The readings for this week are
liturgically suggestive as we encounter the child Samuel performing priestly
functions at Shiloh and the young Jesus in the temple among the teachers. Indeed,
the Septuagint uses the root word for liturgy to describe Samuel's ministry.
Are there children at work in the liturgies of our churches or is this seen as
an exclusively adult occupation?
The presence of children in the
liturgy blesses the whole community by reminding us of the joy and pleasure
that accompanies being received into the presence of the living God. . . . All of us who are baptized into Christ Jesus
can say with our Lord that we must be in our Father's house, especially our
children. – Ben Sharpe
Luke 2:41-52
It can be slightly shocking to think of Jesus not
paying heed to his parents, not letting them know where he was going, giving
them reason for worry. But in his bond with the synagogue and the community
there, we might find a way to consider how we welcome children into our
worship.
[I]n a church that sees itself
first as the gathered household of God, children are not merely the concern of
their parents, but are the responsibility of all the baptized. Especially in
churches that baptize small children, congregations have made solemn promises
to be involved in their formation as Christian disciples. Parents need to be
reminded that they have forfeited the right to shield their baptized children
from a word of correction that comes from person sitting beside them in the
pew! . . . Jesus said to receive a child
in his name was to receive him (cf. Matthew 18:5).
One still sees this modeled
occasionally in small churches in the rural South and in African American
churches: infants are passed among the eager hands of relatives and friends
during worship. Crying babies are taken out and brought back into the sanctuary
when they quiet down. Young children easily move from sitting among their
immediate family to sitting with family friends. . . .
This same atmosphere of communal
responsibility for children probably accounts for the young Jesus being left
behind in Jerusalem. The expectation was that if Jesus was not with his
parents, then he must be with friends or family who had also come up from
Nazareth to Jerusalem for the Passover. – Ben Sharpe
1 Samuel 2:18-20,
26
Several commentators note that the
stories told in our readings today of the young Samuel and young Jesus portray
a “natural” interaction of home and temple, of family and religious life. While
it is easy to either bemoan the separation of church and home so visible today,
or to nostalgically yearn for some (imagined) golden age of their unity, we can
rightly ask about and explore the ways church and home interact to cultivate
holy wisdom in persons of all ages. Where and how is this happening in your
community? – Ron Anderson
Colossians 3:12-17
Especially at this harried time of year, this admonition to
the Colossians can serve to help us all find our bearings again so that we can
“let the peace of Christ rule” in our hearts.
Perhaps connected to the garment
Hannah provided Samuel, this text speaks of putting on the garments Christ has
given, so that the world may see “compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and
patience” and concern for others; forgiveness, tolerance, love and the peace of
Christ are to govern all actions. Lastly, be thankful for the salvation that
has come through God in Christ. – Sara Webb Phillips
E. Byron (Ron) Anderson
is the Ernest and Bernice Styberg Professor of Worship and the Director of the
Nellie B. Ebersole Program in Music Ministry at Garrett-Evangelical Theological
Seminary in Evanston, Illinois.
Sara Webb Phillips
is a United Methodist minister serving North Springs UMC in Sandy Springs,
Georgia.
Ben Sharpe is Rector of Christ Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Homily Service 40, no. 1 (2006): 73-84.
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