O Come O Come Emmanuel

As we “climax” towards 25 Dec, do have a moment to remember and rejoice.

“Still we have to keep speaking about Christ, the Anointed One, Jesus, he will save us from our sins, Emmanuel, God with us, as we keep speaking about Christmas. If we do not, our celebrations easily lose their depth. And then instead of being essential to our spiritual life, they become pious ornaments of a moral respectable existence.”

(Reused and reworded "Reaching Out" by Henri Nouwen.)

+++
Though Advent (literally "arrival") has been observed for centuries as a time to contemplate Christ's birth, most people today acknowledge it only with a blank look. For the vast majority of us, December flies by in a flurry of activities, and what is called "the holiday season" turns out to be the most stressful time of the year. We want to sense the deeper meanings of the season but grasp at them in vain; and in the end, all the bustle leaves us frustrated and drained.

Even we who do not experience such stress and tensions - who genuinely love Christmas - often miss its point. Content with candles and carols and good food, we bask in the warmth of familiar traditions, in reciprocated acts of kindness, and in feelings of general goodwill. How many of us remember the harsh realities of Christ's first coming: Amid the sparkle and the color and music of the day’s celebration we do well to remember that the entry of God into his own world was almost frightening quiet and heartbreakingly humble. In sober fact there is little romance or beauty in the thought of a young woman looking desperately for a place where she could give birth to her first baby.

How many of us share the longing of the ancient prophets, who awaited the Messiah with such aching intensity that they foresaw his arrival thousands of years before he was born? If the essence of Advent is expectancy, it is also readiness for action: watchfulness for every opening, and willingness to risk everything for freedom and a new beginning. Mary did. So did the shepherds and the wise men of the East. So can each of us, wherever we are. That is why the imagery of nativity scenes is not sufficient to explain the Christmas message. Yes, God came into the feeding trough of an animal. But it was not only as a baby that he lay there. This child was the same man who was crucified and who rose again.

Advent marks something momentous: God's coming into our midst. That coming is not just something that happened in the past. It is a recurring possibility here and now, a yearly opportunity for us to consider the future, second Advent - the promised coming of God's kingdom on earth. Yet I believe that at least once a year we should look steadily at the historic fact, and not at any pretty picture. At the time of this astonishing event only a handful of people knew what had happened.


Adapted from Charles Moore Meaning Of Advent and J. B. Phillips, Dangers Of Advent