Some kid makes a drawing of the Nativity scene. Everyone looks familiar except for a guy standing in the corner. “Who’s that?” asks his teacher or mom or Sunday school teacher. “That’s Round John Virgin,” says the kid. “You know, Round John Virgin, mother, and child.”
It’s a cute story. It’s probably not true.
The young couple knocks on the door of the motel. It’s late. They are dropping from fatigue. The owner opens the door, looks impassively at the pregnant woman, the desperate man. He shrugs. “No room.” He starts to push the door shut. The man sticks his foot in the door. “Please. you are the last place in town. We’ve traveled all night.” The owner shrugs his apology. And then, as an afterthought, says, “I suppose there might be room out back.”
It’s a cute story. It’s probably not true.
Here’s what the text says:
… and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
There’s no innkeeper. I’ve looked. Not even in the Greek is there an indication of someone who said to Mary and Joseph, “We don’t have room for you.”
Why do we want an innkeeper? What value does his rejection and subsequent offering of a humble space add to the nativity story, beyond extra pageant roles?
I think it has given preachers a minor negative character for the story. In Herod we have a major negative character. No one could possibly accidentally be Herod. But the innkeeper? Everyone can be a little too busy, a little too preoccupied for the Savior.
But what if the story of the birth of Jesus isn’t a morality play? What if it’s a biography? And that’s stunning enough?
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I could use some help. Some of you are the kind of people who remember favorites and who may have a favorite post from 300words. Would you send me an email at jnswanson@ gmail.com telling me when it was? I’d like to run some of your favorites between Christmas and New Year’s. Thanks.
300 words a day 
Bridget
Could it be that the innkeeper represents humanity, especially the aspect of our human experience that causes us to not see the holiness that’s right in front of our noses?
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Jon Swanson
I think that’s a great insight Bridget. Thanks!
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Frank Reed
Wow. I have been asleep at the wheel all of these Christmases because I assumed the innkeeper was part of Scripture and never truly paid attention that only by assumption do we get the innkeeper who said “No room”.
Even a very well-known pastor that I respect a lot had a devotion today that said we are introduced to the innkeeper in Luke 2. I went right to the Bible wondering what I would find. You couldn’t both be right. And there it was: no mention at all. Even he embellished and extrapolated. We want everything to fit into a way that we can understand it. We embellish everything so we can be more comfortable with it. Meanwhile, if we would just read the words we would have the truth.
Thanks, Jon, I needed to see that Scripture is Scripture. We are not to add or subtract so why do I do it so freely every day?
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Jon Swanson
Frank, I hadn’t thought about it until I was looking at the characters this weekend. And I realized that there isn’t that character.
Thanks for your reflection here.
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Frank Reed
Jon, another note.
Your line
But what if the story of the birth of Jesus isn’t a morality play? What if it’s a biography? And that’s stunning enough?
floored me when I read it again. It IS stunning enough. He IS stunning enough. How could I add anything of any relevance to he Creator? We humans can be so arrogant and I lead the pack. Thanks so much for making me realize that He is who He is and I don’t need to do anything other than believe.
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