raised him with a sense of abiding
love, but did he endure any sideways glances from others?

I
wonder if his parents' prayers ehcoed those lyrics to God as Mary gave
birth, or even after as the reality of isolation from family, warmth
and "civilization" set in? As they anticipated the trip home? As they
heard the Angels' reports of Herod's edict?
Maybe
this Jesus, who knows isolation, who has a quirky and embarrassing
birth story, whose life was both a mix of the miraculous and the
unendurable can identify with them.  Maybe they can pray to this Jesus,
trusting they'll be heard, accepted, understood; even comforted, find
joy, or heavenly peace.

 

 "Do not be afraid;  for see I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people" Luke 2:10  

What is the point of this somber twist of Christmas and these carols?

Let us remember the other silent night existing among us, even within us. Even more, let us know there is hope, for there is God. The
God of Christmas is Love. God is big enough, good, and caring enough to
handle your pain. God is with us. God is among us. Though the silent
nights impair our vision, God is with us.  Pain
and suffering are not inappropriate for Christmas.  They are an
essential part of being human, no one is left untouched by some pain.
And though it may obscure the "normal" sediments of Christmas, they can
open the door to a new experience of Christmas.   Deep
pain mixed with faith can be transformational. Some people may never
get over the pain, but God's work continues in them. Christmas of this
nature can be a time when looking back upon the better times, or
remembering hard times, even living amid a hard time can bring us to
experience God. Through this we can discover the unexpected ways God is
working or has worked in us. If we had suppressed this silent night
with the noise of "saving face", we might have missed some very
significant growth in our relationship with God.

 

Be Still and Know That I Am God.