We are now fully ensconced in the season of Epiphany. The Christmas trees and Christmas decorations in our homes have been carefully packed away for another year. The same has been done at church. If you have tuned into our live streamed Christmas services, you might have noticed that despite the fact that only a few of us have had access to the church in our efforts to stay safe in the midst of the pandemic, the chancel was nonetheless beautifully decorated with garland and the lovely ceramic nativity set. Steve Johnson and Harvey Caldwell have done this work. For another year, they have found the boxes of garland and nativity set figures in the bowels of the church and have placed them about the altar. They did this slowly through the weeks of Advent, placing items so that their arrival matched the readings for that particular week. The Shepherds with the sheep came, and then Mary and Joseph. The Baby Jesus didn’t arrive until Christmas Eve. As the Shepherds and sheep disappeared, the Wise Ones with their attending camels appeared. Now that we are fully into the season of Epiphany, the garland is back in the boxes; Mary and Joseph have returned to Nazareth and the Wise Ones back to their homes in the East (or at least as they sit in their cardboard boxes in the basement until next Advent, that is where I imagine they are).

Despite the pandemic, despite the fact that so few parishioners perhaps even noticed, Steve and Harvey went through the motions of preparing the church for the arrival of the Christ Child. I am quite positive that few noticed, but Harvey even carved a new wooden staff for the ceramic Joseph whose staff had gone missing. They went through the motions even though most of us probably didn’t even notice. Going through the motions. Much of our lives is just going through the motions.

The Bible tells the story of Mary Magdalene who, like Steve and Harvey, went through the motions. For two days after the crucifixion, Mary Magdalene weeps, but on the third day, she composes herself and does what is necessary for the preparation of a dead body. She assembles the necessary items for a proper anointing and proceeds to the place where Jesus’ body had been laid. Her intention is to anoint his body with the requisite spices. In her sadness and despair, she was going through the motions. But something happens at the grave; she encounters the living Jesus who calls her by name. Mary Magdalene becomes the first witness to the resurrected Christ, and in turn, becomes the first evangelist, telling the disciples of this great good news.

If she had not been about the business of doing the ordinary, expected thing of anointing the body of a loved one with spices, Mary would have missed the miracle. If she had not been going through the motions, Mary Magdalene would have missed the life-changing and history-altering encounter with the resurrected Jesus.

Sometimes, our lives seem to be little more than going through the motions. This is especially true during these days of the pandemic when many of us seem to do the same things and stay in the same places day after day after day. It is so easy to become discouraged by the mundane, ordinary rhythms of our lives as if our lives are being stolen from underneath our noses.

But God is close, so close to us. God is closer to us than our very breath. Never forget the story of Mary Magdalene. Never forget that God shows up most often as we are going about our everyday, ordinary lives. Never forget that the Spirit moves in the regular routines of our lives. Go through the motions and try to do so joyfully. Keep your eyes open because the God of life and love may just pull off a miracle right in front of us. And the next time you see Steve and Harvey… well, give them a pat on the back for going through the motions.

~Father Art