Deep in the Heart of Advent

For those of us observing an Extended Advent, we are now in the heart of the season.  I think that one of the great benefits of this expanded observance is that the extra days give us a true opportunity to meditate on the dual emphases of Advent.  The overwhelming attention of most folks is on a movement toward Christmas Day.  Even people who can engage Advent in a free-standing way still are pulled toward Bethlehem and the manger.

But, stir another three weeks into the mix and it is also time sufficient to think on the eschatological (things dealing with the end of time, judgement, the Second Coming) accent of this period as well.  The gospel Readings from the Revised common Lectionary (RCL) have dealt with the destruction of the Temple, the Passion of Jesus and the misguided nature of attempting to calculate the moment of the End-Times.  There will be dreams and angels soon enough, but the church reminds us that this season has size, it is a time of depth and breadth.

Extended Advent also encourages us not to be in a hurry.  If four weeks seems to move slowly, almost double that time may make us feel that the clock is standing still.  But, as it gives us enough time to do things properly, completely, it will pass soon enough.

The peace of the Lord be with you.

The Advent Calendar

One of the more family-friendly customs of Advent is the Advent Calendar.  This is a calendar that offers a kind of countdown from the beginning of the season until Christmas Eve (or Christmas Day, depending on the calendar).  These come in all varieties of form.  The most common is made of stiff cardboard with small numbered doors that move a person through the season.  Behind the door there can be a short scripture quotation, or a seasonal picture or some other “surprise.” 

There are calendar units that have more substance.  They can be made of hardwood or other material, and the doors (or drawers) might contain tree ornaments, candy or other treats.

The custom dates back to the mid 1800’s where their use in Germany is well-attested.

Calendars that are used again and again frequently start on December 1.  Since the recent observances of Advent can begin as early as November 27 those calendars that are produced for use in a particular year include the latter days of November.  At one point, our family had a calendar that went through Advent and extended through the Twelve Days of Christmas and had Epiphany – January 6 – as its last door.  If our Extended Advent observance gains any momentum, maybe we will someday see a calendar that begins at the beginning of our seven-week celebration – on or near St. Martin’s Day (November 11).

Our family also has a home-produced calendar made of fabric that hangs like a banner.  There are pockets on the lower portion that contain small pillows with seasonal decorations.  The calendar itself is sewn on the hanging with the numbers 1 through 25 arranged in the configuration of a Christmas tree.  The numbers have a small hook and loop dot on them.  The pillows have the other half of the hook & loop and so can be easily attached to the calendar.

It is frequently the custom in families to have the children open doors or do whatever activity the particular calendar involves.

Sadly, but predictably, the custom is being overrun by the commercial market.  Once you went to a religious book house or store or a card shop to procure this year’s treasure.  Now there are Lego and Hershey’s kisses and Nintendo and Playmobile and every Disney character known to humankind versions of the calendars, and these are truly “Countdown to Christmas” items.

But I have hopes that the tradition, like the season, can be maintained in the hearts of those who see this season as a time of spiritual nurture rather than rank consumerism.

The peace of the Lord be with you.

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus

Charles Wesley wrote over 6,500 hymns.  He went through a stretch in his life where he wrote a hymn per day as a devotional exercise.  We know that many of these hymns were quite lengthy.  Just for example, he wrote one hymn titled On the Anniversary of a Conversion that was eighteen stanzas in length.  Seventeen of these are printed in poetical form as #58 in The United Methodist Hymnal.  The middle six verses are printed on the previous page and has the more familiar title O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing.

So, it is noteworthy that Wesley took a little two-stanza that he originally composed as a prayer based on Haggai 2:7:

and I will shake all the nations, so that the treasure of all nations shall come, and I will fill this house with splendour, says the Lord of hosts.  (NRSV)

and published it as a hymn by and for the struggling poor, especially children living in poverty.

He first published it in Hymns for the Nativity of our Lord in 1744.  It has been a part of most Methodist hymnals and song-books since that date.

It is truly a prayer for the Second Coming and is most appropriate for this season.

Come, thou long expected Jesus,

born to set thy people free;

from our fears and sins release us,

let us find our rest in thee.

Israel's strength and consolation,

hope of all the earth thou art;

dear desire of every nation,

joy of every longing heart.

