Christ is Still in the Rubble

 

Rev. Isaac Munter

Do you recall the attention given to the Nativity display at a Lutheran church in the West Bank last year. It was called Christ in the Rubble and it invited us to consider the Christ Child amidst the destruction of war in that region rather than a traditional manger. The Rev. Dr, Isaac Munter, a Palestinian Christian, led a Christ in the Rubble: A Liturgy of Lament service on December 23, 2023 

If Jesus were to be born today, he would be born under the rubble in Gaza...[Christmas] is not about Santa, trees, gifts, lights, etc. My goodness, how we twisted the meaning of Christmas. How we have commercialized Christmas...Let it be clear: Silence is complicity, and empty calls for peace without a ceasefire and end to occupation, and the shallow words of empathy without direct action—are all under the banner of complicity...this genocide must stop now.

This year some North American congregations created their own Christ in the Rubble displays and I had mixed feelings. Drawing attention to the ongoing horror in Gaza and the West Bank is important yet the United States has provided billions in financial and military support to the government of Israel to continue its destruction. Canada has made the right noises about ending the bloodshed and has called for a two-state solution but this rings hollow. 

                                               Our Bombs Put Christ Under the Rubble

On a personal level I've wondered what more I could be saying and doing. There are Palestinian Christians who feel abandoned by the global Christian community. Many evangelical Christians are unwavering supporters of Israel yet give little or no attention to these brothers and sisters in Christ. It's been nearly 40 years since I first visited a Christian school in Bethlehem where the Palestinian principal made an empassioned plea for those of us present to support them in their oppression by Israel. This was an awkward moment with our lovely Jewish Israeli guide standing at the back of the room but I appreciate his outspokenness far more now than then.  

Again this Christmas the town of Bethlehem cancelled Christmas celebrations because of what is happening there and in solidarity with Gaza. While Christians are a tiny minority amidst a Muslim majority, starving and dying children are children regardless of colour or ethnicity or religion, precious to the Creator. 

The Haenyeo & Respect for the Sea

O Lord, how manifold are your works!

    In wisdom you have made them all;
    the earth is full of your creatures.
25 There is the sea, great and wide;
    creeping things innumerable are there,
    living things both small and great.
26 There go the ships
    and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it.

Psalm 104: 24-26 NRSVue

 More than two weeks after the first of our seasonal company arrived the last of our loved ones and friends have departed. While we enjoyed all of them a rather holy quiet has descended upon our household. So now I can attend to today's blog entry!

Reflecting back on 2024 there are only a couple of documentaries that stood out for me, both of which I've watched twice now. Both have to do with people who have a deep affinity for the natural world, appreciate its spiritual gifts and derive a living from it. 

One is The Last of the Sea Women about the Haenyeo, the female divers of Jeju, a Korean island, who free dive to harvest seafood for a living. They have been described as real life mermaids, diving as deep as 10 meters without oxygen. This occupation dates back to the fifth century and is recognized by UNESCO because of its unique matriarchal heritage. 

                                                                    Shea Winter Roggio

In the documentary we learn about this dwindling group of courageous divers once more than 30,000, now around 4,500. In earlier times girls would begin to train as young as 11 or 12 but the dangerous and physically demanding work is no longer attractive. Most of the remaining divers are in their 60s, 70s, even 80s. Despite their age they are reluctant to give up diving, feeling a deep affinity with the sea. One woman describes what they do as a calling and its meaningful to see their camaraderie and humour.

This work also has a spiritual element. The women offer a prayer to the sea goddess Jamsugut before setting out and they join for an annual colourful shamanistic festival invoking safety and abundant fish.

As a Christian I don't worship a sea goddess yet I love time spent by the ocean and feel a deep spiritual connection to the vastness and power of this aspect of Creation. I have great respect for those who make a living from the sea and respect its bounty and power. 

The Haenyeo, lament the changes they have seen through their lifetimes. Shorelines are littered with plastic from Japan and China. The sea grasses are disappearing and the creatures are declining in number. They took part in protests against the release of radioactive water from the the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plan into the ocean. One of them travelled to the United Nations in Switzerland to plead their case for ensuring the safety of the ocean, to no avail. 

I watched a second time and came to an even greater appreciation for these feisty women and their spiritual tradition. 

