Christmas in the Margins" by Rev. Gilbert Martinez - Christ Church UCC Des Plaines

Tonight, we hear a story we know so well. A census, a journey, a baby born not in a palace, but in a moral space. Shepherds working the night shift, angels singing in the sky. And yet, this familiar story is radical. It's submersive. It is not quiet because it is small. It is quiet because joy often arise in the most unexpected places. Places that challenge the powerful and comfort the weary. [00:00:08] (37 seconds)  #RadicalNativity

Great joy, not for the power, not just for the faithful, not only for those who have it all together, but for all people. That matters because many of us, joy can feel complicated, especially on Christmas Eve. Some of us come here bursting with happiness. Some come exhausted. Some come grieving. Some are just trying to get through the night. And the good news of Christmas is that not everyone, some feels joyful. The good news is that joy comes to us anyway. Joy does not wait for perfect conditions. [00:00:57] (48 seconds)  #JoyComesAnyway

Some churches across the country have chosen to make the reality visible in their nativity scenes this year. Mary and Joseph are depicted as immigrants. But baby Jesus is shown as a child at risk. Figures of authority, agents of the state, loom nearby. And still, these churches will not stop. They will not stop prophesizing the truth even amidst political pressure, public criticism, and social discomfort. [00:03:53] (39 seconds)  #NativityAsImmigrant

That is what we should lift up. And their story is a heavy one, that a 15 year old should have no business experiencing that level of trauma. Heavy, heavy trauma that most of us may never experience in our lifetime. See, but it's oppression that they're experiencing, And that's the type of space that Jesus was in when he was born. [00:09:15] (37 seconds)  #YouthTraumaAwareness

And I can tell you that those two families today would might not seem a lot for us. They were extremely joyful that they received that help. And I cannot take the credit fully because I am only the in middle person. It's everybody else who came together to make it happen. See, the shepherds in Luke's story were ordinary people just like you and me. I've told you before the only difference is my colleague. We're all human. There were ordinary people whose lives were transformed by what they saw. [00:10:11] (41 seconds)  #CommunityTransformsLives

See, the shepherds in Luke's story were ordinary people just like you and me. I've told you before the only difference is my colleague. We're all human. There were ordinary people whose lives were transformed by what they saw. [00:10:33] (19 seconds)  #OrdinaryWitnesses

Tonight, we can imagine that the angel's message reaches not only those in humble fields, but those who lives lives are threatened by systems of power. Joy enters because God chooses to be with us, especially when we are at most risk, most overlooked, and most in need of hope. This is a joy of Christmas, that God comes near, that love takes on flesh, that the divine stands with the oppressed, the fearful, and the powerless. [00:10:52] (36 seconds)  #GodWithTheOppressed

``So tonight, as we light our candles, let them remind us of the light shining in the darkness. Let them remind us of the joy that persists even when the world is hostile, and let them call to act, to stand in solidarity with those who are vulnerable, to speak for those whose voices are silent, and to embody the love God shows us in Jesus. [00:11:28] (24 seconds)  #LightInDarkness