Luke 1:5-25 – Advent Week 1
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How does a weary world rejoice?
This question seems quite contemporary. We can think of all sorts of ways we are weary, and ways our world is collectively weary. We’re still recovering from a pandemic. So many places are at war. I imagine you have your own ideas about what makes us weary. What makes you weary?
World-class weariness is not unique to our time. You may recognize that these words are in one of the favorite songs of the season, O Holy Night:
O Holy night! The stars are brightly shining
It is the night of our dear Savior’s birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
‘Til He appears and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn
This beautiful cantique (French for song) was written in 1843 by a French poet named Placide Cappeau who was commissioned to write a Christmas piece to celebrate the renovation of a church organ in his hometown. Cappeau was inspired, even though he himself was an atheist… The music was written by a Jewish composer named Adolphe. The song became a holiday hit in France.[1]
1843. The song became popular a few years later in the US “thanks to a Unitarian minister and musician named John Sullivan Dwight. Dwight was an abolitionist and the movement to outlaw slavery was picking up steam in the North. The words of the third verse made this an anthem for that movement.[2]
So the reasons for weariness might change, but reality of weariness being a part of life is not new. We hear it in the worlds of the ancient psalm writers who cry out to God asking, “How long, O Lord, how long?” Whatever the situation, even just waiting makes us tired. Oppression makes us tired. Grief, despair, and hopelessness make us weary.
In our weariness, though, we can resonate with the song’s lyric, “the thrill of hope.” That thrill speaks of the joy that can coexist with our weariness and be even more amazing because when we are weary, sometimes the tiniest things can bring us joy. This is our theme for the advent season – acknowledging our weariness helps us make room for joy that is rooted in the truth that we belong to God and that our joy is multiplied when it’s shared.
Which brings us to today’s story from Luke’s gospel in which Zechariah has an extraordinary encounter with the angel Gabriel.
Luke makes a point of telling us that Zechariah and Elizabeth are both from good families, both descended from priests, which is why Zechariah is taking his turn to do the temple rituals. Luke also says that Zech and Liz were both righteous and both very old, and they had no children.
One reason for telling us all this is so that we don’t get the idea that their lack of children is a punishment for sin. They were good, upstanding people who were also likely weary from the pressures of maintaining their standing. And in their time, since a lack of children was a reason for shame, it’s likely their shame made them weary. In verse 25, Elizabeth calls it her “disgrace.”
Now, as all children eventually learn, parents are not as receptive to questions or big news when they’re tired, like right after they get home from work. Why? Because the parents are more likely to say no or get angry. Right? So it’s better to wait, or to try to help them have a better mood by bringing them things they like, giving them a big hug, doing anything to help lessen their negativity.
But Gabriel doesn’t do that. Gabriel jumps right in with the big news. And not surprisingly Zechariah is overwhelmed and filled with disbelief, and says:
“How can I be sure this will happen? I’m an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years.” (Luke 1:18)
Maybe Gabriel is also having a bad day, because the angel’s response is also not good. Gabriel says:
“I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! 20 But now, since you didn’t believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time.” (Luke 1:19-20)
And then because Zechariah challenged Gabriel he is punished with the inability to speak for nine months.
When have you been silenced?
Sometimes we are silenced by a situation because our pain is too great and we cannot bear the effort of speaking. Or because we literally lose our voice through illness. We can also be silenced in other ways, by people who don’t want to hear what we say. This is part of oppression and marginalization. The writer Austin Channing Brown talks about the idea of foreboding joy, a concept she credits to Brene Brown who talks about foreboding joy in her book Daring Greatly:
“We’re afraid that the feeling of joy won’t last, or that there won’t be enough, or that the transition to disappointment (or whatever is in store for us next) will be too difficult. We’ve learned that giving in to joy is, at best, setting ourselves up for disappointment and, at worst, inviting disaster. And we struggle with the worthiness issue. Do we deserve joy, given our inadequacies and imperfections?”[3]
Austin Channing Brown describes how racism increases foreboding joy, and tells about her experience going to the hospital to give birth to their baby son and being silenced because some doctors and nurses are less willing to listen to a patient who is a person of color.
“…my husband and I, on our way to the hospital to deliver my son, sat in the car making plans between contractions. If something goes awry with my labor and doctors do not believe me, we’ll make clear that you are an attorney, and they should take us seriously….”[4]
But, Black joy persists. “It lives paradoxically at the intersection of joy and pain, realistically acknowledging that pain may come, but that pain cannot permanently drown out joy.”[5]
In a way, we see this played out in Zechariah’s story. I think that it’s helpful to notice that Zechariah’s disbelief and forced silence doesn’t stop God’s plan from happening. The blessing still comes. Maybe Zechariah’s silence stopped him from saying anything that he might regret or that would get in the way of the joy he would have when his son John was born and he could speak again.
After the child is born and Zechariah can speak, he immediately begins praising God. His song of joy finishes out this chapter in Luke’s gospel and shows that he understands the historic and theological importance of John’s birth:
Because of God’s tender mercy,
the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,[i]
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
and to guide us to the path of peace.”
