Luke 2 by Rola Al Ashkar

I never liked psychology! After hanging out with pastor Aart for some time, I started gaining an increased interest in psychology. But that’s not the creepy part yet! The other day I took a personality test after he had already guessed my personality type, and I was startled by the realization that the results were exactly what he had predicted earlier!  Now I realize I should be spending less time with him! On a serious note, according to Briggs and Myer’s test -and to Pastor Aart obviously- my four letters personality type is ESTJ or what they call “the executive type.” As an executive, they say, I enjoy micromanaging things; I dislike making rushed decisions, and am not satisfied by results that are “good enough.” I like to be consistent and stable, and uncertainty creates a lot of stress and anxiety on my side. All that about me is true! Now I want you to imagine, with such personality traits, how my life was during the past year or so.

So… California huh? For how long? Are you going to stay there? For how long are you going to be with that church? So you’ve got your Master’s in theology and now what? Will you get a PhD? Will you get ordained? What about your fiancé? Are you getting married? Are you moving together? You’re not going to come back, are you? What about the kids? Why don’t you just keep your job?…

All of these are questions I’ve heard over and over for the past couple months, and over and over I failed to answer all or most of them, most of the times. And even if you were not a control-freak like me, even if you were not of the sensing and judging types like me, and even if you did not have to deal with life-changing choices like getting married and moving overseas.. whether you are retired or thinking about retirement, whether you’ve just graduated, or just looking for a new job, whether you’ve just moved in town, or if you were a long term citizen unhappy with the way your country is changing…I guarantee you one thing: I am not the only person in this place who is frustrated about being uncertain, about not being able to control one’s own life, or the lives of those we are responsible for. I’m so sure that no one likes shaky grounds, incomplete stories, impulsive rules, ambiguous agendas, unguaranteed jobs, unstable relationships, & unclear paths…

Our author for today’s gospel text didn’t like ambiguity either. He is the one Evangelist known for embellishing stories, smoothing things up, making it all one harmonious, compatible, well-matched narrative. Since as an accountable leader, Luke wanted to present to his community the very best image he could about Jesus’s life. However, in his second chapter, even his best attempts could not help him escape the ambiguity of the entire scene.

This very compact oracle by Luke is loaded with OT prophecies; it combines elements from Exodus, Leviticus and Isaiah. It is also packed with historical data, so we are told that these events happened when Augustus was Roman emperor, Cyrenius governor of Syria, and Herod king of Judaea. And then all these settings: the Roman registration, the Jewish ritual of purification, the consecration of the firstborn male, the sacrifice to the temple, and the yearly pilgrimage to Jerusalem.. All of these aim at locating the narrative in a very precise social, historical, geographical and ideological first century Roman-Jewish frame. Luke is trying to contain his story, to keep control of his own tale, to set the baby and later the teenage Jesus on a very clear and predictable path. But despite all that, he cannot mask the uncertainty around this young Jesus who is a puzzle to all those around him including his own family. He could not hide the conflict between the sayings that this baby will bring salvation, but also a sword in his own mother’s soul. He could not embellish the contrast between the role of this baby savior in the rising of the nation, but also in its falling. He could not reconcile the depiction of a fine young person filled with wisdom and stature, and the puzzlement around disregarding his parents by disappearing for three days, and then not even being sorry about it! Luke like us was dealing with uncertainty; nonetheless, his story conveys a great message of graciousness and hopeful anticipation.

The two main characters in the story that had to absorb all the uncertainty were Simeon and Mary, both of which trusted the sneak peeks God has given them. Both did not get any clear plans; Simeon knew he was going to die and never actually get to see the salvation he dreamed about. Mary has had to take back with shaking hands her newborn into her arms, she knew she has had to keep feeding him, to put him to bed every night, to play with him, care for him, teach him and raise him, all with a troubled heart, not really knowing what to do with this little life she is responsible for, who appeared to be more than just a normal worrisome baby or a regular troublesome teen.

Yet, both Mary and Simeon would have been deeply devastated if they could see clearly into the future and they would have wanted to change the paths of things. And so is the case with every one of us. I know if I had a clearer former knowledge of many situations in my life, I would have tried hard to change circumstances, so I can avoid many of their painful consequences. But I know I would have also missed too many valuable lessons on the way.

As I was discussing my intended topic for today with a Lebanese lady I met in Fresno two days ago, she said: “Rola I might be wrong, but I think the word of God is saying ‘there is a purpose, you don’t see it fully yet, but be prepared.’” And I think I wouldn’t have said it any better.

Sometimes God’s graciousness lies in hiding from us the nitty-gritty details of our lives’ directions. When was the last time we thanked God for wandering, for being lost or uncertain?! … We know when Simeon’s was! All he had seen was a little powerless forty day old baby, unable even of surviving on his own, yet he trusted God and was thankful for that tiny little sneak peek into the future. If only he knew what matter of a Messiah Jesus was going to become! Surely not what a devout Jewish prophet would have had in mind. But if only he knew, wouldn’t Simeon have been discouraged and tempted to question God’s plan for salvation? But then God wanted him to go in peace, biting off only what God knew he could chew.

I like to think of it as a tightrope walking exercise while holding in your hands a pole or bar that has weights on its ends. That’s a very unstable situation! The heavy weights allow you to exert twists, thus maintain balance on the rope. Too heavy weights, on the other hand, or uneven weights can alter your rotational inertia, causing you to fall. Here you have to trust your trainer, and trust that whatever weight he or she adds is exactly how much weight you need at the moment, in order to stay balanced.

Trust is the keyword, trust while still standing on that tight rope hanging in the air. Trust despite Simeon’s total ignorance of what is to come. Trust in spite of Mary’s fear and worry over her newborn.

I would like to conclude with a verse from Jeremiah that has become my favorite in the past couple years, I’ve even tattooed it on my skin, it says: “For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord; plans for success and not for harm, to give you a future and hope.” Amen.