First Sunday after Christmas Yr B

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. These words sparkle with hope. The Word, gasping for breath as he is born into this world, the Word, squealing with delight as he is brought to his mother’s breast, the Word, sleeping with satisfaction after he eats well, the Word made flesh, meets us in the flesh, and the darkness did not, is not, and will not overcome.


The Word is a squiggly little baby; the Word is a child whose enthusiasm cannot be contained. The Word is a messy encounter. The Word made flesh meets us in the flesh. I lament that this occasion has been so commercialized certainly because of the greed that accompanies it, but mostly because commercialization causes us to forget the grittiness, the messiness, the pain of this particular birth. John writes, he was in the world, the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him, his own people did not accept him. It amazes me how those words continue to be true today.


The Word is living and breathing. The Word is crying and laughing. The Word is. Sometimes we confuse the words on the page with The Word becoming flesh. And when we do that, we are captured by words in a time and place that makes little sense.


Remember history class. Remember memorizing the list of dates and people and battles as if that was history? I so enjoy watching the History channel because history there is stories, stories about people who lived and loved and laughed and cried. The word is not the lists of dates and places and battles, it’s not the genealogies or the history lessons. The Word is cool, clear water at the well, the Word is in the aroma of a fresh baked loaf of bread, broken and shared among friends and enemies alike, the Word is showing people how to love by telling stories of sowing seeds. The Word is in this amazing creation.

And yet, the words are important. They tell and show us the story of God’s activity in the lives of God’s people. The words show us how creation is related to the creator, how creation comes to be, and is blessed. The words show us how throughout history we have turned our backs on our creator, the author of life, and how God called us back. This is the story that we read in scripture, and what makes it true is that we know the story is alive and well today. It is the story that each one of us experiences. It is our story of creation, of blessing, of pain and suffering, of rebirth and resurrection. It is the story that shows us that hope is born again in us, that on the other side of suffering and death there is new life, because the Word became flesh to meet us in the flesh.


Today we meet the Word that becomes flesh in baptism. Today, hope is born again. Baptism is the ultimate expression of hope. These parents bring these children here today to meet the Word, and to enter the waters that at the same time give life and take life. The waters of baptism represent the power that is the Word. Our symbolic action of baptism has been reduced to pouring water, but in the early church folks were fully immersed into the water. In fact, they would walk down into the waters, be immersed three times, in the name of the father, and of the son, and of the holy spirit, each time rising from near death to gasp for the breath that gives life. Entering the waters that are the same as entering the tomb with Jesus, to walk out the other side a new creation, born again.

We pour oil on these children today, an abundance of oil. This is the oil of anointing, the oil of healing. This recalls for us the fragrant and expensive oil that anointed Jesus’ feet at the table by the woman who is nameless, and the oil that anointed Jesus’ body in death. We give to these children and their parents and godparents the light that shines in the darkness, the light that the darkness cannot overcome. We baptize because hope and grace abound. We baptize because in baptism we meet the Word made flesh in the flesh.


We baptize in this gathering so that you and I have another chance to meet the Word made flesh in the flesh. Remember when baptism was private? I sure hope there’s not many of you who do remember that. We forgot that the Word made flesh meets us in the flesh, in the flesh and blood of those who gather to experience one another, in the flesh and blood of those who gather to break bread together, in the flesh and blood of those who love one another.


Every time we baptize, we have another opportunity to renew our own baptismal promises. We have another opportunity to say, I will, with God’s help, to those practices that open our eyes and demand that we see the Word made flesh. Today, as we meet the Word in the flesh, and as we welcome these children into the household of God, and as we give thanks for the light that will not be overcome by the darkness, we pray


Alleluia! To us a child is born: Come let us adore him. Alleluia!