Oh, how fear permeates our
lives-the possibility of war, the instability of the economy, the
uncertainty of our children's future, the reality of debilitating
illness, the finality of death. Amid all the fears that haunt us,
it is my prayer that we might experience something of the
shepherd's holy fearfulness. For it is not finally the power of
weapons, wealth, or wisdom that causes us to tremble, but the
incomprehensible possibility that God comes to us in this way and
in this place:
To you is born this day in the city
of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. ... You will
find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.
(Luke 2:11-12, NRSV)
What fills us with awe and holy
fearfulness is not just the familiar Christmas story, with its
miraculous detail or its wondrous blending of the ordinary and
mystical, the lowly and the most high. It is the great mystery of
God's love for the whole creation, revealed through Jesus' birth
and life, death and resurrection.
O great mystery and wondrous
sacrament, that animals should see the newborn Lord, lying in a
manger! Blessed is the virgin whose womb was worthy to bear our
Lord Christ: Alleluia! Lord, I heard your call and was afraid, I
considered your works, and I trembled between two animals.
("O magnum mysterium,"
Latin hymn, ca. 11th-13th century; based on passages from Luke and
Habakkuk"
The angel's announcement of
Christ's birth leaves us trembling in holy fearfulness. It stirs
us to ponder with Mary the wonder of God's love. It bids us to
join the shepherds in glorifying and praising God. For in Christ
we are called to faith, not fear; to hope, not despair. We are set
free to proclaim Christ and strive for peace in all the world.
"The God of peace be with you
all." (Romans 15:33)
The Rev. Mark S. Hanson
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
