Luke 1:57-66 &
John 1:1-15
Texts as formative space
Rev. Dr. Sunni E. Mathew
Yesterday (December 1), the
twenty-five day lent started. The Gospel
portion for yesterday was John 1:1-15.
Next Sunday is set apart to meditate on the birth of John the Baptist,
his circumcision, and naming. Gospel
portion for this day is Luke 1: 57-66.
Through history, Church, the
faith community used these texts as constructs of transformative space. The meditation therefore attempts to make a
historical reading of these texts as constructs of transformative space for
generations.
1.
Context of the selection of these
texts. (Ecclesiological rationale in constructing transformative space)
These texts are used to read
and meditate in the context of the feast of nativity. According to the practice of the Church,
festivals related to the Lord are celebrated after preparing the individuals
and the community through the observation of lent. Therefore, ecclesiologically celebration is
the fulfilment of the lent. Lent
culminates in celebration. The church is
consciously prepared to celebrate the festival and the Church celebrates only after
thorough preparation. Why is this
thorough preparation a must? Because
otherwise celebrations may go to unwanted directions. That is why, lent concentrates much on
reading and meditation of the scriptural texts, repentance and reconciliation,
commitment and submission to the will of God, disciplining of the self (both
body and mind) through ordering of food habits and desires. In other words, it is a preparation of both
body and mind of the faithful to celebrate the festival of nativity
(Christmas). Because, if we have to
understand God who emptied Himself and became small, it is necessary for us to
voluntarily empty ourselves and become small.
This voluntary emptying process is also necessary to understand the
worth, experience, and pain of those who are small to whom God has
identified. Church has set apart these
texts as a meditative and pedagogic tool to prepare the faith community to
experience, understand in depth and respond creatively to the Christ
event. Hence, the whole exercise of this
thorough preparation becomes a liberative process. It is not only instrumental in liberating the
least ones, but also liberating the self.
Because of this liberative dimension, lent becomes a theological exercise. Accordingly, lent is not just a ritual or a
tradition, but a theological learning process that involves a becoming
process. Therefore, lent and these texts
as meditative and theological tool create a transforming environment, a
formative space.
2.
Placing of these texts within the frame of the salvation discourse. (Theological-pedagogic rationale that moulds
transformative space)
Both these texts serve as
introduction to the narration of Christ event.
Gospel as the narration of the Christ event is the sharing of the
salvific act of the God through Christ. It
is the discourse of the community.
Hence, it is a theological pedagogic tool and meditative methodological
tool. Narrative purpose of the Gospels is
to explain the involvement of the Trinity in this world through the Son. Therefore, apart from the meditative element,
there is the definite play of theological motive. It is the expression of the earnest desire of
the community to impart its soteriological understanding through
generations. Through the blending of
meditative and theological motives, develops experiential knowledge and
propositional knowledge. Consequently, an
experience happened in the past is re-lived and re-experienced through these
generations in a meaningful manner. Further,
the understanding of this divine experience is continuously widened. In other words, Christ event, the
discourse of the salvific act makes God experiential to the present and
transforms the present to make the future in conformity with God’s will and
purpose. Each incident associated with that historic and historical
divine intervention is transformed into challenging experiences that parallels
our daily actions, prompting us to make serious critical self-assessments, and
make adequate enhancements or corrections.
3.
Placing of John the Baptist’s participatory role as preparation for God’s
act in this world. (Missiological impetus
that creates transformative space)
Interestingly, this
introduction reveals the importance of human participation in the divine
process. John 1:6-8 and Luke 1:13-17
present John the Baptist as the forerunner of Jesus, as the one who prepares
the generation for the Christ event.
Luke had provided much attention on John. He tells about the widespread popularity of
John. When John says that people
confused John the Baptist with the Messiah, it also underscores John’s
popularity and involvement in the salvific act of God. In this participatory role, John is not
alone. People like Zachariah, Elizabeth,
Mary and Joseph are taking their responsible roles. It means that the participatory role is not
restricted to men alone or to women alone.