Still "Jesusy" After All These Years

 

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,

 who, though he existed in the form of God,
    did not regard equality with God
    as something to be grasped,
 but emptied himself,
    taking the form of a slave,
    assuming human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a human, 
    he humbled himself
    and became obedient to the point of death—
    even death on a cross.

 Therefore God exalted him even more highly
    and gave him the name
    that is above every other name,
 so that at the name given to Jesus
    every knee should bend,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
 and every tongue should confess
    that Jesus Christ is Lord,
    to the glory of God the Father.

                                          Philippians 2:5-11 NRSVue 

Before I began writing this blog entry for the first day of January, 2025, I turned to the daily scripture readings for the day. The heading for the day,  "Holy Name of Jesus", sounds like an oath or profanity, if an exclamation mark is added.

I literally had a tingle go through my body when I saw that one of the readings is what scholars figure is an early hymn or credal statement of the first century Christian community. We looked at this passage when we engaged in our creed study group a couple of months ago. 

There have been times in conversation through the years when I have quipped that I am still pretty "Jesusy", perhaps stubbornly so. My Christian faith has been battered at times by those who have done and continue to do terrible things in Jesus' name. Invoking Jesus to justify racism, sexism, and violence disgusts me and the rise of Christian Nationalism is ominous.

Yet the faith I embraced as my own as a teen, naively at times, still guides me and I continue to be a Trinitarian, accepting the mystery of God's presence with us in the person of Jesus who is the living, resurrected Christ. 

Over the decades I've changed, choosing to respect those of other interpretations of Christianity and other religions. More that 20 years ago I read an interview with the late, great historian of world religions, Huston Smith. He trained in a Zen monastery in Japan, studied with a Sufi mystic in Iran, and took a sabbatical in a Tibetan monastery. yet he always held firm to the Christian faith he learned growing up in a missionary family in rural China. In the interview he observes: "That’s why, from the start, Christianity has been my central meal. But I’m a strong believer in vitamin supplements. My experiences with these other traditions have been tremendously enriching."

This works for me, as did his commitment to be both spiritual and religious, seeing the strength of communities of faith despite their shortcomings. 

So, "holy name of Jesus!" folks, I invite you to find your way into this new year with Jesus as friend, guide, examplar, and Saviour. Here is an admittedly lengthy chunk of A Song of Faith, the most recent Statement of Faith for the United Church of Canada, the "Jesusy" part: 

We find God made known in Jesus of Nazareth,

and so we sing of God the Christ, the Holy One embodied.

 We sing of Jesus,

   a Jew,

   born to a woman in poverty

   in a time of social upheaval

   and political oppression.

He knew human joy and sorrow.

So filled with the Holy Spirit was he

that in him people experienced the presence of God among them.

We sing praise to God incarnate.

 Jesus announced the coming of God’s reign—

   a commonwealth not of domination

   but of peace, justice, and reconciliation.

He healed the sick and fed the hungry.

He forgave sins and freed those held captive

   by all manner of demonic powers.

He crossed barriers of race, class, culture, and gender.

He preached and practised unconditional love—

   love of God, love of neighbour,

   love of friend, love of enemy—

and he commanded his followers to love one another

   as he had loved them.

Because his witness to love was threatening,

   those exercising power sought to silence Jesus.

He suffered abandonment and betrayal,

   state-sanctioned torture and execution.

He was crucified.

 But death was not the last word.

God raised Jesus from death,

   turning sorrow into joy,

   despair into hope.

We sing of Jesus raised from the dead.

We sing hallelujah.

 By becoming flesh in Jesus,

   God makes all things new.

In Jesus’ life, teaching, and self-offering,

   God empowers us to live in love.

In Jesus’ crucifixion,

   God bears the sin, grief, and suffering of the world.

In Jesus’ resurrection,

   God overcomes death.

Nothing separates us from the love of God.

 The Risen Christ lives today,

   present to us and the source of our hope.

In response to who Jesus was

   and to all he did and taught,

   to his life, death, and resurrection,

   and to his continuing presence with us through the Spirit,

we celebrate him as

   the Word made flesh,

   the one in whom God and humanity are perfectly joined,

   the transformation of our lives,

the Christ.