On Groundhog Day
Yesterday, was Groundhog Day. It
is a strange “celebration.” In various
communities, clubs will bring out the groundhog they keep as a pet, and tell
the world what the groundhog told them, about whether spring is around the
corner sooner or later. (Deep down, I
think there is the desire for the cold and dark of winter to end and the warmth
and light of spring to come. People are
hoping for a reason to hope.) Of course,
around this area, it is kind of a big deal. This practice has roots in German folklore;
and this area of the United States had a lot of German settlers and
influence. Growing up, I thought that
THE groundhog was Octoraro Orphie; the groundhog local to southern Lancaster
County. I’m not sure how old I was before I realized
that there were other groundhogs being asked the same question. Even now, I guess you could say that I root
for the home team. That groundhog out in
Punxsutawney just doesn’t cut it!
But, while I might have my
biases, and think that all other groundhogs are distractions, Groundhog day
itself may be a distraction to something even deeper. The ancient calendars of
the church, still followed by many around the world, see February 2 as
Candlemas Day, or “the Feast of the Presentation.” It has been 40 days since Christmas; an appropriate
time, according to Jewish Custom, for a woman to come to the Temple after
giving birth. She would have performed
her purification rites, and the baby would be presented. In the case of a first-born male such as
Jesus, that would have meant the rites of redemption of the first born.
In our modern practice of
observing the life of Jesus, the lectionary puts our observance about a week or
so after the birth. But, the Gospel of
Luke, in chapter 2, verse 15 reads, “When the time came for the purification
rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him (Jesus) to
Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.” There is nothing there that indicates it came
a week or so after the birth. In fact,
that timeline really doesn’t make sense. Why is it that the modern church crunches the timeline
down? My guess: today we have such a short attention span. We’ve had Christmas. Presents have been
exchanged. It is time to move on to other diversions and distractions; like
seeing what groundhogs have to say about the weather. We are easily bored.
But, this strange “Holiday”
and the even lesser known religious observance can serve to challenge us, or at
least cause us to reflect. What is it
that determines the rhythms of your life?
Will we let the desires inside us drive us to seek answers that
satisfy? Or, will we wait patiently on
God’s timing, for God to reveal what He will, as He will? Will we respond to the hype of a party, with
top hats!? Or will we “be still and
know”? I’m not saying we cannot take note of the things of the world. We may even find some amusement in them. But, let us be defined and directed by our relationship to God, before all other things. Much as we might want an early spring, an
ever present God is even better.
Grace, Mercy, and Peace,
Pastor Blaine
|