Born thy people to deliver,

born a child and yet a King,

born to reign in us forever,

now thy gracious kingdom bring.

By thine own eternal spirit

rule in all our hearts alone;

by thine all sufficient merit,

raise us to thy glorious throne.

Psalm 117

          ¹ Praise the Lord, all you nations;

              extol him, all you peoples.

          ² For great is his love toward us,

              and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

          Praise the Lord.

The Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) Psalter daily reading is Psalm 117.  It has the distinction of being the shortest chapter in all of scripture.  That does not make it insignificant.  It is a Psalm of invitation as well as praise.  In Advent, when we consider the coming of Israel’s Messiah who became the Savior of the whole world, we see a foretaste of God’s plan in this hymn.  It is not the few, or the many, but “all nations” and “all people” who receive the invitation to praise the One True God.  It is also the entirety of the human race to which God’s love and faithfulness are pledged forever.

Thanksgiving Day in The Advent Season

In a couple of days, Americans will celebrate Thanksgiving Day.  It is important to say that this is a national holiday in the US, because other countries have thanksgiving traditions calendared on other dates, some of them far removed from the American observance.

On the other hand, Advent is a season that Christians all around the world embrace.  Not all Christian groups have Advent customs.  And, Advent moves around the calendar a bit depending on denominational traditions.  The length of the season is one that we are examining ourselves this year.

And Advent and thanksgiving are not at odds with one another.  They can easily coexist in our lives and in our festal calendar.  But, BUT, Advent is the church’s festival.  Thanksgiving is a part of the secular calendar. Some folks are bothered that there is an Advent wreath on the church’s worship center rather than an ear of corn and a cornucopia.  I might feel a little differently if Thanksgiving started in the church.  But I can’t remember the last time I attended (or heard of) a worship service in a church on Thanksgiving Day.  When I was a young child several of the congregations in our neighborhood – including my church -- held a joint worship service at about 10:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving, but that has long ceased being the practice.  I have pastored congregations that held services on Wednesday evening, but those, too, have slipped away.  Let’s be honest, the day is a day for parades, football games, family reunions and feasting to the point of gluttony.  I like parades.  I like football. I like getting together with family.  I love to eat the traditional fare of the day.  But let’s don’t deceive ourselves into thinking that a slightly longer table grace makes the day a Day of thanksgiving.

Meanwhile, we are desperately trying to rehabilitate this time of year in the name of the Advent of the Christ.  I’m sticking with the Advent Wreath.

The O Antiphon for the Third Week of Advent

The O antiphon for the week is:

O ADONAI, and Leader of the house of Israel, who appeared to Moses in the flames of the bush and gave him the Law on Sinai:

Come, and with your outstretched arm redeem us.

Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

Adonai is an odd word for liturgical use, at least for Christians.  A form of it appears sparingly in the Hebrew Bible, but it is rare.  More common is the title for God’s use in Jewish liturgy.  As pronouncing the name YHWH (Yahweh?) came to be forbidden, substitutes were offered when the readings called for the word to be said aloud.  Adonai or less frequently HaShem ("The Name") were employed as replacements.

In modern Christian hymnody, the term Adonai is used along with a long list of Hebrew names and titles in the song El Shaddai, written by Michael J. Card & John W Thompson and popularized in the 1982 release by Amy Grant.

As the antiphon indicates, the title Adonai is associated with the stories of God’s liberation of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt and issuing the Covenant Law at Sinai.

Ruler of Nations

The reading for the Lighting of the Advent Wreath for the third Sunday of Advent is:

Leader: As our nights grow longer and our days grow short,

we look on these earthly signs--light and green branches--

and remember God's promise to our world:

Christ, our Light and our Hope, will come.

Listen to these words from the Revelation to John:

“And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had

conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the

sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. And they sing the song of

Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb:

‘Great and amazing are your deeds,

Lord God the Almighty!

Just and true are your ways,

King of the nations!

Lord, who will not fear and glorify your name?

For you alone are holy.

all nations will come and worship before you,

for your judgments have been revealed.’”

(Revelation 15:2-4)

Leader: Let us pray.

All: God of power and love,

you raised Jesus from death to life,

resplendent in glory to rule over all creation.

Free the world to rejoice in his peace,

to glory in his justice,

and to live in his love.

Unite all humankind in Jesus Christ your Son,

Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

One God, forever and ever. Amen.