Another sermon

This Christmastide I preached three times, Christmas Day, Holy Name and the Second Sunday in Christmas. The most recent is below:
Adolescent Angst—The Boy Jesus at the Temple
Christmas 2 Yr. B Luke 2: 41-52
January 4, 2009


“But they did not understand what he said to them.” (Luke 2:49) A common refrain from any parent of an adolescent Mary and Joseph are no different as, exasperated, they berate Jesus upon finding him at the temple instead of with their traveling party. Jesus’ parents frustrated scared and bewildered by this eldest son of theirs must have wondered: “what in the world has gotten in to him?” Frustrated that he didn’t stay with his traveling group, not thinking how his actions affected others, scared that they couldn’t find him and had been searching for three days and bewildered by his strange response that of course he must be in his Father’s house---yes frustrated scared and bewildered, a typical response to the vagaries of adolescence.
In this season of incarnation it’s appropriate to think of Jesus as a regular adolescent, acting out in all the usual ways. When removed from the direct hit of dealing with a moody teenager, we can empathize with the difficulty of the teen years-- changing bodies, burgeoning ideas, striving to establish our own identity…. who would go through adolescence again?
A confusing and exciting time for the teen, an exasperating and mind-boggling time for parents.



In retrospect I think most adults would admit that during adolescence they were driven by unknown and mysterious forces, at times feeling as though their bodies were overtaken by an alien being.
In this Christmas season we are called to consider the humanity of Jesus. To fully do this we remember the infant as we do on the Feast of the Nativity and the adult as we do throughout the Gospels of the church year-- but today we are granted a glimpse into the early adolescent Jesus. A Jesus on the cusp of all that adolescence brings—the good, the bad and the ugly….
It’s just human nature to wonder what the growing Jesus was like….what did he think? How did he feel?
Anne Rice’s fictional book, Out of Egypt provides her interpretation of Jesus’ childhood. Reviewer Tamara Butler wrote that Rice's Jesus is “childlike but divine, wise beyond years yet wondering who he is and why he is different from other boys.”
(Library Journal, November 1, 2005)
I bet this is accurate—wondering why one is different from others is a common refrain for many teens---they just don’t feel like they fit in. And that is a tough feeling for anyone of any age. I’ve shared with you before the story of my nephew Bryce’s first day of kindergarten realizing how much his fair


complexion stood out in a class full of predominately Latino students exclaimed: “Rats they’re all brown kids.” This wasn’t a racist statement it was a plea to not be
different. He wasn’t mad they were brown; he was upset he wasn’t brown. Standing out in a crowd is hard. We all try to fit in and if we can’t we employ various coping
techniques. Some of us just try to blend in, taking on the clothing, tastes and opinions of the majority---others of us become so outlandishly different, so intentionally separate that we ostracize others and become even more alone than before.
A burgeoning adolescent can go to both extremes. Often in the same week!
It’s easy for us on the outside to think that this behavior is intentional ---that it’s
designed to drive us—the adults in the picture----insane. This may be true, to an extent, getting a rise out of our elders is a pastime we’ve all engaged in, but I think most sociologists and child development experts will agree that these behaviors are often as mysterious to the adolescent as they are infuriating to us. They are driven by forces which although powerful are difficult to define. I think it fair to assume that the boy Jesus, in his fully incarnate nature, experienced a lot of these same feelings of confusion, distraction, rebellion and mystery. He was trying to figure out


who the heck he was. He knew he was different and this just wasn’t a case of appearance, skill at boyhood games or economic/class standing of his family. He
knew something was REALLY different about him, but so far no one had told him much. Remember, throughout our Advent and Christmas readings we are told that
with each passing oddity—the angelic visits, the shepherds following some wild star and the strange visitors from the east, Mary wouldn’t start talking about it, no we
are told that while she outwardly accepted these events, she also pondered these
things in her heart. Mary was waiting for more to be revealed—so until it was revealed to her that it was time for Jesus to know the truth about his identity she was keeping quiet. But while she and Joseph ponder just who this son of theirs is, Jesus begins to explore his own heart’s desire, his own identity search.
And on that day, his heart led him to the Temple ….to His Father’s house. Now this wasn’t some adolescent dig against the father who raised him--Joseph, no this was Jesus responding to his developing sense of self, leading him away from his earthly family and toward the mystery of his spiritual family. Yes Mary and Joseph were raising Jesus, but he was ultimately God’s Son. Jesus’ birth mother, Mary was an instrument of Jesus’ Father, our Father, God. Jesus had to follow the draw of his identity—that of being the Son of God. If he hadn’t claimed his rightful spot as God’s


Son then we could never claim our spot as heirs to Him as inheritors of the Kingdom of God. So yes, Jesus had to be at his Father’s house and yes that scared the dickens
out of Mary and Joseph as they frantically searched for their boy. Like any parent the safety of their child was uppermost in their hearts and minds and they would not
rest until they found him safe and sound. Likewise, Jesus would not rest until he found his own place of safety, security---his home.
On this day, this day when Jesus is drawn to the Temple, Mary and Joseph have a truth tangibly presented to them—a lesson every parent learns—that the day comes when they must let their child go,. And this day had come—they needed to let Jesus go so he could grow into his full identity.
And by letting him grow, by letting their Son by letting Jesus develop his own identity Joseph and Mary give us a wonderful gift a Savior who leads us to where we must be, at home with God.

Amen.