You, Me, Some Words

I’ll admit I always feel a little disappointed when they don’t offer. The couple is standing there in front of me with their new baby, and neither of them asks, “Do you want to hold her?” I mean, it seems the polite thing to do in my book. Or maybe they’re worried I’ll drop her, which is even more troublesome, though perhaps not altogether unrealistic.

So, I wonder: Did Mary let the shepherds hold the baby? I would understand if she didn’t. They’re strangers, and strange strangers at that, grungy, straight from the fields and smelling like it, and the baby was so small and fragile. But in their defense, let’s remember they were there by special invitation.

There in that dreary little stable with Mary and Joseph, the shepherds told their story, how they were tending sheep one minute, and watching the sky explode the next, how the angel (angel!) had said, “Do not be afraid.”

“Well, ma’am, that whole ‘fear not’ thing is easier said than done when you’ve got a heavenly host hovering over your head. But the angel said it was GOOD news they brought. Then the angel promised a sign from God. I mean, we’re surrounded by angels, and that’s not the sign? Apparently not. The sign the angel was talking about,” the shepherd said to Mary. “The sign is this baby, YOUR baby. The angel called him ‘savior,’ ‘messiah,’ ‘Lord.’ Those were the words, right?”

And the other shepherds nodded.

I figure Mary, a teenager who had just given birth under horrible conditions, might have felt a little less afraid after hearing the shepherds’ words. So, I’m guessing she looked at those shepherds, who must have looked to her a little like angels themselves by then, and asked, “Would you like to hold him?” I mean, it’s the polite thing to do, in my book. They had come to town for this baby (Who was tending the sheep?). And the truth is this baby had come to town … and this world … for them.

So, Joseph placed Jesus in the dirty, calloused, scarred hands of a shepherd. And there in that place, ignored by the rest of the world, those shepherds passed the baby Jesus around for a little while, and the boundary between heaven and earth was erased, and time and eternity danced together, and God was with them, creator, redeemer, sustainer, mystery of all mysteries.

And the world was turned upside down.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “We are talking about the birth of a child, not the revolutionary act of a strong man, not the breathtaking discovery of a sage, not the pious act of a saint. It really passes understanding: the birth of a child is to bring the great turning around of all things, is to bring salvation and redemption to the whole human race. … A child has our life in his hands.”

After a bit, the last shepherd in line placed the baby back in Mary’s arms, and the lot of them headed back to their sheep. But I’m guessing they held that moment forever in their hearts. And I know the baby holds them still, and you with them.