Christmas Eve 2010

Fatima’s Story

Christmas 2010

Gary LeCroy with liberal borrowing from David Lose

Every pastor, every congregation and most parents have some story or another to tell about children in Christmas pageants. Churches, of course have Christmas pageants to educate the children, but I suspect that another motivation is to entertain the congregation. The old rule in showbiz is ”never work with children or animals.” They get all the attention.

Christmas pageants have both children and animals.

Our bible study group that has been looking at scripture surrounding the birth of Jesus has voted this one pageant story as a nice one to share…

At my former parish in Newark, some years ago, the children were very diligent in their pageant rehearsals. Fatima, a bright and beautiful child of 9 or 10 was chosen for the role of Mary. Fatima was chosen because she was a child who always wanted to be center stage. She enjoyed storytelling and she loved drama. Knowing all of this, everyone was quite surprised when Fatima showed up in a blue bathrobe, looking quite pregnant (her first ad lib of the evening). As the story unfolded and it became time for “Mary to give birth” Fatima began to scream and holler and pant rapidly as it came. All this noise gave way to her reaching under her robe and pulling out a naked baby doll, which she promptly slapped on the butt and placed in a manger. No one could accuse her of making childbirth look easy.

Fatima took the Christmas story and made it her own; she took the story from the pages, that we rehearsed and added her own dimension and understanding of it. It was and is a powerful witness of faith by a young girl. It was Fatima’s Christmas story.

Tonight you shall hear two more Christmas stories, the first we just read from the Gospel of Luke. The story that Luke tells is the most popular of the Christmas stories. It is the story of Christmas pageants, and a story that has inspired paintings and stirred the imagination. There is the manger, the shepherds the angels singing. Like Fatima, Luke shares in great detail the story of Mary’s pregnancy. It is also the story of Joseph’s doubts and of the shepherds – Shepherds being the lowest of all working class jobs. Fatima wanted everyone to experience the reality of child- birth. Luke wants you to know that Jesus first came to the often forgotten and overlooked, the very ones that many disregard with disdain and disparagement. For Luke, this story is ultimately the story that ties us to God’s love and regard for the unlikely. It sets the tone for the entire tome of Luke in which is found many stories of God choosing the unlikely to lead and the shallow and hollow of the powerful exposed.

Luke is the story of God breaking into this world in ways unimaginable and unexpected, fulfilling promises made to generations. It is the story of God’s disdain for violence, and the reign of God through the weak to show the power of God.

"In the undying spirit of a single child born over two thousand years ago, celebrating his birth calls us to a celebration of ourselves as God’s children." Kirk Byron Jones, The African American Lectionary Commentary, 2008.

Luke may be the story most often portrayed in pageants and lawn decorations but it is chiefly the story of God’s never failing commitment to God’s people.

The second story tonight is from the Gospel of John. We will read it as we begin to light our candles in the dimmed room. This Gospel speaks of Jesus as the light that is come into the world and calls us to live in the light as bold and brave people –living as disciples and messengers of hope and peace.

In the Gospel of John there is Mary, no Joseph, no baby, no manger, no shepherds, no angels singing, no magi, no gold, no frankincense, and no myrrh.

“… John's is the least colorful, least dramatic of the accounts of Christ's birth and has therefore inspired few paintings and absolutely no lawn decorations to date.” –David Lose in WorkingPreacher.com

The story we hear in John is the cosmic event of Christmas, which all history and even all time is tied to the coming of the Messiah. It is an event “larger than this world, because the Creator of this world had come to visit.” ibid

Chapter 1 verse 10-13 describes the coming of Christ in this fashion: “…But to all who received him, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.”  

Did you hear that? “…he gave power to become children of God."

The birth that John speaks of is our birth or our rebirth. Christmas for John is the gift of second and third and fourth chances and so forth given to us by God.

John bears witness to the one who comes into the world to give us power, the one who comes so that we might be children of God – “children, that is, who are more than the sum total of the past events of their lives; children who are not forever shackled to the pain and paucity of mortal life; children who cannot ultimately be dominated by the whim and will of others; children, that is, who are born of God, to be as God, in and through the Word of God, Jesus the Christ.” –David Lose

These Christmas stories, the story of a humble child born to humble means, the story of our new birth, our next chance, our new life- the story of Luke, of John, Matthew and Mark, the story of Fatima and the story of our lives.




