Father Kirk was kind enough to provide two of his sermons. This is the first of the two, which he delivered for Christmas mass 2015. While I'm an atheist, I attended Midnight Mass and heard him deliver this sermon, which I thought was excellent and I'm certain many of you will enjoy reading.

The Reverend Kirk T. Berlenbach

Christmas 2015

Christmas is a season of light. We decorate our homes with lights of all shapes and sizes. We adorn our trees. Light even takes a special role here at church as we light our gas lamps and later, with hand candles as we sing Silent Night.

When taken altogether these light are beautiful. The problem is that when it comes to Christmas lights you needs hundreds or even thousands to really make a difference. One light on its own? That wouldn’t be very festive? Who would even notice a tree or a house with one, solitary little light?

Let’s put this to the test. (light a hand candle and hold it up) Can you see it? Of course you can see the candle but does its light make any difference? No, not really. And why? Because all the other lights. If I hadn’t drawn you attention to it, you might not even notice it was there at all. But what if we turned off those other lights? (all electric lights are turned out) All of a sudden that one little candle becomes a whole lot easier to see.

One little light can make a big difference in our lives. A few years ago my family and I spent a month on a remote Irish island. Its rugged and sparsely populated. Outside the main town of Kilronan there are few signs of civilization. The houses are far apart. There are no stop signs or street lights. Just a narrow road winding its way through the hills and rocks.

One night I had stayed out late. It was well past midnight when I started to ride my bike back to our little green house. Things were fine until I came to the edge of town. Then the lights started to fade. The houses got further apart and the road got darker and darker. It wasn’t long until I could barely see. Even though I knew where I was going I found myself gripping the handlebars for fear of running off the road. As I approached the long downhill curve that ran right along the shoreline that fear really rose up. There was no guardrail to protect me from the jagged rocks below which meant if I made a mistake I would suffer far worse than a skinned knee. But just as the darkness started to overwhelm me I saw it. A single light off in the distance. Shining from the front of our little house, it cut through the night like a laser. With that light to guide me, I took a deep breath and kept going.

What is so remarkable is that that light wasn’t anything powerful or special. It was just one, little, lightbulb. Yet in the darkness that one, little, light shone out clear and true. It kept me safe and got me home.

Maybe you know what I mean. When the power goes off in your house, what is the first thing you do? Find a light. But why? We know we’re safe. There is nothing to fear. It’s just dark. Yet we crave light, not just so that we can move about or find our stuff… we need it to make us feel safe and secure. Light comforts and reassures us. And when the darkness closes in, even one, little light can make the difference between getting lost or making it back home.

Right now we could use a little more light. The days are short and the nights are long. Yet this is the least of our worries. The darkness in our hearts is far worse. We see it in the violence, hatred and contempt that seems to dominate our world. In the bombings and mass shootings… in the racism and systematic persecution of those who are different… through our greed and willingness to exploit one another and our earth for the sake of profit. Sometimes when we look around all we see is the darkness.

Yet for all its power, darkness does not have the final word. Even a single light can pierce and dispel it. As it says in the Gospel of John, “The light shone in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it.” That light is Jesus. He was born into our world because although we had fallen into darkness, G-D did not give up on us. In fact G-D loved us so much that G-D joined us in our darkness being born as one of us. Through his life, death and resurrection Jesus showed us that love is stronger than hate and that not even the cold and dark of the tomb could overcome his light.

The prophet Isaiah once proclaimed, “The people who have walked in darkness have seen a great light.” Well we have walked in darkness long enough. We have suffered and watched the power of evil at work in our world long enough. We don’t have to sit in darkness any longer. Tonight, the light of G-D’s love has come into our world once more.

And it doesn’t matter who you are, or how often you come to church, or if you consider yourself spiritual but not religious or even you don’t believe at all. The light of Christ now shines for you. And if we chose to look for it we will find that it’s all around us. In the brimming boxes of Toys for Tots or in the mountain of food that was collected in this very church to provide a Christmas meal for local families. We saw it shining as Syrian refugees were welcomed at the Munich train station and in the courage of people like Mala Yousafzai who refuse to return hatred or violence in kind. We see it in the selflessness of those who spend Christmas day working in homeless shelters or delivering meals to shut ins. And of course, it is there in the love and warmth of family and friends. In all these ways and many more the light of Christ shines out in our darkness.

In a little while you will light a candle. As the lights go down and the music swells take a moment to look at it. It may be small but it still has the power to pierce the night. As you look at it, think about the ways in which G-D’s love has helped get you through your dark times. When you sat in grief or depression, remember it how it felt when someone showed you a little kindness or compassion. Remember how that one, simple gesture of a meal, a visit or a phone call brought some much needed light into your dark.

As you bask in the warmth of that memory, consider how you might now share that same light with someone else. How can you bring a little comfort into the life of someone who is hungry or lonely or scared? How might you become a beacon of hope for someone who desperately needs a light to guide them?

Tonight, as we gather here in safety, all around the world, countless millions still suffer in the dark. Yet darkness does not have the final word. For tonight is Christmas. Tonight Jesus comes into our world once more. Tonight, the light of Christ shines out in the dark and the darkness cannot ever overcome it. And if we choose to follow it, that light will lead us home.

May that light now fill your heart with joy and hope. May it continually lead you as you go forth from this place. And above all, may it inspire you to go out and share it with those who are still lost in the dark.

AMEN

Merry Christmas.