Fourth Sunday of Advent - we now live in an empire of violent greed that practices fearful predation against every child and every vulnerable person

God of light and love and generosity, we are drawn to your light;  yet we love the darkness.  Give us freedom to redecide.  In his name.  Amen 

Psalm 24

Genesis 3:8-15

Revelation 12:1-10

John 3:16-21

The reading from Revelation narrates the great drama of Christmas and the life of Jesus in highly imaginative language.   At the outset there is a woman who is about to give birth.  This vulnerable woman brings forth a male child.

The drama is escalated when opposition to the male child is reported. We know that Jesus encountered determined opposition at every turn.  King Herod, in his fearfulness, tried to kill him.  The religious leadership (Pharisees and scribes) early on conspired against him.  In this text the opposition is said to be cosmic:  the "great dragon,"  "that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan"; rich imagery is utilized to characterize the violent opposition of the empire of Rome i its defense of the kingdom of Caesar.  But the male child is kept safe.  The child is "taken to God''; the angels join the unequal cosmic struggle to protect the vulnerable child who embodies "the salvation and the power and the kingdom of God."

The enemy of the gospel is not named explicitly, but in context it is the empire of Rome.  Let us imagine that we now live in an empire of violent greed that practices fearful predation against every child and every vulnerable person.  That empire takes the form of an unjust political economy backed by a scarcely restrained military.  In the face of it comes this vulnerable child who performs mercy and compassion and justice.  We are left to find our location in the midst of the drama that is quite local and at the same time of cosmic scale.  It is the mystery of faith that this child is well protected beyond all the ostility that can be mounted to defeat him.

Walter Brueggemann:  Gift and task

Walter Brueggemann's book Gift and Task, was written for the liturgical year that started in Advent 2017.  Christmas came on Monday that year so there were no readings for the weekdays after the Fourth Sunday of Advent.   I'll try to fill in the two days left but I'm no Breuggemann.