Luke, who wrote this Christmas narrative we hear every year, mentions twice that this baby was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manager – and that this was a sign. And it is this sign that gives us a powerful message this night – a sign that breaks open the meaning of Christmas! What is this sign? And what is Christmas really all about? Check it out….

1. 1 | P a g e Deacon Jim Knipper
25 December 2020 Christmas Princeton, NJ
Good afternoon/morning and welcome to all those who are physically here with us as well as those who
are joining us on line – Merry Christmas!!
When I was very young, each year my parents would throw a trim-the-tree party for friends and
neighbors. A dozen or so people would gather at our home – all decked out in their finest Christmas
wear. Soon the eggnog and food were served followed by the lights and ornaments being placed on the
freshly cut tree…and then the music would begin. With my Dad playing the organ and friends playing
cello and trumpet everyone would sing Christmas Carols. By that time of the evening, I was curled up in
my bed and just listening to the songs…and inevitably towards the end of the evening, as my eyes grew
tired, my Dad would play his favorite song – O Holy Night. And it is the words of that song that come to
my mind this (afternoon/morning):
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till he appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices…
The weary soul rejoices…and indeed, after this past year I would guess that there are many of us here
tonight with weary souls and weary bodies. Weary of the pandemic, weary of the divisive political
fodder, weary of personal illnesses and losses, weary of our journeys, weary of our brokenness and
weary of worrying.
In some respects, perhaps we hold similar types of weariness that Mary and Joseph had this night
2,000 years ago as they sought a place for the birth of our Savior…Weary of their journey and certainly
worried over the pending birth as they arrived in Bethlehem with no place to stay. Turned away by the
innkeeper, they found refuge in a stable where Mary bore a son, wrapped him in swaddling clothes and
laid him in a manger. Luke, who wrote this narrative nearly 100 years after Christ was born, mentions
twice that this baby was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manager – and that this was a sign.
And it is this sign that gives us a powerful message this night – a sign that breaks open the meaning of
Christmas!
For unlike the nativity story found in Matthew where Jesus is born a king, under a guiding star for the
magi who brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh…tonight Luke does not give us a star, nor the
homage, nor the offerings – rather he gives us a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
God sent his Son to us…fully human and coming to us at what Jesus will later call in his ministry – as
the least of my brothers. He sent his Son to us as a baby, fully vulnerable and fully dependent on his
parents for nurturing, warmth and love.
After his birth - he was laid in a manger; a trough usually made of roughly hewn wood and used to feed
the stable flock because his parents were turned away at the inn. Later in his Gospel, Luke introduces
us to many figures similar to the innkeeper – such as the rich young man who approaches Jesus, proud
that he has kept all of the commandments, to which Jesus says to him – “in order to inherit eternal life
you must sell all of your belongings and give them to the poor and to follow me”. And the rich man
walked away unable to shed his personal kingdom and to fully empty himself in order to make room for
Jesus.
Likewise, we have the innkeeper who had no room in his world for God. There was no room inside this
cold night, no room next to the well-to-do of Bethlehem who had their warm lodging, no room that night
to let go of what was comfortable in order to open the door and one’s arms to Jesus. Rather God
provided the stable and the manger for his Son which was outside the inn, outside the comforts, outside
the popular culture. Certainly, a sign that this Jesus, in his ministry, will teach a new and radical way to
enter the Kingdom of God that is outside popular and conventional wisdom.

2. 2 | P a g e Deacon Jim Knipper
Thus, unlike the innkeeper who shut God out of his inn – we are called to empty ourselves and make
room for the Divine in our personal, overstuffed “inn.” For spirituality is not about getting, or performing,
or succeeding – but it is all about letting go of what we don’t need – and being able to discern that
through our lives. And when we do – it is then we are able to open our hearts and souls to God and to
open ourselves to others, letting go of our personal kingdoms and to be welcoming to those we meet
each day – even to the least of our brethren.
For on this “O Holy night with the stars brightly shining – this night divine,” we come here this Christmas
Eve like a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, needing to be nurtured and held in God’s unending,
unconditional love for us. We all come here dependent on each other. Just as Jesus needed
connection to his parents at birth – so too we must be connected to each other. The son of God
entered our world in simple-ness and humbleness to be one of us – to be one with us - to be one
through us so that we may be the Body of Christ for others in the world.
So, the core meaning and message of Christmas is all about God’s deepest, abiding love and desire to
always be with us and dwell within us – because the object of God’s love is union. Indeed – God
Emmanuel – God with us. For God loves us that much. God yearns for us that much. God is that
passionate about each and every one of us – without exception!! And this is why our weary soul must
rejoice – this is why we gather this afternoon/morning at Eucharist - as a community connected to each
other (physically and virtually) – to give thanks and welcome into our lives this baby wrapped in
swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. For this is the sign that Luke gave the shepherds and that he
gives to us this day – this indeed is Christmas.
My parent’s annual party would go late into the night…and I was way too young to stay awake till the
very end of Christmas celebration, so all I could do is drift off to sleep to the final strains of O Holy
Night…
Truly he taught us to love one another
His law is love and his gospel is peace
Chains shall he break for the slave is our brother
And in his name all oppression shall cease
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we
Let all within us praise his holy name
Christ is the Lord – O praise His name forever.
May you and your families be blessed this Christmas and that the coming year be filled with the
hope...the love and the peace of the sign that was given to us – the infant Christ who was found
wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in the manger.
Merry Christmas!