NEW BEGINNINGS
Jeremiah 31: 7-14; Psalm 147: 12-20; John 1: 1-18
Have you made your New Year resolutions yet?
The New Year is traditionally a time for celebration; for appraising the past year and for looking
forward to the next. Every year, in the last week of December, the various media run stories on 'this
was the year that was'. Many of these do no more than say 'remember this?' which is a pity since
an examination of what was valuable and what was not would make a real contribution to moving
on. New Year's Day is one of the oldest festivals common to virtually every culture and religion on
earth. It is a time of renewal intimately linked with a celebration of creation. The 1st January as New Year's day dates from 153 BCE in the Roman Republic and this
date was confirmed by Julius Caesar in
46 BCE when he reorganised the calendar - adding two months and naming one after himself!
The Jewish religious New Year, called Rosh Hashana is observed around the end of September
when Jews commemorate the creation of the world. It is a time for penitence when
they examine their relationship with God.
The Abbot Dionysius in the 6th century CE produced a calendar based on the coming of the Christ.
He started the religious year with the Feast of the Annunciation on the 25th March. This became
new year's day until the revision of the calendar by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582. While Roman
Catholic countries were quick to make the change, others adopted it at different
times. England retained 25th March
as New Year's day up until 1752 and Russia did not change until 1918. We have
just listened to a January
1st New Year carol ('The old year now away is fled'.) Here are some verses from a much older one
that refers to the Annunciation:Sing reign of Fair Maid, with gold upon her toe,
Open you the West door, and turn the Old Year go.
Sing reign of Fair Maid, with gold upon her chin,
Open you the East Door, and let the New Year in.
It uses the image of discarding the old and welcoming the new - of a complete change - a new
beginning. We cannot regard a change that does not leave behind the old as a new beginning.
Gough Whitlam once joked, "Rowing was one of my favourite sports. It provides great training for
politicians for it teaches them to go forward while looking backwards."
At Christmas we think of the wonderful birth of Jesus where the humanity of the event is uppermost
in our minds. The reading from John's Gospel makes us focus on another aspect of Jesus. That he
was the Word made flesh, THE CHRIST. In the Old Testament, this person was called 'The Messiah' or the 'Anointed One'.
The Greek word Christ was not used until after Jesus' death and
resurrection.
The Prologue of John's Gospel places us firmly in the world of the Christian communities of the
second century of the Common Era. It was the last Gospel to be written, almost 100 years after
Jesus' death, and it is very different from the other three synoptic Gospels. Instead of concentrating
on the narrative, it concerns itself with the meanings of things. The Prologue summarizes all that is
to follow in the Gospel and could have been used by the community as a hymn expressing what
they believe.
The ideas and the way they are expressed clearly reflect the Greek mind of the time. In our New
Testaments, what is translated as 'Word' is actually the Greek word logos. It is usually taken to
mean the written word of God. But this term logos means much more than just word - what is
written or spoken. It's earliest use implied reason, thought, logic and universal underlying principles
as well. The Hellenistic Jew Philo, who was a contemporary of Jesus, frequently used logos to mean
'Divine Reason' and sometimes 'the fulfilment of God's plan'.
The opening
sentences of the Prologue take us back to the creation of the world and parallel the
creation stories of Genesis. It even starts in exactly the same way. 'In the beginning was the Word.'
But this language would have had great meaning for the people of the 2nd century. It speaks of the
Word existing in the beginning and of creating all things; of being the source of life; of giving the
law to Moses and of the Word being made flesh. This is the first reference to Christ. Like the
creation story, images of light abound. God's first creative act after creating the world in Genesis was 'Let there be Light'. The Word made flesh is now described as 'the true light that enlightens
every man.' And so there is equivalence between God, the Word, life and light. But we cannot read
these references to 'light' without also understanding the significance of the 'darkness'. The first
part says that the darkness cannot overcome the light. Then, after the Word became flesh, those who
received it are able to become the children of God. We live in a darkened world and we are
continually renewed by the light. And renewal means change. But we do not just receive the light once. We can't possess it. It possesses us. We continually change as we grow in the light.
If there is darkness around us in our world, it is because there is darkness within us. This represents the forces at work in our lives that prevent us from growing - to be all that we might be. We are often made aware of these forces when we are afraid. There is no more potent force working against
our change than fear. We can be afraid of so many different things. We can fear change or even fear
itself. Anyone who has experienced the vice-like grip of a phobia will understand that statement
very well.
Hardly a day goes by when we are not reminded of the terrible situation between the Palestinians
and the Israelis. Over the last year we have seen the building of a wall by Israel to attempt to control
the entry of suicide bombers. But walls don't have to be erected with concrete. The Australian
government has legislated to make our islands to the north not part of Australia as far as access to
Australian law is concerned. This is designed to surround us by a legal wall.
