This time of year is so full of rich symbolism … the decorations, the smell of greens, the candlelight, the smiles, the warmth of mulled wine, and of course, sweet embrace. All of these things enrich our lives, and yet all of them also serve as reminders of the pure sweetness of Christmastide, when we try to recapture the innocence of love and trust that we had as children waiting for Santa Claus.
How sweet.
And yet, how do we, as gay Christians, use that emotional power to remind us that Christmas is not about giving or getting gifts, not about spiral hams or green bean casseroles … but rather, is about the Word made flesh, who lives among us?
The collect for this week is one of my favorites: “Stir up your power O Lord, and with great might come among us … we are sorely hindered by our sins.” It is a request to God to stir things up! And boy, if there ever was a description of this time of year I think that’s it. From Thanksgiving through the New Year, all of us are stirred up big time. And with great power. What we fail to recognize, often, is that that power is God, who is among us. And, that we are sorely hindered by our habit of deliberately disconnecting from God.
And so the carols and the lights and the hugs and the cards and the sweet moments are all reminders for us of the power of simple respectful love, which is the love with which God created each of us in God’s image, and which is the love we all share.
This lesson from 1 Thessalonians is one of my favorites of all time, of all scripture even (1 Thess 5:16) “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances.” What better advice could one ask for? Rejoice always? Well, isn’t that why we are called gay? Because this is our job in society, to show the others how to rejoice (intrigued by that? see Toby Johnson’s Gay Spirituality: The Role of Gay Identity in the Transformation of Human Consciousness). Pray without ceasing? Yes, of course, because to pray is to be deliberately connected to God. Pray my buddies, pray. Pray that you hear God calling you, pray that you stay connected tightly to God. Pray that God rejoices with you and your gay family and your gay friends. And above all, give thanks. Sometimes this is the hard part; because you have to think pretty seriously about what God has given you, for which you are grateful. But your gratitude, even as a blip in the back of your head, is a connection with God. And connection with God is the erasure of sin. All you have to do my friends is be the terrific glbt folks God has made you to be, and once in awhile give thanks for it.
Have you ever thought about that? “What if I’d been born straight?” … He he, do you react “oh ick!”? Then, please, give thanks to God for the gay you that you are. And while you’re at it give someone you love a surprise kiss. And rejoice!
*3 Advent (Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; Psalm 126; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; John 1:6-8,19-28)
©2011 The Rev. Dr. Richard P. Smiraglia. All rights reserved.
Dimensions of Reality: glbt Christian spirituality 