It would be unfortunate if we were to
see the massacre of the innocents only as an historical event - as a sad event
in the middle of a glorious season. A quick survey of the daily news on
Christmas day shows us the use of deadly bombs in Iraq, slaughtering of
worshippers in Nigeria, house fires in New England cities, brutal murders and
unfortunate accidents. In our Presidential primary season we have plenty of
word slinging that seriously attempts to injure others instead of building up
one another. King Herod exists today. And then we face our own interpersonal
losses - whether it is the death and mourning of love ones or our own
experience of being beaten down by others. We are peppered with stories that
can wear down our hope. The temptation when we cannot do anything to change a
situation is to walk away, to try to harden ourselves, to maintain an emotional
distance, or to despair. In the face of these natural, understandable human
responses, we all the more appreciate compassion as a difficult but priceless
grace. The key to our responses is our loving presence - just being silent with
one who is suffering and in pain.
It would be a gift for us if we
learned to read scripture by lingering on our emotions and fully valuing the
events that are becoming known. We honor the experience of others when we feel
what they are feeling. Everyone's story needs to be told. Everyone's story
needs to be heard and honored. We can only partially know something with our
intellect; we gain greater insights and understanding when we allow ourselves
to feel - to be put in the place of another. It is risky. Compassion is always
risky because we risk being hurt in the process of showing solidarity, but it
is the place in our hearts where we are moved to greater love for one another.
Many of us have spent time with
someone dear in the last hours of life. We often wonder what we can say or do
to comfort and console the person and we often realize we are thinking in an
unhelpful way. We would rather have the person say, "Let me tell you what
it is like. Let me tell you what I am seeing and feeling. Please don't interrupt;
just stay with me and listen." We find our way into compassion as we hold
another person's story. Compassion builds upon each experience. Compassion is
not just our feeling wounded, but compassion indentifies the wound that is us.
I marvel at the magi because they saw
and heard and had compassion on the boy Jesus and his family. They were changed
by what they experienced. In my prayer, I can imagine them holding the boy in
their arms and feeling as if they belong to him. They have great hope for the
promise that he brings not only to the world but to themselves. I hope each of
you in your Christmas prayer picked up the newborn babe and held him in your
own arms. So many times I hear of people who are reluctant to pick him up and
sing gently to him. I hope you fully immersed yourself in the experience. I
hope you cooed at him and said some silly things that babies make us do. The
compassion of the magi for Jesus protected his life. It makes me wonder what
greater power compassion holds for our world.
It makes me wonder what would have
happened if King Herod's story was heard and honored by others. I'm sure his
friends would have heard of his deep wounds and fears and insecurities. If they
could have held his story for him to examine, he might have owned up to the
irrational thoughts he held. Because he did not directly confront his fears,
they were manifested sideways - and that was very messy and unfortunate. They
could have helped him become more whole rather than acting out of his unhealthiness.
It is possible that the countless lives of innocent children were saved rather
than extinguished.
We hold quite a gift in our hands.
Christ has blessed us with the gift of compassion and he needs us to work with
him to transform the world. We cannot put a stop to all the nonsense that
creates more suffering and sorrow, but perhaps we can lessen the insanity when
we hold one suffering person in front of us. We give them an incredible gift of
solidarity and understanding and we live in hope that this goodness will be
remembered and passed onto others and that life will be built up rather than
destroyed. While King Herod exists today, he no longer reigns. Let love and
compassion reign instead. Tell your story; listen to others; ease the pain and
live in the world Christ came to redeem.
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