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'Notes for Reflection on the Feast Day of St John, Apostle and Evangelist', Sunday 27th December 2009
Rowena Ashworth 
Jesus, Son of God,
Now that we have heard the angels sing,
May we not loose our sense of the joy of heaven;
Now that we have been with the shepherds to Bethlehem,
Make us witnesses
Of the love and wonder we have seen.
Fill us with the quiet joy of Mary,
So that we, too,
May keep all these things
And ponder them in our hearts.
Amen
(a prayer by Angela Ashwin)
A few years ago, at one of our College carol services, our then chaplain used these “illustrations” as a way of describing Christmas, and I would like to share them with you: she said that there are 2 types of Christmas – 2 ways of looking at it: the first is what she called a “red and gold” Christmas – a Christmas made up of the cards and presents, the wrapping and ribbons, the tree and the decorations; it is a rush to complete all the preparations, it is a frantic schedule to follow, but in the end it adds up to all the good things we enjoy – generosity and hospitality shared with those who mean most to us.
The second is what she called a “blue and silver” Christmas – a Christmas that we prepare for during the season of Advent, the schedule is the calendar that cannot be rushed; it includes the discipline the Church commends to us, the teaching we are encouraged to revisit each year, a time for reading, for reflection and for prayer, the moments of quiet snatched in the midst of other activity, leading to the stillness and quiet of that Holy night – when we wait for that Christmas dawn to break on the world - the moment when God became human - the moment when God made us the gift of his Son.
And as Christian folk, we weave these threads together to work a rich tapestry of all that the celebration of Christmas means to us.
I think that today, this first Sunday after Christmas, is a “blue and silver” day – a small oasis of calm after the busyness and excitement of carol services, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day celebrations. We are eager to move on with the Christmas story, and are already looking towards Epiphany, but that is still further down the road. We have time today to stop for a while, to rest for a moment, and think about what has been happening, what we have been doing, and where we are going. We need time to reflect on the wondrous Christmas revelation of God in human form, God’s gift to us of his Son.
There are simple facts – the bare bones of the story: Mary knows she is to have a baby; eventually, she and Joseph have to travel to Bethlehem to register in the census; the town had no accommodation to offer other than a stable, which is where her baby is born; shepherds came to see the baby; and later, strangers arrive from distant lands.
But, we know it is about a great deal more than the bare facts; much of what happens in the Christmas story is a great mystery – it begins with the moment of Gabriel’s annunciation to Mary, that she will conceive a child by the power of the Holy Spirit; her visit to her cousin Elizabeth, who recognises Mary as the mother of her Lord and God; the host of angel’s heralding the Holy birth in the skies over Bethlehem, and later, the visit of the strangers, guided by a rising star from distant lands, who come to pay homage to the Christ child.
The facts of this familiar narrative are interwoven with the mystery of God at work, and some interpretation is needed for this to be a true and full and meaningful revelation to us. And here we owe much to St John!
Today, the 27th December is kept as the feast of St John, the Apostle and Evangelist. He is thought to be the disciple whom Jesus loved; a man who spent much time with Jesus, travelled the road with him, stayed under the same roof as him, was taught by him and listened to much of his preaching, a man who had a real relationship with him, an emotional connection with him, a strong bond of affection for him. John knew Jesus the Man, Jesus the complete human being.
It is, therefore, interesting and enlightening, that John is so focussed on the divine nature of Jesus, and the mystery of God and that quite amazing concept of God as Man. He has so much to tell us and to show us both of Jesus as Man, and of Jesus as God.
It is impossible for us to think of Christmas worship without bringing to mind the reading of John’s Christmas gospel, which is so familiar to us. We know the words by heart, but they never loose the power to excite awe and wonder. He uses the language of poetry and imagery, to convey something of this truly amazing event in the history of the world, trying to explain what really cannot be explained. But then, in later writings, he seems able to distil the essential message for us, which is, perhaps, not so very complicated after all.
The New Testament epistle from John we had read for us this morning, starts with a reality check; a reminder of facts known to those who would hear this letter. John says, remember all “which we have heard”, “that which we have seen with our eyes”, “that which we have looked at and our hands have touched”. This is Jesus, the Word of Life – physically known to John and the disciples in Jesus’ lifetime; known through shared experience and passed to the early Christian church John is addressing; essential truth that is to be handed on to the inquirers and newcomers, the wary and the uncertain, the waverers and the doubters, and the faction makers.
John spells it out quite clearly: “the life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.” “We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.”
The sharing of experience, of what we know to be true, of including others in this relationship with God, in welcoming others to faith, in giving that encouragement, is so important a part in spreading the good news of the gospel!
The epistle goes on, “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.”
We cannot but hear the echoes of the Christmas gospel; the message is the same, but put in more straight forward language, with some of the mystery unravelled. God, in Jesus is the light of the world; he is the light to show us the path and the way to walk through life; the light to expose our own sins, and the wrongs of the world; the light by which to see, so that we can do something about it; the light to dispel the darkness; the light to help others who are lost, to find their way back onto the path, so that we can walk the way together; it is the light in which we flourish and grow; the light which is God’s gift of redemption and salvation.
But, of course, although we are going in the same direction, heading the same way, we are each called to walk a different path. The gospel reading today, from the end of John’s gospel, touches on this. Jesus says to Peter, “Follow me” – Jesus is calling Peter to walk a particular path. The reaction from Peter is, “Lord, what about him?”, but Jesus replies, “if it is my will that he remains until I come, what is that to you? Follow me!” (We know that Peter was crucified, and that John lived to be an old man.) In other words, Jesus is saying to these disciples, as he says to each of us, never mind what I am asking others to do - just do what I am asking you to do for me!
On this feast day, we have much reason to be thankful for John - for the gift of his writings and scholarship. The beauty of his Christmas gospel is a jewel in New Testament scripture; there is nothing like it to inspire in us that sense of wonder and mystery and awe and reverence. But he has also given us the essential message, that Jesus is the light of the world, a light that no darkness can overcome, and the promise that we who receive him, who believe in his name, have power to be children of God.
And so, on this feast day of St John, on this quiet “blue and silver” Sunday after Christmas, perhaps we should take a little time to reflect on what it is we have been empowered to do, ask ourselves what path Christ is calling us to follow, and set out again, strong in the certainty that his light will guide us on the way.
May we keep all these things
And ponder them in our hearts.
Amen
Rowena Ashworth
December 2009
