IMMANUEL? Yes... IMMANUELS? NO...

Often we celebrate Christmas, overlooking the very essence of Christmas. For most of us, Christmas is merely a time of shopping, caroling, feasting, partying, greeting, decorating and presenting gifts. To realize the true magnitude of Christmas, I assume, we need to understand Jesus Christ, the Messiah, through the eyes of ‘Immanuel’. As we all know, Immanuel means ‘God be with us’. But, we need to be aware of the fact that this ‘Immanuel’ is not just one of the names of Jesus, but His own very nature of being with us. Therefore, I do believe that, it is integral to the celebration of Christmas to have a full and perfect understanding of Jesus as Immanuel, residing with us.

For certain, as the Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, He is with us world without end, in our pains and pleasures, sorrows and joys, tears and smiles, and despairs and hopes. He can take us through the thick and thin and hold us in our ups and downs, lead us through the rifts and ridges. His love never ends, mercy never dries and care never fails. The manger in which He was born, the cross on which He was nailed, the grave in which He was buried (and of course from which He resurrected) prove how faithful and indisputable is His ‘Immanuel-ness.’ And, therefore we ought to celebrate His Advent, not just as a season but as the very reason for this season.

However, the fact that He is Immanuel, meaning ‘God be with us,’ is not just a matter of celebration but also a matter of contrition. He was born as the most vulnerable stranger in a manger, born to an unmarried couple, through a virgin, cradled in a stable and saddled on a donkey. He was born as the Immanuel in and through these conditions. AND HE CONTINUES TO BE BORN TODAY as ‘Immanuels’ outside the fringes of the society, as strangers, born to many unwedded mothers having no diapers, cradles, feeding bottles, baby-sitters, and toys. The tears of their mothers drench their face, the weeping of their fathers becomes their lullaby, rubbish for many becomes food for them, and junk for many becomes precious gift for them.

Yes…HE IS WITH US ALWAYS…as the IMMANUEL …VULNERABLE. Do we see Him? Do we know Him? Do we love Him?

Our lives are so packed this season, aren't they? There really isn't any room for anything other than shopping, preparing, decorating, partying and caroling. Our lives are so busy and so scheduled. We pay little attention not only to the voice Immanuel from heaven, as God in Christ is still trying to find a way to get in to our lives but also to the cries of many Immanuels born outside the margins of our society craving for love and acceptance. Just as Christ had come into this world, in the grubby reality of a manger in Bethlehem, so are they born as strangers; they too are Immanuels who long to find rooms somewhere among our schedules and our busyness this season. As we pack our days and spend our money and busy ourselves with so much, will we make room for ‘Immanuel’ as well as ‘Immanuels’ this season?

IMMANUEL - God With Us, Us with God, and Us with Us

Christmas - though is supposed to be a season of joy and peace, this year, unfortunately, we are going to celebrate Christmas in a context of pain, fear and distress. Therefore, I feel, it is the need of our times to re-define Christmas and examine how relevant is the message of Christmas in today’s context of terror attacks and violence spreading all over the world. So, my effort, this morning is to look at Christmas from the eyes of the victims of recent terror attacks in Mumbai and violence that happened in Orissa.

Well, one of the names given to Jesus is IMMANUEL which means GOD WITH US. Often this is understood from the perspective of our ‘rights’ as children of God. Infact, this is my first point which I want to emphasis this morning. The moment we hear ‘IMMANUEL as God with us’ we think about a God who is with us in our troubles and crisis. Definitely this is true. Truly this thought of IMMANUEL - ‘God with us’ appears to be very much relevant in the context of recent terror attacks in Bangalore, Ahammedabad, Delhi and latest in Mumbai and in the context of Orissa violence. It reaffirms that our God is not far away from the sighs and grieves of the bereaved family of Hemant Karkare and his fellow men and women who sacrificed their lives for our nation, not far away from the scores of people who lost their lives, who are amputated, whose dreams are shattered both in Mumbai and Orissa. The bomb blasts in Mumbai coupled with riots and bloodshed in Orissa have left deep scars in our hearts, for sure. But, it really comforts us to realize that God is with the wounded and the tortured.

But, I want to affirm another aspect of saying IMMANUEL - God with us. This is my second point. The thought of IMMANUEL: ‘God with us’ is not only to be understood from the perspective of our ‘rights’ as the children of God, but also from the perspective of our ‘responsibilities’ as His children. The real experience of ‘God with us’ implies a two way relationship where God lives with us and where God wants us to live with Him. Two opposite entities cannot go together. If God is a God of love, and if He lives with us, the demand upon us is to live with Him as a loving community and not as a community that fosters hatred. If God is a God of justice, and if He lives with us, the demand upon us is to live with Him as a just community and not as a community that fosters injustice. If God is a God of peace, and if He lives with us, the demand upon us is to live with Him as a peaceful community and not as a community that fosters violence. Had we all realized this aspect, irrespective of our religion and culture, I am sure that Mumbai terror and Orissa violence would not have happened.

Lastly, the thought of IMMANUEL- ‘God with us’ should lead us to the whole aspect of God in all glory and splendor, the one beyond spatial and temporal limits, being incarnated as a human. This, as we all know was for our redemption. Our God is a loving God, who in order to save us, decided to incarnate to our experiences of fears and woes. This aspect of incarnation teaches us the valuable lesson that true redemption can happen only if we can incarnate into the pains of our neighbors. As we celebrate this years Christmas, let me ask you, are we ready to incarnate into the painful experiences of others. Let alone incarnating, are we at least ready to remember those denied of celebrating the joy of Christmas, those living amidst terror, fear and hopelessness?

Dr. P. C. Alexander, Former Governor of Tamil Nadu, in his message during the Madras Ecumenical Christian Fellowship Carols-2008 challenged us to restrain from celebrating a MERRY CHRISTMAS, at least for this year, in solidarity with the ones who have lost everything during the Mumbai Terror attacks. In view of the Mumbai terror attacks, President Pratibha Devisingh Patil has decided not to have traditional christmas celebrations this year at Rashtrapati Bhavan. As a mark of respect for the victims of terror attacks, the President will not hold traditional Christmas celebrations, including the singing of Christmas carol this year. Instead, she will be sending grocery items such as Rice, Sugar, Dal and Ghee to orphanages in Delhi on the occasion. This year as a Church, we too have visited a number of orphanages and asylums during this Christmas season. True! Now, it is time as families and individuals to carry on this spirit of incarnating into the pains of others and extending ourselves unto their needs. Then and only then our celebration of Christmas shall be a meaningful one….a purposeful one.

To conclude, Christmas urges us to recognize the presence of a loving God amidst our painful experiences…yes, GOD WITH US. Christmas also urges us to recognize our responsibility to live with the God of love, justice and peace as a community that fosters love, justice and peace… Yes, US WITH GOD. Further, Christmas demands us to incarnate into the pains and pathos of our neighbours as our loving God had incarnated into our experiences 2000 years ago, which we celebrate as Christmas... Yes, US WITH US. Amen.