"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth"
John 1:14

The Christmas story we are so familiar with is the baby Jesus in the manger and adorned by gifts from the Maji.  John is offering us another way of looking at the birth of Christ; as an incarnation of spirit into flesh.  The word.  And not the first time.  In John 1:1 we are reminded that the word is God and the world came from the word.  

Powerful stuff.  

From a Quaker perspective what appeals to me is that the spirit of Christ in us lives in our word and His word.  God made creation and he saw that it was good.  The essential goodness of the world is not something apart from God as if spirit and flesh are two separate and distinct things.  They are one.  And the beauty of the new covenant with humanity is that the word is right there -- ready at hand -- to invoke, the use, to empower and to hold as sacred. 

There is one caveat ... we have been given free will and it is up to us to embrace it.  

My query for this Christmas day is this: How can I as a Quaker and a Christian make flesh the word of God in me?  

Lucky for us we have the practice of integrity to guide us. It is a way to keep us "trued up" to what really matters.  As a cyclist this word "trued up" has special meaning for me.  When a tire goes out of round a bicycle can easily lose its integrity.  And this sense of the word integrity is super helpful.  The meaning of whole and complete and in working order.  Is my word in working order?  Am I operating whole and complete to my word?  In the sense of John 1:1 what am I creating in the world with my word?  Is it good?  Would it be recognized by the God of creation? 

Yes, powerful stuff. 

Merry Christmas my fellow human beings.  Peace, joy and word of God in you !!

~ Joseph Olejak

"Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you! As when fire sets twigs ablaze and causes water to boil" 

~ Isaiah 64: 1-3

On this first week of Advent we ardently seek that God would come down from the heavens and offer up solutions to our problems. Oh that it were so!  

 The word "rend" means to tear.  It also means great emotional pain.  When I think of "rend" I think of the moment when Christ died on the cross and the curtain that shielded the Holiest of Holies was torn in two.  That curtain kept the arc of the covenant from the eyes of the people. The curtain symbolized the separation between God's holy presence and humanity,  With the death and resurrection Christs presence is now with us always. No priest is required to intercede for us. 

If we are looking for a God in the clouds to come down and save us we'd have to look to the burning bush talking to Moses or Abraham being stopped by an angel from sacrificing his son.  The symbolism of the rend curtain may offer some guidance on what God might do for us. 

When was it rend? 
Why then? 

If we look at the main teachings of Christ we find:

• Love: Love God and your neighbor as yourself, and love your enemies. 
• Forgiveness: forgive others who have wronged you.
• Humility: Don't be hypocritical, and don't judge others. 
• Kingdom of God: The Kingdom of god lies within as the Holy Spirit working in us. 
• Service: Serve others without expecting anything from them.
• Community: The blessed community is when we gather to discern the word of God

Interesting that the new order coincides with sacrifice at Golgotha. 

It is a sad fact, but modern life has made us lazy in spiritual matters. God is not a Facebook meme and God is not sending you a parcel from Amazon with the solution to your problems. 

Our Query in 2025 ought to be how can I prune away all the noise and begin to hear more clearly the voice of God within. 

~ Joseph Olejak