Emmanuel:
Quod est interpretatum
Nobiscum Deus
Homily for the Most Solemn Feast of the
Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ
25th of
December, 2013
Rev. Michael Taylor
(St. Kateri
Tekakwitha’s Parish, Schenectady NY
St. Joseph’s Parish,
Troy NY)
He shall cast death down headlong for ever:
and the Lord God shall wipe away tears from
every face,
and the reproach of His people He shall take
away from off the whole earth:
for the Lord hath spoken it.
And they shall say in that day: “Lo! This is
our God!
We have waited for Him, and He will save us:
this
is the Lord, we have patiently waited for Him,
Gospel Readings:
·
Vigil
Mass: Matthew 1.1-25
·
Midnight
Mass: Luke 2.1-14
·
Mass
During the Day: John 1.1-14
There is something about Christmas moves us.
There is something within the very marrow of our bones that says there is
something special about this time of year. Yet perhaps, sometimes we may forget
just how epic is the story that is unfolding around us. We forget the history
that has lead up to this point. When we look at Matthew’s gospel, we see him
opening up with the words, this the book
of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the Son of Abraham.[2]
What follows is a long list of names. One might wonder why open up with
such a litany of names? It is because hidden within that list is the history of
the people of Israel, their ups and their downs, their successes and their tragedies.
So epic is this story that you cannot believe what this night would have meant
for the people of Israel. Allow me to share in some small part the story we see
fulfilled on this sacred night.
 |
| The Angel Stopping Abraham from Sacrificing Isaac -Rembrandt van Rijn, 1606-1669 |
We start out with Abraham, known first as
Abra’am. This the man of the Chaldeans, of the land of Ur.[3]
He the one who was called by the God he did not know to make an act of faith,[4]
to believe that a land had been prepared for him and his descendants.[5]
Isaac, the fulfilled promise of God to Abraham, that he would indeed be a
father of fathers.[6]
Isaac, the foreshadowing of the sacrificial lamb.[7]
There is Jacob, the second oldest son of Isaac, who whilst wrestling with a
messenger from the Lord, is given a new name, Yis’ra’el, one who struggles with God.[8]
How appropriately this name shall be for a new people. The people of Israel,
this is the people who wrestle with God, struggling to find the meaning of
their relationship with the Lord their God, and in that struggle, discovering
their true identity. Ya’akov, Yis’ra’el, who becomes the father from whom are
born twelve sons; Ruben, Simeon, Levi, Juda, Issachar, Zabulon, Joseph,
Benjamin, Dan, Nephtali, Gad, and Aser.[9]
These would become the twelve tribes of the house of Israel. Of those twelve,
we find the son Juda from whom Judea would get it’s name and the people of
Israel would come to be known as Jews. It is this Juda who is also the ancestor
of the house of David.
