Interesting thing about your rector:
I am a word nerd. I like language, I geek out a little bit with lexicography (the study of words).
And what happens sometimes, when my brain is adequately caffeinated, is I start questioning the use of some words.
Today, for example; in reflecting on John’s … emphatic little speech, there is a lot that can garner attention and focus. Especially at the beginning – he really sets the tone with his declaration:
YOU BROOD OF VIPERS.
Well, John is not one to mince words – lots of time alone in the wilderness has removed that nice filter between the brain and the mouth – that filter that catches awkward thoughts and helps re-phrase blunt statements. Yup, John’s is gone.
And my word-nerd bit is focusing on the collective noun here: BROOD.
As a noun, A brood is for critters that are hatched from eggs; usually birds. One family.
As a verb, to brood is either to think deeply about something, usually sulkily; or to sit on eggs until they hatch – brooding hens, for example.
As an adjective, to brood is to engage in protective measures – a hen covering chicks with her wings, for warmth.
A brood is NOT the collective noun for vipers. Or for any snakes. For snakes, being cold-blooded, do not have need for brooding.
Now: I have shared before that the least amount of time I can think about snakes the better – so when my brain kept going back to the serpentine reference, I wondered what was up.
YOU BROOD OF VIPERS.
So. Vipers. Snakes. Big snakes. Unpleasant snakes, who tend to ambush their prey – ideally at night, when they can’t be seen.
These are snakes with longer-than-normal fangs, that hinge back into their mouths – until they want to attack, then they open their jaws almost flat, flip down the fangs to give a good deep bite in order to provide a good dose of snake venom.
Not cuddly household pets.
And an interesting thing about vipers is this: they don’t tend to lay eggs in a nest – they have a live birth. Yes, little vipers all around, with fangs aplenty.
Ew.
SO. Here’s the thing.
Folks knew all this about vipers in those days. They were a considerable threat. Walking out and about in the desert, you wanted to be very careful where you stepped. Being out at night – dangerous timing – it’s snakey time then, after all. And with the fastest thing about vipers being their bite, these were to be avoided.
Because a viper bite usually meant death.
Vipers: bearers of pain. Bringers of death.
Vipers were to be avoided.
YOU BROOD OF VIPERS.
So then: why does John use the word BROOD to speak to the people, while insulting them by calling them snakes?
Because a brood meant – as I said above – a family, a generation.
You generation of vipers –
You generation of sneaky, slithery, deceptive, life-destroyers, snakes who disappear at the first sense of danger, who avoid interaction unless you’re being violent.
You Brood of vipers.
This, in case we missed it at first: this is not a way to make friends.
John learns that quickly.
But John is saying these things because he is SO passionate and SO committed to the promises that God offers. And, he seems to think that the people have been so oblivious to the messages they’ve received up until now, that they need some tough love bluntness.
You brood of vipers.
But here’s the other thing about John: he’s used to the wilderness. He’s out there at night; he’s seen the vipers in their natural habitat.
So he would have known that vipers don’t attack unless they are threatened.
He would have known that they are the slowest of the snakes in the entirety of snakedom.
He would have known that they stick close together after birth, until they are able to fend for themselves in the wilderness.
He would have seen – and known – that vipers have redeeming qualities.
And THAT is a powerful statement for him to be making to these people.
This generation before him that would flee from wrath.
That would skitter away from anything they didn’t like.
That would be damaging without willing to be accountable for their actions.
You brood of vipers:
John is keen to share with them the dangers that he has seen within them: and they were living lives that needed some repentance: extortion, greed, selfishness, anger, etc.
All the worst of humanity, that we still carry in us today.
You brood of vipers, John says.
Stop doing things that destroy, and instead bear fruit that is worthy of repentance.
The word-nerd is going to come in again for a moment.
…Fruit that is worthy of repentance:
This is an old turn of phrase that actually means to bear fruit that is keeping with the concept of repentance.
It is a call to say what we mean, and to do what we say.
It’s an invitation to align our actions with our words and with our thoughts.
The people of the day, who first heard John, and we – the people of today – who still hear John - We are to change our minds so that we are not just inwardly focused, but community-focused. It’s not just about our family, or our church, or our town: it’s about the kingdom of God. The family of God. The generation – the brood – of God’s own caring.
Bear fruit that is worthy of repentance.
Align action with thought and word.
Great – well – how do we do that??
It’s using our energy to build up the community!
To extend kindness to a neighbour,
to welcome a stranger,
to look for gaps that can be bridged
…without denying anyone full life in the process.
It’s using our resources to provide for the folks who could use it
to clothe the poor
To feed the hungry
To care for the sick and lonely
…without judging why they are experiencing need in the first place.
It’s using our skill to promote a just society:
To engage with dignity
To work for healthier systems
To advocate for the destitute
…without wanting to make sure people honour you for your efforts.
It’s using our faith to share the good news of God:
to pray with and for folks
to do what we can to live the commandments of God
to turn away from sin and return to God, who always delights in our return (no matter how many times we stray.
It’s sharing good news, ensuring that people know this goodness, this holiness, comes from God – and not from us. Like John did.
You get the idea. This is the good fruit that we all want to bear:
Fruit that is nourishing
Fruit that is abundant
Fruit that will continue to grow!
Fruit that is born of the Spirit of God,
Fruit that shows that we have changed.
And this is the joy of Advent – to start the liturgical year off committed to change. To doing better. To being better. To connecting with God, and with each other, better.
To healing. To reconciling. To re-connecting.
So.
This is our call. This is our time. This is our opportunity.
To change our sinful ways.
To share the good news.
To live the faith-filled life.
To love with abundance.
To praise our Redeemer, our Saviour, our Lord Jesus: for he comes.
And we wish to be ready for that day.
You beloved brood of vipers.
