"Hark the Herod," Angels Sing
In which I mangle a beloved carol to make a Herod pun for this month's title
It’s that time of year again. Yes, the nativity scenes, Christmas carols, candlelight services—they all make my inner fundamentalist want to claw her way back to the surface to announce, “The truth is, we don’t actually know when Jesus was born, but it almost certainly wasn’t December 25th. That’s an old pagan tradition called Saturnalia…”.
Because how better to lean into the spirit of the season than running around like a mean girl in middle school telling everyone not to go to that other kid’s birthday party?
But that’s not the focus this month. What I want to talk about is the nativity story and the different paths by which people find Jesus.
Joseph and Mary didn’t really have much of a choice in this whole “finding Jesus” thing. Granted, Mary did agree to carry the Christ-child in Luke 1:38, but Jesus was just part of their life, integrated into everything they did or thought about. The same is true for Zechariah, Elizabeth, and John. Jesus was simply a fixture of their family culture; they knew him because he was just . . . always there. (We won’t mention that time they *literally* had to find him because they lost him in Jerusalem for three days when he was 12.)
The shepherds had a straight-up, legit religious experience. They saw angels in the sky and were all, “Maybe we should go check out this Christ kid.” Granted, Luke 2:15 makes it sound like they had a little peer pressure thrown in there, too: “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” Basically: “I’ll go if you go. Come on, all the cool kids . . . and lambs . . . are doing it.” (I’m so sorry. That makes terrible sheep and/or goat puns two months in a row now. Can ewe forgive me?)
The magi discovered Jesus somewhat by accident. They were, essentially, the scientists of their day, studying the natural world to try to make sense of how everything works. Then they came across a puzzling astronomical anomaly. They didn’t travel to Judea as faithful Jews thinking of the prophesies about the long-awaited Messiah; they were basically coming to see if their calculations were correct. And yet, in checking their hypothesis, they discovered God in the design.
Anna found Jesus because she just happened to stumble across his path. She was an elderly widow without children of her own, and yet she found connection and meaning thanks to a family who welcomed the attention and love she had to offer.
Simeon discovered Jesus because he was actively looking for him. God had promised him that he would see the messiah (Luke 2:25-35), so he kept his eyes open.
In these characters, we see people who discovered Jesus through osmosis, religious experience, scholarship, community, and seeking—different journeys all leading to God.
But there is one other key figure in the nativity story we haven’t touched on yet: Herod.
And this is where the newsletter takes its serious turn, like when Robin Williams grew a beard or Jim Carey smiles with his mouth closed.
Herod is the only character in the story who never finds Jesus, though he did seek him. But he wasn’t looking for Jesus in order to worship him, despite his claims (Matthew 2:8). Herod was more concerned with power—holding onto it, controlling people through it, and maintaining the status quo. In direct violation of Exodus 23:9 (and other similar verses), he attempted to manipulate foreigners in his land, lied about his motives, and willingly sacrificed innocent lives in order to hang onto his authority. And the sad thing is, Herod was able to justify everything he did because his view of God was so twisted that he believed he was on the side of right.
However you come to find God, may you also find the heart of the gospel there—inverting power, welcoming the Other, shining a light on corruption, and defending the vulnerable.
This is my annual reminder to make sure that the most junior person in your company goes home with the best gift at the work Christmas party Dirty Santa game. I promise you, the 23-year-old temp working for minimum wage needs the new coffee maker or Chili’s gift cards more than the vice president does. Go ahead and swap them for the non-descript mug or the cheese cutter with a ceramic bok choy on the handle. It’s a simple move that can really go a long way toward making someone feel welcomed and appreciated.
🤣🤣🤣🤣 Giggles + insights = best ever.