		Fatima’s Story Christmas 2010 Gary LeCroy with liberal borrowing from David Lose Every pastor, every congregation and most parents have some story or another to tell about children in Christmas pageants. Churches, of course have Christmas pageants to educate the children, but I suspect that another motivation is to entertain the congregation. The old rule in showbiz is ”never work with children or animals.” They get all the attention. Christmas pageants have both children and animals. Our bible study group that has been looking at scripture surrounding the birth of Jesus has voted this one pageant story as a nice one to share… At my former parish in Newark, some years ago, the children were very diligent in their pageant rehearsals. Fatima, a bright and beautiful child of 9 or 10 was chosen for the role of Mary. Fatima was chosen because she was a child who always wanted to be center stage. She enjoyed storytelling and she loved drama. Knowing all of this, everyone was quite surprised when Fatima showed up in a blue bathrobe, looking quite pregnant (her first ad lib of the evening). As the story unfolded and it became time for “Mary to give birth” Fatima began to scream and holler and pant rapidly as it came. All this noise gave way to her reaching under her robe and pulling out a naked baby doll, which she promptly slapped on the butt and placed in a manger. No one could accuse her of making childbirth look easy. Fatima took the Christmas story and made it her own; she took the story from the pages, that we rehearsed and added her own dimension and understanding of it. It was and is a powerful witness of faith by a young girl. It was Fatima’s Christmas story. Tonight you shall hear two more Christmas stories, the first we just read from the Gospel of Luke. The story that Luke tells is the most popular of the Christmas stories. It is the story of Christmas pageants, and a story that has inspired paintings and stirred the imagination. There is the manger, the shepherds the angels singing. Like Fatima, Luke shares in great detail the story of Mary’s pregnancy. It is also the story of Joseph’s doubts and of the shepherds – Shepherds being the lowest of all working class jobs. Fatima wanted everyone to experience the reality of child- birth. Luke wants you to know that Jesus first came to the often forgotten and overlooked, the very ones that many disregard with disdain and disparagement. For Luke, this story is ultimately the story that ties us to God’s love and regard for the unlikely. It sets the tone for the entire tome of Luke in which is found many stories of God choosing the unlikely to lead and the shallow and hollow of the powerful exposed. Luke is the story of God breaking into this world in ways unimaginable and unexpected, fulfilling promises made to generations. It is the story of God’s disdain for violence, and the reign of God through the weak to show the power of God. "In the undying spirit of a single child born over two thousand years ago, celebrating his birth calls us to a celebration of ourselves as God’s children." Kirk Byron Jones, The African American Lectionary Commentary, 2008. Luke may be the story most often portrayed in pageants and lawn decorations but it is chiefly the story of God’s never failing commitment to God’s people. The second story tonight is from the Gospel of John. We will read it as we begin to light our candles in the dimmed room. This Gospel speaks of Jesus as the light that is come into the world and calls us to live in the light as bold and brave people –living as disciples and messengers of hope and peace. In the Gospel of John there is Mary, no Joseph, no baby, no manger, no shepherds, no angels singing, no magi, no gold, no frankincense, and no myrrh. “… John's is the least colorful, least dramatic of the accounts of Christ's birth and has therefore inspired few paintings and absolutely no lawn decorations to date.” –David Lose in WorkingPreacher.com The story we hear in John is the cosmic event of Christmas, which all history and even all time is tied to the coming of the Messiah. It is an event “larger than this world, because the Creator of this world had come to visit.” ibid Chapter 1 verse 10-13 describes the coming of Christ in this fashion: “…But to all who received him, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.”   Did you hear that? “…he gave power to become children of God." The birth that John speaks of is our birth or our rebirth. Christmas for John is the gift of second and third and fourth chances and so forth given to us by God. John bears witness to the one who comes into the world to give us power, the one who comes so that we might be children of God – “children, that is, who are more than the sum total of the past events of their lives; children who are not forever shackled to the pain and paucity of mortal life; children who cannot ultimately be dominated by the whim and will of others; children, that is, who are born of God, to be as God, in and through the Word of God, Jesus the Christ.” –David Lose These Christmas stories, the story of a humble child born to humble means, the story of our new birth, our next chance, our new life- the story of Luke, of John, Matthew and Mark, the story of Fatima and the story of our lives.