{"id":243,"date":"2020-01-09T09:05:09","date_gmt":"2020-01-09T17:05:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/?p=243"},"modified":"2020-01-09T09:05:10","modified_gmt":"2020-01-09T17:05:10","slug":"postscript-for-christmastide-the-flight-of-the-holy-family-into-egypt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/2020\/01\/09\/postscript-for-christmastide-the-flight-of-the-holy-family-into-egypt\/","title":{"rendered":"Postscript for Christmastide: \u201cThe Flight of the Holy Family into Egypt\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

[Read Matthew 1:18\u20142:23]<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This\npost reflects Dr. Mobley\u2019s personal interest in the dramatic nature of the\nGospels (with a love for mystery!) and a persistent emphasis on seeing vital\nconnections between the biblical story and contemporary life, an interplay that\nDr.  Mobley strives to help his students see\nwhen they are in his classes<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christmas\ncan be crowded.  Perhaps rightly so, if appropriately\ncentered, for there is<\/em><\/strong> much to celebrate\u2014the Advent of a Saviour, Lamb of God,\nPrince of Peace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But frequently\noverlooked in the busyness of the \u201choliday season\u201d are the traditional \u2018Twelve\nDays of Christmas\u2019\u2014an \u201cinter-land\u201d of time suspended between two mysteries: the\nmystery of Christ\u2019s Incarnation and the mystery of a yet untraveled New\nYear.  Reflecting on the first of those\nmysteries can help prepare the way into the latter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More particularly, those\n\u2018Twelve Days\u2019\u2014from Dec. 26th<\/sup> to Jan. 6th<\/sup>\u2014culminate in the\nvisit of the magi<\/em>, commemorated in\nthe church calendar as the Feast of Epiphany (which means appearing;\nmanifestation).  It is reasonable to\ninfer that the \u201cwise men\u201d were late-comers to the occurrence of Jesus\u2019\nbirth.  Consider the text: 1) the magi <\/em>enter \u201cthe house\u201d\u2014better\naccommodations than an animal stable; 2) Jesus is referred to as \u201cthe child\u201d (paidion<\/em>) rather than \u201cthe infant\u201d (brephos<\/em>, as in Luke\u2019s account); and 3)\nthe murderous two-year calculation of King Herod, derived from information\nabout the sighting of the star, provided by the magi<\/em> who serve as unwitting accomplices to Herod\u2019s treacherous\nscheming.      <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each of the Gospels presents high drama, and\nuniquely in Matthew\u2019s Infancy Narrative there is intense suspense.1<\/sup>\nIf presented theatrically:  Act I\u2014the\ndream-warning to Joseph; Act II\u2014the worshipful visit of the magi<\/em>; Act III: downstage\u2014the escape into\nEgypt, while upstage\u2014the tragic Massacre of the Innocents; then an Epilogue\u2014the\nreturn to Nazareth.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the storyline of \u2018The\nFlight into Egypt\u2019 what lessons\u2014\u201ctake-aways\u201d as we commonly call them\u2014might be drawn\nfrom this intriguing gospel story? We will examine five aspects of their\njourney, and consider how they apply to our own lives today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. A pervasive atmosphere of threat <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

There is ample reason\nfor the Christmas angels\u2019 inevitable opener: \n\u201cFear not<\/em>!\u201d  The Infancy Narrative, whether as given by Luke\nor supplemented by Matthew, is threaded with sufficient cause for anxiety: an\nunwed young maid facing disgrace, her perplexed fianc\u00e9e seeking to deal with\nshame in an honorable manner, and the obligation of a strenuous journey which\ncomplicates an already precarious personal crisis.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

  • Let us consider, do we begin 2020 with any less apprehension, whether on a personal scale (job insecurity, diagnosis of a terminal illness, fractured relationships) or in a wider margin (global terrorism, incessant random incidents of violence).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    2. Political hostility<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    Jesus\u2019 earthly life was\nbracketed by the maneuvering of two power-players\u2014Herod, the paranoid king, and\nPontius Pilate, the vacillating governor\u2014both fearful of losing their grip on\nprivileged positions of authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cWhy do the nations rage \u2026 and the rulers conspire against the Lord and\nhis Anointed One?\u201d<\/em> asks the Psalmist (2:1-2).  Well, they always have and always will.  It is their modus operandi<\/em> \u2026 that is, until the return of the Lamb of God\/Lion\nof Judah and his establishment of God\u2019s justice and eternal reign of peace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    • Harsh political realities still stalk the face of the earth, opposed\u2014often violently\u2014to the followers of the Christ-child.\u00a0 May we be diligent in sustaining prayer for the persecuted church worldwide.\u00a0 Perhaps we might also mourn the counterparts of the slaughtered Bethlehem infants, in the death of innocent babies in our own country.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      3. Trusting obedience<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

