‘Tis the season to be jolly’ … and joyous

By Pastor Norma Malfatti

These infamous words from A Muppet Christmas Carol have been part of my Christmas morning since not long after the movie came out. Before that it was Scrooged with Bill Murray. Watching modern versions of “A Christmas Carol” is a tradition that has grounded me and connected me to family across time and distance.

While the movie is on, someone (generally not me) is usually making Christmas brunch. I was talking to a fellow pastor recently and Christmas meals came up. It turns out we have a similar tradition of crepes and jam for Christmas Day brunch; their family’s is a newer, COVID tradition and mine is a product of my French heritage, a piece of my immigrant grandfather’s culture that he passed on to my father who in turn passed it on to me and my siblings.

“We all have Christmas traditions, some that are part of our cultural heritage, some that were passed onto us from our elders, and others that we have made for ourselves.”

I write this as I prepare for my annual December pilgrimage to New York City, a tradition passed on from my mother. She grew up on the Upper West Side (think The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, though my grandparents rented a much smaller two-bedroom apartment than the Maisels) and the tree in Rockefeller Plaza was her community’s tree. Her favorite view of the tree was through Valerie Clarebout’s trumpeting angels along the Channel Gardens, which were installed for the first time in 1955.  My mom’s 12-year-old self was enamored, and she required a picture every year once she was no longer able to travel to see them for herself, savoring the memories of Christmases past.

We all have Christmas traditions, some that are part of our cultural heritage, some that were passed onto us from our elders, and others that we have made for ourselves.  The same goes for our congregations. At the church I belong to, I learned that the 4th Sunday in Advent is “Christmas Cookie Sunday” and most everyone brings a cookie to share. After worship we feast on the confectionary delights.

 

THIS YEAR I HAD a great honor and privilege to participate in Las Posadas with St. Paul/San Pablo in the Phillips neighborhood. Las Posadas, which means inns, is a prayerful and playful experience of the gathered community remembering Mary and Joseph’s search for a place to stay once they arrived in Bethlehem. Traditionally observed for each of the nine nights before Christmas, the gathered community reads Scripture, sings, and prays before heading out on their journey through the neighborhood knocking on (pre-planned) doors looking for a place for Mary and Joseph to stay.

It was quite the parade through St. Paul’s homes when I attended on December 14. More than 50 people (that I could see) stuffed into the hallway singing and carrying stars and “torches” to light the way, and residents at St. Paul’s who wanted to see what was going on.

“Las Posadas, which means inns, is a prayerful and playful experience of the gathered community remembering Mary and Joseph’s search for a place to stay once they arrived in Bethlehem.”

At each stop we sang imagined exchanges between Joseph and an innkeeper, as Joseph tried and tried to find a place for Mary to rest. The journeying finally ended when Mary and Joseph were granted lodging and the celebratory feast could begin. On this night we had chicken pozole with krumkaka and lefse for dessert. It was a delicious blend of the cultural heritage of San Pablo and Calvary, Minneapolis. (Calvary’s community is currently sharing space with St. Paul/San Pablo while its building is renovated.)

The night ended with a piñata, shaped sort of like a star. The points of the star represented sin and the stick we hit it with exemplified faith, which helps us overcome the power of sin in our lives.

The traditions we mark each Advent and Christmas season connect us to larger stories about God and our communities. I think my mother’s fascination with Clarebout’s angels was grounded in the heavenly host, singing “Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace to whom God’s favor rests” (Luke 2:14 NIV), a visible remembrance of God’s presence and God’s abundant love in and for the world. That even includes those oft-forgotten shepherds out in the fields.

My experience of Las Posadas connected me to the perseverance and courage of Joseph and Mary and their calling to care for Jesus, our Immanuel. While I left that night full of joy and really good food, I also wondered, where am I being called to persist in faithfulness? Could I keep knocking on doors like Joseph? Am I being called to persist in new ways?