Luke 1:57-66
Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, “No; he is to be called John.” They said to her, “None of your relatives has this name.” Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing-tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And all of them were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came over all their neighbors, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, “What then will this child become?” For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him.
There is something almost funny about Luke’s description of this scene. Don’t get me wrong, he’s not making fun of Elizabeth or Zechariah or their contemporaries. But he does seem to construct in this scene something of a “comedy of errors.”
Eight days after Elizabeth gives birth, it is time in Jewish tradition to name the child. And so friends and neighbors come around and, assuming he will be given the name of his father, prepare to name him “Zechariah.” “No,” his mother interjects. (Curious that they don’t consult her, but just presume….) “He is to be named John.”
Confused silence all around. “Did you father bear this name?” “No.” “A brother?” “No.” “What about an uncle or grandfather?” “No.” “Well, has anyone in your family ever borne the name of John?” “No.”
Stunned silence all around. And so they consult with Zechariah. (Even more curious that they don’t trust the mother’s word….) And Zechariah, who as you remember cannot speak, motions for a writing tablet and scrawls out the words, “His name is John.” Not “he should be named” or “he will be called,” but rather, simply and definitively, “His name is John.” It’s a settled matter. It was settled, after all, by the angel Gabriel nine months earlier. And Zechariah, it would appear, has learned his lesson.
Their confusion, I think, is understandable. When God gets involved in our lives things often take turns we hadn’t anticipated. And though perhaps not all that funny in the moment, our halting, often stumbling attempts to navigate the new terrain God’s promise has laid before us will, at a distance, appear even – and maybe especially – to us as humorous. Zechariah, once he regained his voice, no doubt looked back at his time on silence, shook his head, and chuckled to himself and his bride, “And to think I asked Gabriel how all this could happen.”
There is an ancient Christian hymn – actually, the oldest hymn we know outside the the Bible – often sung as part of evening prayer called the Phos Hilaron, a transliteration of the Greek often rendered as “gladdening light” or “joyous light.” But the word we translate as “gladdening” or “joyous” is also the root of our word “hilarious.” (So also in the Latin version, Lumen Hilare.) Which means that we might sing this song of praise to the “hilarious light of glory.”
Why did the early Christians choose such a peculiar song with which to end their days? Because they recognized, I think, that along with the wonder and excitement that comes to those who witness God’s activity in their lives always comes a bit of confusion, as things work out in ways we’d never expected, and eventually laughter, the hilarious laughter of those who have seen God choose an old woman to bear the herald of the Messiah, a young virgin to give birth to the Son of God, and an executed criminal born in a stable to redeem the world. Hilarious, indeed.
Prayer: Dear God, never stop surprising us with your grace and mercy. Because while it may confuse us at first, we need the laughter and joy your presence always brings. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
From the Service for Evening Prayer (Vespers), the Lutheran Book of Worship:
Joyous light of glory
of the immortal Father,
Heavenly, holy, blessed Jesus Christ,
We have come to the setting of the Sun
And we look to the evening light.
We sing to God, the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy of being praised with pure voices forever.
O Son of God, O Giver of Light,
The universe proclaims your glory.
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