 |
| Joseph Blessing His Sons- Artist unknown |
As we move along the genealogy of Christ, we
find names that sound even more foreign to our ears. We find Na’asson who in
the book of numbers offered to the Lord in sacrifice, 130 shekels of silver.[10]
Little could Na’asson have known that the savior of his people would be
betrayed for less than one fourth the silver which he had offered.[11]
We have the story of the faithfulness of the woman Ruth, who was so loyal to
her family,[12]
that she made the God of Israel her own God.[13]
Despite having to leave the land of her fathers and go live with a people she
did not know, God watched over her. In her fidelity to God and family, she
finds a husband, who’s name is Bo’az, a man of God. From Ruth and Boaz comes
the son Obed, who’s son is Iessai, Jesse.[14]
 |
| Landscape of Boaz and Ruth -Joseph Anton Koch 1768-1839 |
Now it is the house of Jesse that the
prophet Shamu’el is sent to pick out
a new king of Israel, a new anointed one, who’s house the Lord will never
forsake. Samuel goes to the house of Jesse, and tells him, I have come to pour
God’s blessings on one of your sons. Call them forth so that I might find the
one whom I am to anoint. Jesse starts with what seems like the obvious choice,
his oldest son Eli’ab. Yet the Lord says that Eliab is not the one, for as it
is written, I have rejected him, nor do I
judge according to the look of man; for man seeth those things that appear, but
the Lord beholdeth the heart.[15]
So Jesse calls Abinadab, the second oldest. Abinadab is rejected. Same with
Sham’ma, the third oldest. Finally, after the sixth son, there are none who
appear to be left. Samuel asks Jesse, “have you no other sons?” Jesse says, I
have the youngest who is still out in the fields watching the flocks. When the
youngest one is called forth, it is to him that the Lord says, this is my
anointed one. This is Dau’id, David
who becomes the king after the Lord’s own heart.[16]
These things were done so we might know the truth of the Apostle’s words: But the foolish things of the world hath God
chosen, that he may confound the wise; and the weak things of the world hath
God chosen, that he may confound the strong.[17]
 |
| David pwning Goliath |
And yet as great as King David was, he still
sinned mightily against God. Sometimes his sins brought great suffering to the
people of Israel. Yet David always returned to the ways of God, repenting of
his sins with a humble and contrite heart.[18]
Because of his humility before the Lord, God is able to make right what started
out wrong. From David is born Solomon,
who is held to be the wisest of all the kings of Israel. It was Solomon who
built the first temple of Israel, so that the Ark of the Covenant could be
housed. It was Solomon who people far and wide came to see and hear his wisdom.
Yet Solomon was not perfect, and allowed his faith to falter, and his heart to
stray. Because of this, his son Roboam had none of the wisdom of his father.
Roboam, when he was made king, had a choice on what kind of king he would be;
kind and beneficent or harsh and cruel. He asked the elders of Israel; What counsel do you give me, that I may
answer this people?” They said to him: “If thou wilt yield to this people, and
be humble to them, and grant their petition, and wilt speak gentle words to
them, they will be thy servants always.” [19]
Yet Roboam did not listen to the advice of his elders, and instead listened to
his friends, who advised him to put a heavy burden upon the people of Israel.
So cruel was Roboam, that the kingdom of Israel, which had unified the twelve
tribes of Israel, was torn asunder in bitter civil war. The Ten Tribes of
Israel went off under the leadership of Jeroboam. The tribes of Judah and
Benjamin formed the Kingdom of Judah, centered on Jerusalem.
As we continue along the genealogy of
Christ, we find saints and sinners alike. We find the name of Ochozias, who
along with the King of Israel, Achab, did great evil in the land. These were
the kings that Elijah and Elisha spoke out against. We find the name of Achaz
who allowed the Assyrians, the Edomites and the Philistines to plunder the
cities of Judah.[20]
It is Achaz that the prophet Isaiah was sent by the Lord, saying; And the Lord spoke again to Achaz, saying:
Ask thee a sigh of the Lord thy God either unto the depth of hell, or unto the
height above. And Achaz: I will not ask, and I will not tempt the Lord. And
Isaiah said, "Hear ye therefore, O House of David: Is it a small thing for
you to be grievous to men, that you are grievous to my God also? Therefore, the
Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a
son, and his name shall be Emmanuel.” [21]
We find King Mannasses, of whom it is said that the only evil he did not do was
the evil he could not think of to do.[22]
Yet we fight saints too, such as Asa and Josiah. Josiah is the one who restored
the temple of the Lord and found the lost book of Deuteronomy, having it read
to all the people of Israel so that they might return to the ways of the Lord.[23]
 |
| Josiah cleaning the Temple -Artist unknown |
Time came and time passed. Generations came
and generations went away. Eventually, because of their sins, the Lord allowed
the Assyrians to conquer the northern Kingdom of Israel. Ten tribes were lost,
lost still to this very day. It is said that the only Jews that the Assyrians
allowed to stay behind were the uneducated ones who had been in the outskirts.
They were to become known as the Samaritans.
