December 6, 2021 - Advent Week 2

 

“One of the essential paradoxes of Advent: that while we wait for God, we are with God all along, that while we need to be reassured of God’s arrival, or the arrival of our homecoming, we are already at home. While we wait, we have to trust, to have faith, but it is God’s grace that gives us that faith. As with all spiritual knowledge, two things are true, and equally true, at once. The mind can’t grasp paradox; it is the knowledge of the soul.”
― Michelle Blake, writer and poet

 

I came across this passage and it speaks to me. The idea of Advent and Christmas being full of paradoxes seems right (and wrong!). The idea that the Messiah was born in a stable in a seemingly insignificant town seems paradoxical. Jumping ahead two thousand or so years, it remains one of the holiest times of the year, and at the same time, probably the most heavily commercialized.

I love the idea that Advent is not a season which can be fully grasped by the mind but only by the soul. May our souls be affirmed of this knowledge and enriched in this Advent Season and may our minds at least tag along for the ride

 

 

This video is a lovely rendition of a traditional Advent/Christmas Hymn and also displays gorgeous stained glass art. It is a shame that there seems to be no information about the singers or the stained glass.

 

Best wishes for the Season to our Church Family.

 

- Len Robinson

 

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