The Rev. John Thomas, General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ (UCC), was here on the campus of Eden Theological Seminary last month as part of a gathering of seminarians in the Midwest. This was a great opportunity for us to interact with our president and other national UCC leaders. What struck me about John Thomas was the amount of time he spoke about justice issues, theological issues, and community building vs. the amount of time he worried about budgets and strategic planning, for example. We know those later items are a critical part of ministry. But John Thomas seems to have struck the right balance in his leadership. At least that was my impression after hearing him speak.
This month he has an excellent essay in The United Church News that deserves special attention during this Advent season.
The birth narratives of Matthew and Luke are captivating. They have inspired artists, musicians and storytellers for generations, and we continue to be drawn to the familiar scenes that speak of God's vulnerable incarnation in the infant Jesus. The temptation, of course, is to make Jesus a captive of the manger, to bolt him there. Therefore, it is good that Advent precedes Christmas, that the time to prepare for the one "born of the Virgin Mary" also is a time to be reminded that "he will come again to judge the living and the dead." As Halford Luccock of Yale Divinity School wrote years ago, the point of the story is that "the baby grew up."It is easy to see why we'd be happy to keep Jesus bolted to the manger. Who wants a judge meddling in the greed that denies children health care, or a decent home or a safe school? Who wants a judge challenging our easy resort to violence as the only way to global security? Who wants a judge asking us awkward questions about why we treat the creation as little more than a convenience store filled with raw materials to satisfy our endless desire? Who wants a judge holding up a mirror to the deceits and betrayals of our personal lives? Better to keep Jesus bolted in the manger.
