I added the summary statement about each of the five women noting what their inclusion in the genealogy might mean for us, and that seemed an effective way of connecting the sermon with our current context.
I love the illustration from Miracle on South Division Street, but it also points out how hard it is to use an illustration that references a play (or book, movie, etc.) that is not commonly known. A lot of background material has to be shared to get to the point.
I make the point that the five women listed are not the well-known, but as I mentioned each of them it occurred to me that they are fairly well-known by me. I'm not sure if others in the congregation were more familiar with them as well.
I didn't pursue it, but a common denominator among the five women is also the sexual aspects of their stories: Tamar bears her father-in-law's child; Rahab is a prostitute; Ruth "lays at the feet" (Hebrew euphemism for "sleeps with") of Boaz; Bathsheba commits adultery with King David; and Mary is a virgin who gives birth to God's Son. That might be an interesting lens through which to look at these women as well.
"Bit
Players” November 30, 2014; FPC, Troy; Advent 1 2014; Matthew 1:
1-17
Introduction: Minister’s daughter, not my daughter, asks her father: “Dad, are you going to let us enjoy this Xmas or are you going to try and explain it to everybody.”
The life of the minister – trying to bring meaning to a story we all know and tell every year.
A story that in some ways needs no help – a pretty amazing story of God's love that comes to us in the Christ-child.
But in an effort to add to its meaning, we will be spending Advent reflecting on some of the less known characters, or some known by name but who play a bit part in the Christmas story.
The life of the minister – trying to bring meaning to a story we all know and tell every year.
A story that in some ways needs no help – a pretty amazing story of God's love that comes to us in the Christ-child.
But in an effort to add to its meaning, we will be spending Advent reflecting on some of the less known characters, or some known by name but who play a bit part in the Christmas story.
Move
1: Jesus'
story is full of people of whom we have never heard.
a.
genealogy.
- Free Bible study lesson: genealogy is comprised of three sections of 14.
2. the
fist section leads up to King David; the second section goes through
the Davidic reign up to the exile of the Israelites,
- third section covers the generations during exile leading up to birth of Jesus.
b.
some names we know.
1.
Some we remember hearing, but don't know much about.
- some we flat out do not ever remember having heard, unless you were here the last time I preached on the genealogy in Matthew, and you probably don't remember that sermon either.
- The genealogy list might be helpful if we were parents trying to choose a name for our child about to be born, but what good does it do us?
4.
It reminds us that people, lots of people are involved in the story
leading up to Christ's birth, and it sets the stage for the many
people who will be involved in Christ's birth and beyond.
Move
2: Lots of unexpected people play a part in Jesus' genealogy.
1. One of the interesting things in the Matthew genealogy is the inclusion of five women as the names are traced back.
2. Strange in this context since all the other names are of men.
3. Strange to include women in the patriarchal world in which the gospel of Luke was written.
4. Strange because these women have some rather unusual stories.
5. but in this unusual list of five women, we discover God's expansive inclusion that even expands to include you and me
1. the play tells the the story of the Nowak family, living in a depressed neighborhood in Buffalo, NY’s East Side.
2. the grandfather of the family had moved to Buffalo in 1942 as he escaped Poland.
3. IN Buffalo, he opened a barber shop that would become known for it statue to the Virgin Mary that stood in the shop window.
4. a very unusual statue in that it did not look like any other Virgin Mary people had ever seen.
5. But people would come by and seek the Virgin Mary's presence.
6. As the play opens, the grandmother's daughter and three grandchildren have gathered in the family kitchen for a family meeting.
7. Grandfather and grandmother have died previously, and now one of the granddaughters wants to turn the story of the unusual statue of the Virgin Mary into the a one woman play that she would write and perform. But she says, “She wants to tell the real story!” The plot thickens.
8. As she tells them the real story as told to her by her grandmother on the death bed, (Spoiler alert)it is revealed that the statue of the virgin Mary is not really of the Virgin Mary, but of the grandfather's first and true love, a Jewish woman who was not able to flee Poland with him.
