First Sunday after Christmas (Year C, RCL)

Simeon and Anna echo the worship material of ancient Israel.

I probably shouldn’t treat my own son like he’s the Messiah. Imagine the pressure.

We may feel compassion in our guts, but we learn it by practicing empathic solidarity.

There’s a lot of a certain sort of pleasure pursued around Christmas.

Why am I so skeptical about sitting and learning at the feet of others?

He faces it.

God called all of them good. Humans are rapidly destroying them.

The psalmist puts out a clarion call.

I have some sympathy for Mary and Joseph.

The beloved song can contain God’s glory no more than the scripture it’s based on.

Jesus flips the script on his parents.

On a shelf in our church library you can find a “Reading Guide” made by a fourth grader. It lists the types of books appropriate for different age groups and advises: “Remember--Kids (8-12) when you start the Bible, go at your own pace. It's a long book!”

Which mother, I wonder, has more heartbreak. Hannah sacrifices the dailiness of raising her first-born son. Mary keeps her son with her, but as he grows she can surely see that he is heading down a dangerous path.