Rev. George Miller
January 4, 2026
John 1:19-42
First, let us start by giving thanks to
Andrew Richardson who had the vision of doing a presentation on “The Carole of
the Bells” and the comfortable confidence to ask if he could share his knowledge
with us.
Wisdom is a gift and a light to the world,
and to share that light instead of holding onto it is a gift.
That’s what John the Baptist did. He shared the news about Jesus before folks
even knew who Jesus was.
John was brave, a witness before
witnesses, telling people things they did not know or wanted to hear. He knew who he was, who he was not, and like
Andrew today, he used his voice and knowledge.
Andrew took us to Ukraine with images of
good harvest, happy birds, and prosperity, then reminded us of their current
reality of rubble, resistance, and occupation.
John stood in a wilderness during a time
of Roman occupation, crying out so that people could learn a new kind of
resistance, one based on the ways of heaven, and the healing that came the Son
of God.
John is the Gospel narrative we are
following from now until April. It’s a
deeply poetic, philosophical exploration of Jesus that differs from the
directness of Mark, the ruralness of Matthew, and the inclusiveness of Luke.
Today, I’d like to share an image from pop
culture that’s illuminated my experience of Christmas.
Last month Viktor and I were trying to
figure out what to watch. No current
films appealed to us, so we opted for something classic- Audrey Hepburn.
“Breakfast At Tiffany’s” with all its
style, smartly written dialogue, and of course “Moon River.”
Watching someone from another country
experience influential American culture for the first time is a treat.
Next was “Roman Holiday.” Wow- the vistas, the hair, the romance. The teary-eyed ending.
“Roman Holiday” starts with Audrey Hepburn
as Princess Ann, being greeted by dignitaries.
She is standing above the people in uncomfortable shoes and gown.
Powerful people come to her and bow. She is poised, still, perfect, and absolutely
bored.
Later, she sneaks out and spends a
glorious 36 hours out and about the city of Rome, pretending to be a regular
person, gallivanting around with Gregory Peck.
She smokes, sips champagne, goes to the
local market, buys shoes, enjoys gelato, has her hair cut, falls in love, gets
into a bar fight, swims the Tiber River.
In the process she learns more about the people, herself, and why her
role as Princess is so important.
At the end of the movie, Princess Ann
stands before the people, still stylish but more casually dressed; her hair
much shorter, her shoes more comfortable.
She answers questions, she is engaged.
After having this lived, embodied
experience, Princess Ann does something different. She says “I want to the meet them,” and chooses
to come down the stairs, standing level with the people.
The Princess now is the one going up to
the individuals, shaking hands, asking their name, acknowledging their
presence.
Because now she sees them, she really sees
them, she relates, she has an understanding.
Princess Ann could have stayed forever on
top of the stage, far from everyone, only approached, but never
approaching. But once she has a fully
lived, embodied experience, her relationship with everyone changes forever.
“Roman Holiday” has given me a new insight
into the Gospel of John and the Christmas narrative.
The idea we have that God made a
choice. That God decided. That God chose to come to us wrapped into
human flesh.
Not as a governor or a millionaire, nor
royalty or wealth, but as a child, born of a woman, into an unusual
circumstance, without the comforts of stability or certainty.
We journey back to Bethlehem and
understand that instead of God being an abstract idea that could only be
experienced in contained quarters of the Temple, God through Jesus can be
experienced at weddings and wells, under fig trees and beside the tombstones.
The knowledge that God enfleshed would
choose to sit beside us at a community event, ensuring the wine does not run out
and calls out to us when we are sobbing in the garden, is a powerful
notion.
Because through our journey Back to
Bethlehem we discover that God made known to us in Jesus, our Emmanuel, is not
from far off, but close to us, beside us.
That Jesus as the Word made flesh would
want to share in our adventures, in our tears.
Sharing the Lord’s light and joy of life.
For that, let us say “Amen.”
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