We find that the people of Judea would not
be left alone either. The Assyrians conquer Judea around 740 BC as the prophet
Hosea had warned. The Babylonians would then conquer the area and take the
people of Judea into exile. This is the time of the prophet Daniel and the
later Psalms. This is the time of which it is written, by the waters of Babylon we wept, there we sat down and wept when we
remembered Zion…if I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither! Let my
tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do not
set Jerusalem above my highest joy! [24]
Then, Cyrus the Great allowed the people to return. This was the time of the
prophets Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Ezra. This was when Zorobabel was allowed to
become king of Judah, reestablishing the house of David.[25]
His name too is found in the genealogy of Jesus.[26]
Eventually new conquers would come.
Alexander the Great would wash over the Babylonians, Persians and Egyptians.
His son Antiochus IV would control what is now Palestine. He outlawed the
Jewish faith. So many people lost their faith, preferring the ways of the
Greeks to the ways of their fathers. Yet a savior rose up to save the people of
Israel. Around the year 166 BC, Judas Maccabaeus cleansed the temple of
Jerusalem. His family would rule Israel wisely, free from interference. For
four generations, Israel would have peace. But then, under the reign of
Aristobulus II, a man named Herod, with the help of Pompey the Roman, would
overthrow the House of Israel, allowing the Romans to control the Land of
Israel.
 |
| To help you hate him like the Jewish people would have, here is Herod the Great portrayed as a man with a perm…BOOO! |
And time passed on. From Achim came Eliud,
from Eliud came Ele’azar, from Ele’azar came Mathan, from Mathan came Ya’akob,
and from Ya’akob came Ioseph, of the town of Nazareth. Roman, Greek and Persian
idolatry come to sweep through the land. As is written, the idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.
They have mouths but they cannot see, they have ears but they cannot hear, nor
is there any breath in their mouths.[27]
Time passed along, and the people of Israel felt as though God had forsaken
them. A new temple had been built by Herod, but it had not the presence of God,
for the Ark of the Covenant had been lost generations earlier. So the Sadducees
would say, the temple is rebuilt! We are able to offer right worship! Yet
others would say, no, this is a temple that was built by the one who sold us
into slavery to the Romans. The Pharisees said that we will follow the law and
the prophets. Yet others felt that their past sins of idolatry had so tarnished
their collective souls, that God was no longer was with them. Others like the
Essenes felt that they, as the people of Israel, had so stained themselves that
there was no almost no hope of redemptive cleansing. Who of us cannot relate to
that feeling? We, who have sinned so grievously against God, that when we look
up from the pit of muck and mire with which have dug for ourselves, we can
scarcely see any light. Yet at this darkest of times, at the darkest and
loneliest time for the people of Israel and their history, we read the
following words. And it came to pass in
those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the
world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was
governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed, everyone into his own city. And
Joseph also went up from Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is
called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David). To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife,
being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days
were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her
firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger;
because there was no room for them in the inn.[28]
 |
| Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem The silver star on the floor marks the spot where the manger was held to be. |
How glorious this day is to us! After
generations of wondering and exile, unto us is born a son, born of a virgin.
His name shall be Emmanuel, God-is-with-us. No longer do we have to wonder if
God is with us, if God understands us, if God is listening. He has become one
of us, so that we might live with him. In Hebrew, Jesus’ name is Yeshua ,
Joshua. Just as Ye’shua bar Nun, Joshua son of Nun, led the people through the
river Jordan into the promised land, so now does Ye’shua bar Miriam, bar Dau’id, bar Avro’him, bar a’dam, bar Elohim
Adonai, Jesus the son of Mary, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham, the
Son of Man and the Son of the Lord our God bring us through the waters of
baptism into the promised land of eternal life. How our hearts swell upon
hearing that the day of our salvation has now arisen? Can you imagine what it
was like what it was like for the shepherds?
