Scripture is the
basis of what we, children of God and followers of Christianity, are and do.
Other religions have their scriptures on which their beliefs and practices are
based but to Christians, the Bible is the authoritative source. We share the
Hebrew Scriptures, what we call the Old Testament, with our Jewish brothers and
sisters and, to a certain extent, our Islamic ones as well. The scriptures are
the story of humankind’s relationship with the deity they call God, the God we
refer to as Father and sometimes Mother. Scripture takes us through the ups and
downs of that relationship: times of creation, times of sin, times of judgment,
repentance and reconciliation. We read the history of salvation, culminating in
the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and the growth of the religion which
bears his title, Christ-ian. We hear a lot of scripture, especially Hebrew
scripture from the prophets, during Advent. The prophets tell us of what is
wrong but also gives us hope for things being made right. And the scriptures
tell us of Jesus teaching us just how to do it.
One of the great topics of scripture is sin, a word that isn’t very popular these days. We may call it
wrongdoing, misdemeanor, wickedness, transgression, or even crime, but in
reality the plain old word “sin” is the most descriptive. Sin is something that
separates, whether it is people from other people and even people from God. Sin
is a destructive choice, one that puts self above others, including God. It’s
no wonder we don’t like the word and shy around about using it. Still, if
people hadn’t sinned, there would have been no Advent—or Christmas or Epiphany
or Easter. Without sin, we would have no need for a redeemer.
Sabbath is an
important word not only for Advent but for every season. God created the world
in six days and then took the seventh day off. Christians observe Sunday as a
day of worship and rest, or at least, that’s what it used to be. We’ve become a
24/7 culture and we must be busy doing something, even if we call it
“recreation.” It never occurs to us that God rested on that seventh day; he didn’t play golf or shop in the
local stores or online ones either. The idea of Sabbath is to slow down, to
rest the body and mind. It isn’t easy; things keep popping up that need doing,
especially since we are so busy during the week with work, family and the like.
Still, Sabbath is important. Think of Advent as a Sabbath season, a time to slow
down, to spend more time thinking, especially thinking about God. It sounds
almost hilarious to think about slowing down in the season just before
Christmas with all the preparations that entails, but that’s precisely why we
need some Sabbath time. It’s making time for God.
The church marks different seasons, like Lent, Easter,
Pentecost, Advent, Christmas and Epiphany. Each season has particular propers,
prayers and hymns. Some seasons, however, have special services and Advent is one of them. Some churches and many
cathedrals do a yearly Service of Lessons and Carols during Advent. It’s like
the Easter Vigil in that it features a number of readings from various parts of
the Bible from Genesis onward. The Lessons and Carols intersperse the readings
that trace salvation history and the prophecies of a messiah and a redeemer and
up through the birth of Jesus with topical pieces of music for soloists and
choir as well as congregational hymns. Among the treats of the season is
listening to the service on BBC radio from King’s College Cambridge.
A second special service done during Advent is the Blue
Christmas observance. For many people, Christmas is not a time of joyous
preparation. Perhaps a loved one has recently died or the person has undergone
some other kind of loss that can lead to depression and feelings of
hopelessness. Culture generally gives the message that such feelings have no
place in this time of frenzied celebrations and that can deepen the feelings of
hopelessness and grief. The Blue Christmas service, usually held on December 21st,
the longest night of the year is a quiet one that speaks to comfort and support
of those whom culture ignores or gives the message that they need to just get
over whatever it is that is amiss. The emotions and feelings of those in grief
or depression are honored while being offered hope and healing through
acknowledgement of the journey on which they are walking. It is a powerful
service for all its gentleness. It can be a lifeline to a suffering soul.
Some churches hold a rather more exuberant celebration a
friend’s church calls “The Banging of the Pans to Chase Away the Dragons of
Darkness. There are prayers, hymns or Taizé chants, perhaps a video, and then
everyone goes outside to bang loudly on whatever pots and pans they have
brought. Like the Blue Christmas service, it is held on or around December 21st,
and by all accounts, every year it has successfully chased the dragon away
because the nights after the service have gradually begun to get longer. The
service concludes with a copious consumption of hot chocolate. Hot cider or
even hot tea might also be as efficacious.
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