Zechariah’s song shows us that what writer and poet Toi Derricotte saysis true, that “Joy is an act of resistance.”[6]
Brene tells about a time of joyful resistance. She says, “I’m in sweats and have dirty hair and I’m running up the Nordstrom escalator with my daughter to exchange some shoes that her grandmother bought her. Immediately, I’m overwhelmed because I look and feel like %$#, and there’s all these perfect-looking people giving me the side-eye. Just as I start to go into some shame, a pop song starts playing and [my daughter] Ellen breaks out into the robot. I mean full-on, unfiltered, unaware—just sheer joy. As the perfect people start staring at her, I’m reduced to this moment where I have to decide, Am I going to betray her and roll my eyes and say, “Ellen, settle down,” or am I just going to let her do her thing—let her be joyful and unashamed? I end up choosing her and actually dancing with her.”
It’s a great story about choosing her daughter and joy over acceptance by strangers.[7]
Sam Taylor, one of the writers of the website called “The Bookseller” was also inspired by Toi Derricotte’s words. He says:
I first saw the words “Joy is an act of resistance” on the cover of Idles’ furiously uplifting second album. “Yes!”, I thought, “Fudge, yes!”. Amid the rage and rancour of [politics], the thought that joy could be the answer to our problems was utterly inspiring and seemed almost revolutionary.…Bookshops have always been both havens of joy and pockets of resistance. They’re spaces where people seek refuge from the world and answers on how to change it. . .”[9]
The same could be said of libraries, coffee shops, and churches. In the midst of our weariness, finding a safe place where we can connect with an idea in a book or a smile on a face can bring us joy.
What makes you weary?
What brings you joy?
For almost twenty years, I’ve been reading Herman Melville’s epic novel “Moby Dick.” I started reading it when one of my kids had to read it for school. But I was also in school finishing my bachelor’s degree and then working on my masters, so I read it in bits and pieces, kind of like the way we read the Bible. The only reason I know the overall plot of the book is that I’ve seen movies and heard people talk about it. The book is incredibly long and I’m not good with long reads, but the writing is so much fun that I can enjoy just a sentence or a paragraph or a few pages, even though I don’t know the context half the time. Melville’s way with words brings me joy, much like a single verse of the Bible can do the same.
In one of the chapters, Ishmael describes a church:
“Entering, I found a small scattered congregation of sailors, and sailors’ wives and widows. A muffled silence reigned, only broken at times by the shrieks of the storm. Each silent worshipper seemed purposely sitting apart from the other, as if each silent grief were insular and incommunicable.”[10]
Can’t you just imagine this shadowy and grim scene of “muffled silence” that’s only broken by the “shrieks of the storm”?
Standing in the doorway, Ishmael takes in his surroundings, and is fascinated by three marble monuments on either side of the pulpit which are in essence the graves of sailors lost at sea. He wonders at the impact of those monuments upon those who come to this church.
“What despair in those immovable inscriptions! What deadly voids and unbidden infidelities in the lines that seem to gnaw upon all Faith, and refuse resurrections to the beings who have placelessly perished without a grave.”[11]
“…But Faith, like a jackal, feeds among the tombs, and even from these dead doubts she gathers her most vital hope.”[12]
That oft-quoted and eloquently written line gives us a glimpse of hope and joy amidst the weariness of death. Ishmael sees in death the hope of immortality. His soul will live on even if his body does not survive the dangerous whaling expedition on which he’s about to embark.
Herman Melville’s writing may not bring you joy, but joy is best when it’s shared and maybe you’ll share some of my joy.
The Bible tells us in Hebrews 12:2 that Jesus is the author and perfector of our faith, not because Jesus writes epic novels like Melville, but because Jesus is the Word made flesh that connects us with God and enables us to know deep joy in the midst of whatever is happening in our lives. The Holy Spirit writes this joy upon our hearts.
This Advent, we will hold space for both our weariness and our joy.
We will seek a “thrill of hope” in our hurting world.
We will welcome joy—even as we also cry out for comfort (Isaiah 40:1).
In this weary world, may we find many ways to rejoice…[13]
[1] https://relevantmagazine.com/culture/music/reminder-o-holy-night-started-out-as-an-abolitionist-anthem/
[2] Ibid
[3] Burke, Tarana; Brown, Brené. You Are Your Best Thing: Vulnerability, Shame Resilience, and the Black Experience (p. 14). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
[4] Ibid, p. 19
[5] Ibid, p. 18
[6] https://www.rattle.com/from-the-telly-cycle-by-toi-derricotte/
[7] Burke, Tarana; Brown, Brené. You Are Your Best Thing: Vulnerability, Shame Resilience, and the Black Experience (p. xiii). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. From the introduction to the anthology.
[8] Photo by Daniel on Unsplash
[9] https://www.thebookseller.com/comment/the-joyful-resistance-of-normality
[10] Melville, Herman. Moby Dick: or, the White Whale (p. 31). . Kindle Edition.
[11] Melville, Herman. Moby Dick: or, the White Whale (p. 32). . Kindle Edition.
[12] Melville, Herman. Moby Dick: or, the White Whale (p. 32). . Kindle Edition.
[13] Sermon Planning Guide, How Does a Weary World Rejoices, Advent Series from Sanctified Art LLC
United Presbyterian Church 