When Joseph and Mary traveled to the little town of Bethlehem they did not go as a pair. The journey from Galilee was made with family and friends. It would be too dangerous to travel when, at any given bend in the road, they might encounter bandits who preyed upon travelers. Or, even worse, one might encounter soldiers in the employ of the occupying army of Rome. It was always best to travel in groups.
During this Christmas Eve week many of us will remember the Holy Family's journey. Like them we also live in dangerous times. There are still bandits who prey upon us. To be sure there are still thugs and thieves in everyday life. But the bandits I most often think about wear nice looking suits and well manicured faces. These bandits sit in corporate suites, they hang out in insurance offices, they smile at us behind their desks in bank buildings, and quite often they pretend to actually represent us within government. These bandits deal in corruption, they are out to make a buck, they bend honesty into twisted distortions of self interest, and they continually take advantage of our trust. They make it difficult for us to remain calm and hope for better days.
There are also, then as now, the dangers of encountering the soldiers of Empire on the road we travel. Whether in TV, movies, or computer games, the spirituality of militarism is all pervasive throughout our society. The media hypes the glorification of battle, they feast on violence, they drool when blood is spilled. Holy families need to protect themselves from such bandits.
During this Christmas Eve week I want to lift up the benefit of traveling together on the spiritual roadways of life. I want to encourage you to think again about your life, your values, your goals, and your dreams. I would hope that what you desire is wrapped in the clothes of peace, reconciliation, justice, compassion, and a willingness to mix and match outfits with others. I want to encourage you to use this season to dare again to enter a community of faith. Within Seattle there are many faith communities that embrace liberal family values. There are many faith communities that teach us how to spot the bandits and escape from their grasp, communities that wrap us within the folds of communal safety.
During this season which opens us to a lifestyle of wonder, generosity and gratitude, I simply want to encourage all of us to come out of our isolation and dare to believe that there are, really and truly, communities of faith still out there and who want nothing from us except friendship. With the Holy Family let us pilgrimage forth together towards a world without bandits, towards a world that can still amaze us with splendor.