Psalm 67:4-5 - Peoples will praise You, O God; all peoples will praise You. Nations will exult and shout for joy, for You rule the peoples with equity.
I'll be honest, I read this and I think, "Yeah, right." Where is the justice? The Middle-East is closer to a major conflagration, Russia is interfering in our politics and our president does nothing, people all over the world are hungry although we produce enough food for everyone, fires are raging in Santa Barbara and other parts of California, and the rich are busy waging war against poor people and "mere workers." That's just some the the crap going on. This has been a rough year for many of us and joy doesn't seem very reasonable.
And yet. And yet ... this is roughly how the world was for Jewish people under Roman occupation: oppression, suffering, powerlessness. In the midst of this suffering, Mary finds herself unwed and pregnant in a culture that required stoning of such women. And yet ... she sang her song of praise and rejoiced anyway. "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my savior." (Luke 1:46-7) Why is Mary rejoicing? She caught a vision of justice and righteousness ruling the earth. "He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty." (Luke 1:53) This is exactly what the psalmist sees; "You rule the peoples with equity."
That sure isn't our world now. Peter and I were listening to an interview with Walter Brueggemann, a Presbyterian scholar, and we were struck by one thing he said. Responding to a question about whether he sees heaven as a place to be in the afterlife or a place here and now, he said he thought heaven is something here and now and that God uses people to co-create it. My response is, if we look around and don't see justice for people experiencing poverty, hunger, homelessness, disabilities, or violence, it's because we are not cooperating with God.
Joy is not something we can control. It's not dependent on justice here and now; it's dependent on our co-creating with God. When Mary rejoiced to see the future promise of justice, she had already found favor with God. Joy is a gift of the Spirit that comes upon us unexpectedly in the messiness of our lives, just as it came upon Mary in the midst of a life-threatening situation.
What are we co-creating with God today? How can we remain open to joy when it comes, even in the midst of fear, anxiety, oppression and heartache?
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