Flight into Egypt

An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him."  So, Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod.

How tragic it must be to flee your homeland because somebody wants to kill you.  This is an experience far too familiar for many people throughout the world.  There are refugees from several countries today who have been in exile for many years and are still waiting for a time when they can go home.  In 2013, there were 16.7 million refugees around the world, including 5 million Palestinian refugees.  According to the UN Refugee Agency, the leading countries of origin for refugees in 2013 were: Afghanistan: 2.56 million, Syria: 2.47 million, Somalia:1.12 million.  The story of Mary and Joseph and their baby Jesus fleeing to Egypt should be one we know well; one that should help us to understand the plight of refugees.

The story takes on renewed meaning as more and more people are being forced to flee from their homes into foreign lands to escape political and religious persecution.  These refugees often face perilous journeys, stowing away in the holds of cargo ships, crowding onto rafts to cross shark-infested waters or walking through hostile terrain, as they move toward possible freedom and safety.

There is a wonderful painting by the 17^th century German artist, Adam Elsheimer, titled, "Flight into Egypt."  A description that accompanies this painting says: 

"This small painting is undoubtedly the most beautiful example of the night scenes that brought Elsheimer so much fame.  Four sources of light illuminate the greenish-blue landscape with its starry sky: the full moon on the right above the trees around a lake, its reflection in the water, the campfire of the cowherds on the left, from which a column of sparks rises into the darkness of the tree tops, and finally the torch in the hand of Joseph, who is leading the donkey with Mary and the child.  Each of these sources of light models the objects in the immediate surroundings only fragmentarily, so that illuminated areas are directly juxtaposed with unlit areas. Our gaze is drawn across expanses of impenetrable darkness, settling upon islands of fine draughtsmanship, and following the vaulted silhouettes of the tree tops."

"Here, night is portrayed as a miracle that can help the holy family on their flight to Egypt. Elsheimer has succeeded in evoking a sense of danger and comfort at the same time entirely by means of the atmospheric values of his use of light and to place the emphasis entirely on the subject of landscape. This picture represents something entirely new in the field of religious imagery, with landscape opening up possibilities of exploring new narrative contents."

For me, this painting with its mixture of darkness and the illumining light of the starry sky and the fire, brings together the risks of leaving home to go to a strange land and the promise of hope for the future.  The gospel tells us that Joseph was warned about Herod's plot, so in the middle of the night, he took Mary and Jesus and went in the darkness of night to Egypt, where he knew they would be safe. They remained in Egypt until they got word that Herod had died. Then the angel of God again appeared to Joseph and told him it was safe to take his family back to the district of Galilee and the town of Nazareth.

This text of the "Flight into Egypt" comes to us at a time when, for many people, Christmas is now past, and the after-Christmas sales have begun in earnest.  Unwanted or ill-fitting gifts are being returned or exchanged, the trees and other trimmings have lost their luster, and general clean-up has begun. 

However, we know that Christmas is not past.  The gift of God's presence among us, Emmanuel, "God with us," continues.  Epiphany, the season that marks the visit of the wise men from the East, begins this Tuesday.  The Gospel proclamation will continue to ring out clearly and faithfully.  Christians everywhere will continue to celebrate the Incarnation, the birth of God in our midst, even when the attention of many people has turned elsewhere.

Both Christmas and the season of Epiphany remind us that, through the birth of Jesus, God is in relationship with us.  No matter how dark the night or how bright the day, God is the one who is faithful and always present even when we feel God's absence.  As someone said, "If we feel God is distant from us, if we feel somehow God is absent from our lives, guess who moved?"  God does not leave us, but we can and often leave God!  Just look at our culture and how quickly we move from one holiday to the next.  Or look at the lives of those around us, the refugees and prisoners, the sick and hungry, and ask what ever happened to God's reign of peace and justice.  Have we not just been celebrating the birth of the Prince of Peace?

The reality of the world's frequent failure either to praise God for restoring human dignity in Jesus Christ, or to respect the dignity of every human being, is a major concern.  Whether we work to contribute to the shelter, feeding and clothing of the homeless or to advocate for humane care and repatriation of refugees, our vocation and ministry is a direct response to Jesus and our relationship with God.

In this Christmas season we join in the blessing we heard from the Epistle to the Ephesians:  "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love.… I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ…may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation… so that with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe."

May God continue to bless us, and keep us ever faithful, loving, and striving for peace and justice.  Amen.