9. I won't share any more details, but as I watched the story play out, I was captured by the idea that the Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus, but it was a young Polish, Jewish woman in 1942, who saved her daughter, and then years later her act would help the Nowak family find redemption through what she had done.
10. The Virgin Mary was not around in 1942 or the 1990s in Detroit, but another woman stepped forward. ( http://www.tomdudzick.com/miracle_on_south_division_street_103958.htm)
2. Strange in this context since all the other names are of men.
3. Strange to include women in the patriarchal world in which the gospel of Luke was written.
4. Strange because these women have some rather unusual stories.
5. but in this unusual list of five women, we discover God's expansive inclusion that even expands to include you and me
b.
Let's look for a moment at the five women and what their inclusion
in the genealogy of Jesus tells us. (Here
is the summary of the women as provided by Rev. Nanette Sawyer on her
blog "Question the Text,"
http://www.questionthetext.org/2013/12/15/when-is-righteousness-scandalous/,
plus my own working knowledge of the five women)
- Tamar, whose husband died, was denied the protection of levirate marriage, and so tricked her father-in-law into giving her children, one of whom was Perez, an ancestor of King David.
To
include Tamar means that people who have been left outside the power
and who might be desperate enough to use trickery are invited to be
part of Christ's story.
- Rahab, a prostitute; you may remember that she saved the spies from Israel when she hid them from the Canaanites and helped them escape in the night. For her saving the spies, the Israelites spared her family. Rahab was the the mother of Boaz, an ancestor of King David.
To
include Rahab suggests that even people with a shady history, but are
willing to risk themselves are invited to be part of Jesus' history
- The third women is Ruth, who followed her mother -in-law back to Israel after the death of her husband. She was the Moabite outsider to the Israelite tradition who married Boaz and became the mother of Obed, an ancestor of King David.
To
include Ruth means that outsiders are welcome.
- Bathsheba who committed adultery on her husband Uriah with King David and eventually married King David became the mother of King Solomon, the next king in David’s lineage.
Bathsheba's
presence means that even those who have a history that is less than
glowing can be part of Christ’s story.
- And that brings us to Mary, pregnant when she shouldn’t be, appearing to be un-righteous by conventional standards, and yet she is doing the right thing.
The
inclusion of Mary makes room in Christ's story for the young and
fearful, who are still willing to serve God.
6.
These women's presence in the genealogy opens the door for each of us
to see ourselves in Christ's story.
Move
3: Where do you see yourself in the ongoing story of Christmas?
a. As some of you know, my father was a drama professor, which meant he directed a lot of plays, and it also meant that I had the opportunity to be in lots of plays.
One of his rules was that he would not cast his children, not even me, in any lead role, unless no one else auditioned for the part. He told us it was not a question of talent, but he didn't want to appear to show favoritism toward his kids. Unless, of course, it was a role that he figured no one else wanted to do – think about that sheep role I mentioned last week when I crawled all over the stage baaing.
When I was in sixth grade, my father directed the musical “Carousel” for the annual Denton County Musical Association. I didn't even audition for the show because I was already in the show that was being produced at the local community theater. The show I was in ended the week-end leading into the week when “Carousel” would open on Thursday night.
Apparently, they were running short of kids in the chorus for “Carousel” because that Sunday, the first day without I didn't have a rehearsal or a show for the past six weeks, my father asked me, “Do you want to be in Carousel.”
“But it opens this week”
“We can work around that.”
“But I haven't been to any of the rehearsals.”
“We still have three rehearsals this week.”
'I don't think I could learn any lines” or any of the music.”
“Don't worry. You don't have any lines.”
“I won't know what to do on stage during the scenes.”
“I'll assign you to a woman in the chorus who will be your mother. Just go wherever she goes and do whatever she does.”
“I don't know any of the music.”
One of his rules was that he would not cast his children, not even me, in any lead role, unless no one else auditioned for the part. He told us it was not a question of talent, but he didn't want to appear to show favoritism toward his kids. Unless, of course, it was a role that he figured no one else wanted to do – think about that sheep role I mentioned last week when I crawled all over the stage baaing.
