Concluding Reflections
Obviously, these characters are not real. Or are they? I think that, if we allow ourselves to be stretched imaginatively a bit beyond the usual Christmas readings and reflections, we may enter the world of honor and shame in which the Bible was written (and still characterizes that part of the world).
Although shame clearly surrounded the events of the First Christmas, God was also clearly doing things that transformed that shame into honor. Jerome Neyrey’s Honor and Shame in the Gospel of Matthew highlights how the Gospel writers noted that (1) Jesus came from honorable lineage, being a direct descendant of King David, (2) Joseph and Mary were considered by God to be virtuous, (3) no less than five divinely given dreams (three to Joseph, one to Mary, and one to the Wise Men) affirm Jesus’ unique divinity, (4) “celestial phenomena” occur in the skies in the form of a star and the angelic host, and (5) Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah’s coming were finally being fulfilled.[1]
Finally, a word on Christmas in our time, during the coronavirus pandemic of 2020. The externals of Christmas look different for everyone this year. Absent are the parties, markets, concerts, and perhaps even church gatherings. The internals of Christmas need not change, of course. By these I mean feelings such as joy, wonder, devotion, and love. Those of us who fight to retain the externals of Christmas ought not shame those of us who reluctantly opt only for the internals. And vice versa.
One way we can keep the internal fires aglow this Christmas, I think, is to try to consider the Christmas story in fresh ways. That is what I have tried to do here, by looking at the Christmas story through the “non-Western” value system of honor and shame. For the glory of God alone this brief devotional is offered, which is simply another way of praying that God may be honored above all things.
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