Walls can be erected between nations, between groups and between individuals. There can be walls
between ethnic or religious groups or between partners. The personal walls erected by the suicide
bombers are probably more intractable than any other. Walls can take many forms but they are
always erected by those who are afraid. Remember the Berlin Wall which totally surrounded West
Berlin? It can be said that the Berlin Wall was not really erected to keep the East Germans in, but to
keep Western ideas out. And what was it that brought the Berlin Wall down? It wasn't might and it wasn't power. It started to crumble when people were no longer afraid. Or what about Northern
Ireland? Although there have been recent setbacks towards peace, there were real gains when
people actually started to talk with one another. And I don't mean a formal 'dialogue'; I mean
actually communicate and try to understand the other's point of view.
These examples are taken from some of the major human conflicts of recent times and we would
expect them to be complex. But when it comes down to it, the first step towards a new beginning
must be to confront the fears and put them to rest. The American writer James Baldwin has said,
"Not everything that is faced can be changed; but nothing can be changed until it is faced."
Two other recent events are worth considering: the Bali bombings and the plight of those in
detention centres. How have we as a nation, handled these? Were they handled in the best way? I
suspect that most Australians approve of the way we handled the Bali bombings but we are divided
about the other. What is different about the way they were handled? This may not be a fair question
but I think it needs to be asked. The Bali bombings were handled with love and compassion, the
other with fear and indifference.
The darkness around us is also the darkness within us. We erect walls around ourselves as well.
There are the walls of ignorance, of prejudice, of intolerance, of selfishness, of indifference, of
greed... Whenever we give in to any of these things we restrict our growth. Stepping into the light
and allowing it to possess us is more than mere self-examination and change. It is a new beginning.
It is a letting go of the old and a commitment to the new. But if we are to be made new by the Word
made flesh, then words or thoughts are not enough.
Bill Gates is not only
the richest man in the world and co-founder of the Microsoft Corporation but
he presides
over the world's largest philanthropic cash reserve. Bill and Melinda Gates are determined to
immunise the children of the world's poor. Their foundation is spending $A1.1 billion per year on
public health programs worldwide but it is not a simple donation. The money is tied to the health
spending of the countries involved in order to make them accept responsibility for their health
programs. Bill Gates has visited many countries and says, "We've met parents who love their
children just as much as we love ours yet who can't protect them from polio or measles. We
decided this just can't be. How could we not try to do something about this?"
You don't have to be the wealthiest man in the world to ask that question. You don't even have to
want to change the whole world. Wherever we go, we are touched by those who are in need, and
when we respond to that need, the world changes just a little as we share our love. We are always
changing but if we want a new beginning, sooner or later, we must step out into the future in faith.
Why is moving on so difficult? If we want a new beginning then we must leave what we don't need
behind. When we embrace the new, we must discard the old.
When the Word became flesh, Christ took on human nature to give us a form that we would
recognise. The world changed from that time on. Light came into the world full of grace and truth
but it was rejected. It had to be if the Word was to be fully human because Christ is the new
humanity, which must be rejected by the old if we are to have a new beginning. When we walk in
the light, the love of the Christ transforms us and renews us day by day until we are perfected in the
image of God.
And so I return to my initial question: 'Have you made your New Year resolutions yet?'
___________________________________________________
A sermon presented by Robert Sanderson at St Aidan's Uniting Church North Balwyn, on
4th January, 2004.
IT MAY BE REPRODUCED WITH ACKNOWLEDGMENT.
PRAYERS
O God who makes all things new -
We thank you for all your blessings to us and to all people;
for our family and our friends;
for this church and the fellowship we share;
for the year just past and the opportunities it gave us to know your love and to do
your work.
But, above all, we thank you for sending your Son who lived and died and rose
from the dead that we may walk into the light and be free.
In the name of Jesus the Christ. AMEN
O God who makes all things new -
If we have not done enough for others;
If we have been indifferent to the needs of others;
If we have rejected the call for help from others;
If there is hate in our heart,
Then we ask your forgiveness.
We know that Jesus the Christ came into the world to save us
and if we are in him we become a new person altogether -
the past is over and done with -
everything is new.
We have an assurance that God's mercy never ends and that we are forgiven.
PRAYERS FOR THE WORLD
Let us open ourselves, in silence, to the renewing love of God.
SILENCE
We pray for all those who are in need of your healing power - those who are sick,
those who are in hospital, those who are recovering from illness or surgery.
Renew their minds and bodies, O God.
We pray for all those who are in need of your comfort - those who grieve,
those who are anxious, those who find the world difficult to comprehend.
Renew their spirit, O God.
We pray for all those who lack the physical needs of food or shelter or clothing.
Renew their courage, O God.
We pray for all those whose lives have been irreparably changed by war, aggression or devastation.
Renew their hope, O God.
We especially pray at this time for all those thousands of families affected by the earthquake
in Bam.
Renew their life, O God.
Renew us, O God, that we may know how to offer ourselves as agents of your love.
This we ask in the name of Jesus the Christ. AMEN
Let us pray the prayer he taught us:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be
your name.
Your kingdom come, your will be
done on earth, as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread,
And forgive us our sins, as we
forgive those who sin against us.
Save us in the time of trial, and
deliver us from evil,
For the kingdom, the power and
the glory are yours,
Now and for ever,
AMEN.
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