By MARY PANDIANI, D.LEAD
Executive Director
Selah Center

These two words aren’t ordinarily seen together. One is an adjective to cause annoyance and anger, but in this context, the word provocative references a strong reaction that requires some movement within the heart. With the noun humility, this attribute reflects a nature that knows itself well enough, not too big or too small, so that open-hearted curiosity and value affect not only the one with humility but anyone who comes in contact with that person.

While not separate, these two words don’t seem to have much in common except when we come to the Christmas story. The humility of Christmas comes with a reaction, or at least it needs one to see the more profound effect. It’s the story of a babe who changes the world through an ongoing unfolding of meaning and a call to action. From the beginning of the God incarnate—meaning living in human skin—we are reminded that God comes in humility, a self-emptying called Kenosis. Without that humility, we would run into another type of god that only speaks through authoritarian power. Instead, we enter the Christmas story with lenses that open our hearts.

And from there, a provocation springs up. If this babe who later becomes a man, walking, eating, and breathing among humans, has a message, it is this—we are called to love, a provocative call to action when considering the circumstances. This Jesus, the Christ, sets in motion an invitation to not only love our neighbors (hard enough, right?) but also our enemies. We, too, can find a strong reaction that catalyzes a movement to live with provocative humility. In this way, love becomes proper regard for the other, a love that says, “Tell me more about your story” as you live your own story. It’s all part of a bigger story rooted in the love and humility of God.

There is much to take from the Christmas story, whether in the traditional sense of family and celebrations or the spiritual reminder of Emmanuel—God-Among-Us. As we leave this year and enter into a new year, let provocative humility remind us that what we’ve been given is in the receiving and offering of love.

Merry Christmas and a Beloved and Beloving New Year!