Magi

Dearly Beloved,


Grace and Peace to you.


You are minding your business, carrying on, maybe in the kitchen or the laundry room, or sitting at your computer. Faintly at first, you hear exotic music outside, strange harmonies with a hint of bells. Do you think you smell spices? Incense? At your door there are standing strangers dressed in elegant oriental finery, brocaded robes with jewels and turbans. You awkwardly ask them in. But they do not sit. They kneel before you. They open treasures. You are, appropriately, speechless.


They say they have seen signs: a great power has been born in you, sent from God, a power that will rule the earth, hidden in your life like a king among peasants. It is not any kind of political sway, or magical ability. It is the love you have been given. You embody divine love, an infinite and beautiful power for the healing of the world. They say this gift in you is greater than that of all the kings of the world, and so they kneel in homage. They pray that you, too, will honor this great gift that is within you. Your objections mean nothing; these are wise and knowledgeable people, who understand more than you do. You must take their word.


They go home by another way, back to their lives, their watching, their hopes. They take nothing with them—no trinkets, no proofs, only this: that they have seen. Now they know. And you also go back to your life, back to the dishes. And you — now you have seen. Now you are aware.


You will not likely see the strange visitors again, ever. You will not hear the sounds of their voices, nor the tinkling bells as they disappear along the streets. But you will remember. And you will believe.



Deep Blessings,

Pastor Steve



_______________________________

Copyright c 2009

Steve Garnaas-Holmes

unfoldinglight (at) hotmail.com

We have come to worship

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."
Matthew 2.1-2

When the Magi kneel before the Christ child
this is no mere display of sentiment or devotion:
this is Wisdom kneeling at the feet if its master, Love.
All power, all rulers and their armies,
and all knowledge, all learning and understanding,
and all riches and beauty,
all kneel before the power, wisdom and beauty of love.
Secretly Herod and all the tyrants of this world know this,
which is why they are afraid, so desperate and ruthless:
they know Love is the one true power greater than they.
They have already bowed to their one true sovereign.

And all powers, all kings and wise men,
all with beauty and regal mien,
bow to the Christ child, the embodiment of love
that is born in you each morning.
Let your life itself be such a bowing,
such an extravagant opening of gifts.
Even tyrants secretly bow to the great love
that has been poured into you.
Live in deep trust of this, and take courage.



_______________________________
Copyright c 2009
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
unfoldinglight@hotmail.com

Five golden rings

Dearly Beloved,

Grace and Peace to you.


In the rest of rest of the world Christmas is over (it runs from Thanksgiving to Dec. 25). Notice that people are already wishing you a happy new year. But for us Christians, it's only the fifth day. Five golden rings, four calling birds, three french hens, two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree. We've got a lot of maids a-milking and lords a-leaping yet to go. For most of the world, Christmas is a gaudy flash, and it's over in a flurry of wrapping paper, and a day later we go back to normal. But going back to normal is not what Jesus' followers are about.

Santa has come and gone but Jesus is still here—now what? Now we begin to live as if the Splendor of Heaven is among us. We live as if the One Who Loves Us and who comes to save us has indeed come, and is indeed saving us. We live as if after years of longing in exile we are finally being rescued. We live as if the Prince of Peace walks beside us. We live as if angels hover, singing glory. We live as if a star is shining overhead that announces for all Creation that the Beloved is here. We live as if God is with us. Because it's true.



Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve


_______________________________
Copyright © 2009
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
unfoldinglight@hotmail.com

The night wind

.
Stars of deep night,
sing your crystal songs in me.
Angels, radiate your joy
from within my darkness.
Mary, begin your deep breathing in me,
and Joseph, your benevolent uselessness.
Shepherds and all scruff and tatter,
all nighttime characters in me,
gather now, and come to the stable.
And you kings, you wise sages,
you voices from beyond, come,
with your wisdom and your swirling smoke
of incense and your dreams, come.

And you, child, whose very breath is heaven,
in whose heart God's heart beats in mine,
come. Let this birth occur.

I do not comprehend. I only stand,
mute and open like a stable,
plain and ordinary—a little rough, even,
but hospitable to miracles.
The night wind puts an arm around me
and I am at peace.


_______________________________
Copyright © 2009
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
unfoldinglight(at)hotmail.com

Christmas

Dearly Beloved,

Grace and Peace to you.


It’s a special time, with the pretty lights and sumptuous meals, the gathering of loved ones and the giving of gifts, the beauty and the memories. But don’t think that the beauty and the luminous mystery belong to this day alone. The proclamation of Christmas is that God is With Us. This is not about one magical night long, long ago, but about God is with and among and within us always.

Ask Mary. When you were on that hard road to Bethlehem, when you were homeless in a strange place, where was God? Inside you. When you were shivering in that shed, left out of the circle of acceptance and privilege, where was God? Beside you. When you fled to Egypt, sought by powers and dominions whose soldiers were sent for your harm, where was God? Cradled in your arms, in your beating heart, in the depth of your breath. Each day, in your ordinary times, in your struggles, in the times of belonging and times of abandonment, where was God? Right here. Always, right here.

On this special night, God says to us with all the beauty it deserves, “I love you and I want to be with you. You are my delight, and I will give up all of heaven simply to be with you. Even if you do not understand, even if you hurt me and reject me, my desire is to be with you—to be in your arms, in your heart, in year breath. See! I am here. I am with you. Peace to you, and to all living things, in whom is my delight.”


Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve


_______________________________
Copyright © 2009
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
unfoldinglight@hotmail.com

The constant angel

Stars shine their patent leather shoes,
light their little silver lanterns.
Angels put on their robes,
go over that tricky part one more time.
Mary sits on the donkey,
the donkey plods along, Joseph beside her.
Neither one tries the impossibility of words.
Wayside inn fills up, people
coming from a long way to fill it up.
A manger lies ready, open,
flies buzzing though its empty spaces,
while the dusty light settles.
The suns sets. The night begins to hush.
Shepherds, of course, are just out in their field,
nothing different, same as always.

You never get to see the gathering angels,
the light swelling just before it bursts forth.
You never know which manger will receive,
which night will shine, which moment
will give way to glory. If you did,
you’d miss all the rest.
Anyway, the one magnificent chorus
is not what changes you, but the gentle light
that seeps through everything, the quiet voice
humming as you sweep the floor,
check the oven, light the candle, open the door.





_______________________________
Copyright © 2009
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
unfoldinglight@hotmail.com

Baby in a manger

.

God does not come into our lives with overpowering force.
God comes with no more power than a baby has:
the power to evoke our love.

God comes with no more authority than a crying child,
the authority of one who knows suffering,
and will not be fooled by empty comfort.

God comes with no grandeur, no Empire,
but a world of infinite expanse, whose gates
are hidden in our hearts.

God comes with no parades, no banners,
no recognition at all, except among those who listen
to the silence that burns in all Creation.

God does not come to holy places, to sanctuaries and temples,
but to mangers and graveyards, shelters and tent cities,
to broken places.

God does not come to the triumphant and those in high places;
God comes to shepherds and lepers, to the poor and the weak,
and to you.

When you are willing, look.



Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve


_______________________________
Copyright © 2009
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
unfoldinglight(at)hotmail.com