Why this? God acts in history not
standing alone but with the participation of human beings. This is the platform for Mission possibility
and mission mandate. John the Baptist is
a model for this participatory call and setting apart. Here setting apart is not setting away from
the community but to set the community in manner to materialize incarnation,
i.e. to make God’s will a reality, experiential and central to life. Setting apart is the initiation into the
continuum of participatory role in the mission of God.
4.
Purpose of placing the text in connection with incarnation. (Soteriological foundation in fashioning
transformative space)
It is a call to participate in
the becoming process of God and make incarnation experiential for the whole
creation. John 1:14 expresses the
becoming process in Christ. Logos, the
eternal Son became human. The eternal
becomes the historical (temporal). God
thought to be outside the realm of history became experiential and a concrete
reality at the centre of history. This
becoming act breeds historical consciousness, a consciousness that transformed
the thoughts, words and actions of humanity.
Purpose of this becoming process is acknowledged as to make humanity to
become divine. Early fathers, especially
Athanasius, God became human so that we become divine. Humanity grow in the divine quality of
becoming small. Therefore the placing of
the text here, suggests that, incarnation has a formative dimension; shaping
the human in accordance with the divine will and purpose. You have to realize that you are called to
participate in this becoming process. Where
does this becoming process materialize and people like John the Baptist become
a reality? It is in the context of
certain realizations that our participatory becoming gets shaped.
5.
Realizations that shapes our participatory becoming (Evaluative motivations
that shapes transformative space)
Even when the transformative spaces are the constructs of the faith
community, they in turn transforms the community continuously and through
generations. It is in this process,
realizations emerge and shapes the becoming process a reality. Luke 1:57-66 provides three vital
realizations that helps the becoming process; the process of preparing for and
continuing of incarnational experiences.
1. Where Birth is realized as God’s mercy. Birth is not just a biological
process. It is a blessing of God in the
context of a covenant with God (Luke 1: 5-25).
There is strong internal connection between 5-25 and 57-66. One could not exist without the presence of
the other. 57-66 is the natural continuity
of 5-25. Fulfilment of Gabriel’s
announcement now reaches its climax in the birth, and naming of the child. 5-25 deduces the covenant of the parents for
total submission to the will of God.
Zachariah submit himself to God’s will and purpose. Elizabeth joins him in that covenant. It is here John becomes a reality. Yěhôhānān means “Yahweh has shown
favour.” John as God’s mercy and for the
purpose of God is shaped within this covenantal understanding. Here the grace of God is Elizabeth, Zachariah
or John alone, but to the people as a whole.
There is a divine intervention in the birth of John. Every child birth encounters this divine
intervention. However, it is only the genuine
covenantal community that realize this element. Therefore, a genuine covenantal community
that realizes and acknowledges every birth as a gift and mercy of God becomes a
transformative space where Johns are born, valued and nurtured.
2. Where Continuity nature of this covenant is realized. Circumcision and baptism are symbols of this covenant. Circumcision in the Old Testament generation
is the expression of the covenant with God.
According to Genesis 17:11, circumcision marks a person with the sign of
the covenant. So is Christian
baptism. When John is brought for
circumcision this covenantal relationship is transferred from his parent’s
generation to John’s generation. When a
child is brought for baptism, the covenantal relation of the parents becomes
the formative criteria for the child. These
symbols are not just rituals, but are dynamic affirmations of the faith in God,
continuation of the commitment to divine will, and the responsible reception of
the divine commission with faithfulness unto death. To generations that realize this continuity,
Johns are set apart and commissioned.
3. Where Name is realized as an ongoing reminder of divine vocation. According to Luke 1:57 and 2:21, Circumcision and naming go hand in
hand. So is baptism and naming during
the post New Testament period. Name is a
reminder to be in commitment. One
derives one’s name in relation with the covenant. As the one who is offered for the fulfilment
of God’s purpose in this world.
Therefore, it is reminder of one’s identity within the heritage of
commitment to God’s will, to be the part of God’s salvific act in this
generation, to prepare the world to experience God’s salvation. Here, name is the attestation of the
expectations of God. It is also the
expression of the expectation of the generations regarding a person. Therefore, the significance of a name is not just
confined to the identity of what a person is, but it also signifies to what a
person should be. A community that
realizes this identity consciousness embedded in each Christian name creates
participators in the salvation act of God making God experiential in this generation.