Some chistmas Day musings

A few thoughts on the christmas story.... the gospel according to my imagination.

So a teenager, 14 seems to be the popular guess. Engaged to be married - perhaps only been going out with joseph for 6 months or so? May not have known him before that.
Perhaps they had been struggling a bit together. Not knowing each other too well yet. Wanting to do things their own way.
Having to deal with all the pressures from inlaws. Most of their families seeing it as an illegitimate pregnancy in one way or another: "Probably joseph's child, cos she's not the kind of girl to have been with someone else... but then again - you never know; its always the quiet ones!"

The couple must realise they are now in a big story. Not looking like its going to be easy. Not knowing what lays ahead.
Some evenings together they don't understand each other, feel alone despite being together. Other times learning to support each other. Knowing they are in this thing together, for better or worse, whatever is about to happen. Leaning on each other. Not sure who is going to stick by them in this - learning that it might just be the two of them.
Then the day arrives. Labour starts. The family may not be willing to make room for them, her mother in law perhaps refuses to come and help. I'm sure the local midwife woundn't have let her go through her labour on her own: "Thats not right whatever people are saying about her". A long night, a long labour.
Her baby is born
Everything changes, the look on joseph's face, the hope in her heart. The confidence they have together. Everything is going to be alright. Well everything may not be alright but they'll get there. They'll come through. Faith sometimes comes in strange places.




Meanwhile some teenage boys (and some younger) come down from the hills where they'd been with the sheep, some sandwiches and a couple of cheeky bottles of the local brew (to make sure they stayed warm, of course).
They all talk at once: A messenger angel, a whole team of angels. Good news, a saviour. Several of the younger ones had wet themselves; the older ones hadn't been scared at all, of course. Peace to men - what does that mean? and they'd been told exactly where to come and here you are - just like they'd said, in a manger and everything. They hadn't known it'd be Mary though, had heard she was pregnant and all, and had never believed what people where saying - honest. But now it makes sense, its amazing, its a miracle - THIS is the messiah, baby messiah!
How strange that a few years ago they all used to play together at the festivals and make jokes. Now she's got a baby and not any baby but a messiah baby! the messiah baby. And now shes married too - well sort of. wow! crazy.
These lads told everyone. Refused to listen to listen to cynical replies. Told peoeple they can laugh if they like but if they'd seen the angels....
And they looked after mary and joseph. Brought them food, clothes, whatever they semed to need. Not quite sure where it all came from. Plenty of their mothers and sisters who apparently had stuff to spare. Of course they always asked permission... just maybe not to be going to the temple in certain babygrows!




At the same time, in a land far away east, some Asian professors were up very late talking. There could be no doubt as to what this new star meant. It fitted with everything they had studied. It was in keeping with all of their theories..... if their theories were right.
They were sure their theories were correct. If not, then what had they spent their whose careers working towards? All those papers, conferences, lectures. And now this star arrives as if to prove it all.
They couldn't ignore it. It couldn't be just for academic interest - put it down in their next textbook as the sign of the saviour of the jews, and in fact all peoples.
This was real. They all knew as they sat there, that they had to go. They talked about how they would tell their families. Through the kyber pass, goodness knows how many weeks travel on from there. They'd never known anyone who'd made the journey and they'd heard of plenty of traders who'd died on that journey - Bandits, the weather, strange illnesses from the west.
But this is the kind of thing that you would wait your whole life for. IF this is true, if this is true - they knew it must be - they can prove it. They all knew the calculations. Had checked them and double checked them. They had to go.
And go they did. Horses, then camels; hot, then cold, then hot again. They soon learnt that spoken hebrew had changed a fair bit since the ancient texts, but they got by. Sign language and silver gets you a long way!
And sure enough, a baby where the star stopped. How many of there predecessors and colleagues had wanted to see the moving star. The prophesied moving star! They had only ever dreamed; theorised.
No palace, no ceremony. A simple family living in poverty. But a family with a look of peace and faith in their eyes that told them they were in the the right place.
They spent a fortnight with them. Never lived in such simple suroundings, but this jewish family were so hospitable. All that they had, they were willing to share. Not like at home.
They listened to all the stories. All the prophesies. That was the strangest thing. It was all prophesies, visions and dreams. No science. No evidence. Well not real "scientific" evidence as they defined it. But it all fitted. Every aspect of their calculations was backed up by what they found. Incredible!

........and mary stored all these things up in her heart.