And yet Glories of Glories! God has gone far
beyond what the prophets foretold! Not only has a savior been born, to restore
the house of David, but God has actually become one of us, so that we might
once again walk with God as our parents did before the fall! Indeed, he has
come as the most humble and fragile of all humanity, a baby born into poverty!
He humbles himself so that we might not fear to approach him as our judge, but
rush to him as our savior, meek and mild. Yet still does not our Lord hesitate
to pour forth even more blessings upon us, for as we read in John’s Gospel, But as many as received [Jesus], he gave the
power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in his name.[29]
How far beyond our conception, must less what we deserve, is such a gift made!
How else can our heart’s cry out but “Glory to God in the Highest”? How much
must we rejoice, hearing that the light has come into the world, and that no
matter how dark the times might seem, no matter how great the evil threatens to
overwhelm us, that the darkness has not, cannot nor will it ever conquer the
light! [30]
Glory to God in the highest indeed…for unto us this day is born a Savior who is
Christ the Lord, in the city of David…and peace on earth to men of good will.[31]
|
| May you and yours have a merry and blessed Christmas |
[1] Isaiah 25.8-9
[2] Matthew 1.1
[3] cf. Genesis 11.28-31
[4] cf. Romans 4.2-3: For if Abraham was justified by
works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the
scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned him as righteousness.”
[5] Genesis 12.1: And the Lord said to Abraham: Go forth
out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and out of thy father’s house, and
come into the land which I will shew thee.
[6] Genesis 13.15-16: [And the Lord said to Abram] “All
the land which thou seest, I will give thtee, and to thy seed forever. And I
will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: if any man be able to number the
dust of the earth, he shall be able to number thy seed also.
[7] Cf. Genesis 22.8: And Abraham said: “God will provide
himself a victim for an holocaust, my son.” So they went on together.
[8] Genesis 32.27-28: And he [the angel] said: “What is
thy name?” He answered: “Jacob.” But he said; “Thy name shall not be called
Jacob, but Israel: for if thou hast been strong against God, how much more
shalt thou prevail against men?”
[9] Genesis 35.23-26
[10] Numbers 7.11
[11] cf. Zechariah 11.12-13: And I said to them: “If it be
in your eyes, bring hither my wages: and if not, be quiet.” And they weighed my
wages thirty pieces of silver. And the Lord said to me: “Cast it to the
statuary, a handsome price, that I was prized at by them.” And I took the
thirty pieces of silver, and I cast them into the house of the Lord to the
statuary.
Cf. Matthew 27.3-5:
When Judas, the betrayer of Christ, saw that he was condemned, he repented and
brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders,
saying, “I have sinned in betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that
to us? See to it yourself.” And throwing down the pieces of silver in the
temple, he departed: and he went and hanged himself.
[12] Ruth 1.14
[13] Ruth 1.16: She [Ruth] answered [Noami]: “Be not
againt me, to desire that I should leave thee and depart: for withersoever thou
shalt go, I will go: and where thou shalt dwell, I also will dwell. Thy people
shall be my people, and thy God my God.”
[14] Ruth 4.21-22
[15] I Samuel 16.7
[16] cf. Acts 13.22
[17] I Corinthians 1.27
[18] cf Ps 50(51).19: A sacrifice to God is an afflicted
spirit: a contrite and humbled heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
[19] II Kings 12.6b-7
[20] II Kings 16; II Chronicles 28
[21] Isaiah 7.10-14
[22]
cf. II Kings 21.15; II Chronicles 33
[23]
II Kings 23.25: There was no king before him like unto him [Josiah], that
returned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all
his strength, according to the law of Moses: neither after him did there arise
any like him.
[24] Psalm 136(137).1, 5-6
[25]
cf. Ezra 4.2-3; Haggai 1.14, Haggai 2.5
[26]
cf. Matthew 1.13; Luke 3.27
[27] Psalm 135.15-16
[28] Luke 2.1-4
[29]
John 1.12
[30]
cf. John 1.5
[31]
cf. Luke 2.11, 14
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