      The primary mark of character shared by Joseph, Mary, and the magi<\/em> is their response of faithful obedience to God\u2019s revealed direction for their lives, no matter what the cost and in spite of yet unanswered questions.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      • In the New Year just entered, may we let the figures of faith in Matthew\u2019s Infancy Narrative serve as our mentors, to meet the daily challenges and emergent crises of life with an implicit trust in God\u2019s guidance and purpose.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        4. An Immigrant Immanuel<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

        There is plenty of\ntraveling going on in the Infancy Narratives: the mandated trip from Nazareth to\nBethlehem (4 to 7 days); the journey of the magi<\/em>\nto Jerusalem (600-700 miles depending on point of departure); and the flight to\nEgypt (500-600 miles depending on point of destination).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Jesus entered his\nearthly life as the immigrant par\nexcellence<\/em>, in a family of refugees seeking asylum.  Matthew notes this, in his typical spotting\nof fulfilment-texts: \u201cOut of Egypt I\ncalled my son<\/em>.\u201d (Hosea 11.1)  And the\nadult Jesus said, \u201cthe Son of Man has\nnowhere to lay his head<\/em>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        • Here is the gospel paradox: divine vulnerability, the Son of God descending from heaven\u2019s majesty to be humbly clothed in fragile human existence, fully identifying with those he came to deliver. May we also be filled with humble compassion towards all those who are image-bearers of God.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          5. Divine provision<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

          Strange and seemingly inappropriate\nwere those presents that the magi <\/em>offered.  (If Jesus actually was born in\nDecember, a Hanukkah toy might have been more welcome for a young Jewish child!)  Yes, those extravagant gifts have often been\nseen as symbolic of the various facets of Jesus\u2019 person and mission (King,\nPriest, Prophet).  But God who is lavish\nin his giving is also mindful of the practicalities of life.  How was this immigrant family going to\nsurvive, until Joseph found carpentry openings in the job market?  Would he be able to link up with Jews of the\nDiaspora, perhaps in Alexandria?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

          • \u00a0May we be open to the surprising ways that God will provide for our needs in 2020.\u00a0 As Jesus reminded us:\u00a0 \u201cYour Father knows what you need even before you ask him<\/em>.\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
            \n\n\n\n

            The story of the\n\u2018Flight to Egypt\u2019 is an interplay of divine revelation of purpose, and human\ntrust in God\u2019s faithfulness to provide. \nThe characters in each of the \u201cacts\u201d in this gospel drama intertwine\nwith one another, as they each respond in individual ways to the God of Israel,\nthe Lord of history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Drama, paradox,\nmystery, divine providence and exemplars of trusting obedience \u2026 they are all\nthere in Matthew\u2019s account of the \u201cFlight into Egypt\u201d.  Before the \u201cBethlehem starlight\u201d recedes too\nfar from us and becomes dimmed by the \u201ctyranny of the urgent,\u201d may we allow enough\nsacred space to reflect upon and rejoice in the coming of the One who is, in\ndeepest truth, Immanuel, \u201cGod with\nus!\u201d  This is the Word of the Lord \u2026 thanks be to God!   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

            The Impressionist depiction by Tanner, featured at the beginning of this post, evokes an air of suspense surrounding the arrival of the Holy Family in Egypt.\u00a0 See a discussion of the life and work of Henry Ossawa Tannner (an African-American artist of the early twentieth century) in: Podles, Mary Elizabeth.\u00a0 \u201cThe Flight into Egypt.\u201d\u00a0 Touchstone: a Journal of Mere Christianity\u00a0 (November\/December 2019): 54-55. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            As we reflect on the Christmas season just past, Dr. Mobley identifies five aspects of Jesus, Joseph and Mary’s flight to Egypt that impact our lives today. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":244,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":246,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243\/revisions\/246"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.calbaptist.edu\/scm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}