When I was in sixth grade, my father directed the musical “Carousel” for the annual Denton County Musical Association. I didn't even audition for the show because I was already in the show that was being produced at the local community theater. The show I was in ended the week-end leading into the week when “Carousel” would open on Thursday night.
Apparently, they were running short of kids in the chorus for “Carousel” because that Sunday, the first day without I didn't have a rehearsal or a show for the past six weeks, my father asked me, “Do you want to be in Carousel.”
“But it opens this week”
“We can work around that.”
“But I haven't been to any of the rehearsals.”
“We still have three rehearsals this week.”
'I don't think I could learn any lines” or any of the music.”
“Don't worry. You don't have any lines.”
“I won't know what to do on stage during the scenes.”
“I'll assign you to a woman in the chorus who will be your mother. Just go wherever she goes and do whatever she does.”
“I don't know any of the music.”
'Just move your lips during the songs.”
“Doesn't seem like much of a part.”
“It takes a lot of people in the chorus to make a musical work.”
So I was in Carousel, although I never learned any lines or songs or anything about the show except there was a carousel on the set. I just followed a woman around stage and moved my lips when necessary.
It takes a lot of people in the chorus to make a show happen.
“Doesn't seem like much of a part.”
“It takes a lot of people in the chorus to make a musical work.”
So I was in Carousel, although I never learned any lines or songs or anything about the show except there was a carousel on the set. I just followed a woman around stage and moved my lips when necessary.
It takes a lot of people in the chorus to make a show happen.
b.It takes a lot of people to live out the Christmas story.
1. those who set the stage for Christ's birth; those who continue acting out the Christmas story after Christ's death.
2. What part do you see yourself playing in Christ’s story?
3. Not sure why God has chosen to use us – seems sort of a risky venture doesn't it.
4. But God has.
5. not everyone has the lead – those parts have already been claimed by Jesus and Mary.
6. Even the disciples discover that the issue is not “who has the biggest part,” but how can we participate in Christ's story.
7. What role are you playing?
1. those who set the stage for Christ's birth; those who continue acting out the Christmas story after Christ's death.
2. What part do you see yourself playing in Christ’s story?
3. Not sure why God has chosen to use us – seems sort of a risky venture doesn't it.
4. But God has.
5. not everyone has the lead – those parts have already been claimed by Jesus and Mary.
6. Even the disciples discover that the issue is not “who has the biggest part,” but how can we participate in Christ's story.
7. What role are you playing?
c.
Miracle
on South Division Street, by
Tom Dudzick.
1. the play tells the the story of the Nowak family, living in a depressed neighborhood in Buffalo, NY’s East Side.
2. the grandfather of the family had moved to Buffalo in 1942 as he escaped Poland.
3. IN Buffalo, he opened a barber shop that would become known for it statue to the Virgin Mary that stood in the shop window.
4. a very unusual statue in that it did not look like any other Virgin Mary people had ever seen.
5. But people would come by and seek the Virgin Mary's presence.
6. As the play opens, the grandmother's daughter and three grandchildren have gathered in the family kitchen for a family meeting.
7. Grandfather and grandmother have died previously, and now one of the granddaughters wants to turn the story of the unusual statue of the Virgin Mary into the a one woman play that she would write and perform. But she says, “She wants to tell the real story!” The plot thickens.
8. As she tells them the real story as told to her by her grandmother on the death bed, (Spoiler alert)it is revealed that the statue of the virgin Mary is not really of the Virgin Mary, but of the grandfather's first and true love, a Jewish woman who was not able to flee Poland with him.
9. I won't share any more details, but as I watched the story play out, I was captured by the idea that the Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus, but it was a young Polish, Jewish woman in 1942, who saved her daughter, and then years later her act would help the Nowak family find redemption through what she had done.
10. The Virgin Mary was not around in 1942 or the 1990s in Detroit, but another woman stepped forward. ( http://www.tomdudzick.com/miracle_on_south_division_street_103958.htm)
Conclusion:
Jesus arrives to save the
world. He invites us to play our part in his story.
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