Fourth Sunday in Advent

The Fourth Sunday in Advent celebrates the lighting of the Angel candle. I love seeing all the four main candles lit around the Advent wreath. The Collect from the 1928 Book of Common Prayer reads thus:

O Lord, raise up, we pray thee, thy power, and come among us, and with great might succour us; that whereas, through our sins and wickedness, we are sore let and hindered in running the race that is set before us, thy bountiful grace and mercy may speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with thee and the Holy Ghost, be honour and glory, world without end. Amen.

The Epistle reading for the Fourth Sunday in Advent is one of my favorite passages, one that we all need to know and refer to often in leading a joyous and victorious life in Christ Jesus, Philippians 4:4-7:

"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

When I searched Google Images for a nice image of Advent candles for this blog post, I found one that had the four candles lit for the Fourth Sunday. When I clicked on the image, Google took me to my own photo blog! So the photo above is my own from last year. Right now with my computer not hooking up to Broadband, I'm using Keith's and thus do not have access to my photos. Until I Googled.....

I dread the ending of Advent. I love gathering around the lit wreath in our darkened kitchen, reading the Scriptures and singing very off-key carols. I love watching the kids struggling to light the match before carefully lighting each candle, their brows furrowed in concentration. I love watching them run to the next room to the wall-hanging Advent calendar to read the Scriptures and pull out the chocolate treat in the pocket.

But I can tell that the kids are beginning to outgrow our Advent celebrations. They seem impatient and quite often don't want to choose a carol to sing. With E a high school junior this year, I know I really have only one year left with all four kids gathered around our Advent wreath.

They grow up way too fast....

YYYYYEEEEESSSSSS!!! The Ultimate Birthday Gift!

AT LAST!!!!!!!!!

I just read on U2.com that the band's 12th studio album will be released on MY NEXT BIRTHDAY! MARCH 2, 2009 is the release date of U2's No Line on the Horizon.

I'm assuming that the jpeg above is the photo on the album cover from U2.com. I'd hyperlink you to the story on their official website, but really, I just gave you all the info.

Okay, if you want to read the list of studios they recorded No Line on the Horizon at U2.com, click here.

St. John of the Cross

St. John of the Cross is one of my favorite religious writers. I'm a few days late in celebrating his Feast Day (December 14), but I want to express my admiration for this Saint who lived long ago (1541-1591). His writings on the "Dark Night of the Soul" has helped me so much in my own spiritual life.

So below is the daily post from americancatholic.org; enjoy!

John is a saint because his life was a heroic effort to live up to his name: “of the Cross.” The folly of the cross came to full realization in time. “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me” (Mark 8:34b) is the story of John’s life. The Paschal Mystery—through death to life—strongly marks John as reformer, mystic-poet and theologian-priest.

Ordained a Carmelite priest at 25 (1567), John met Teresa of Jesus (Avila) and like her vowed himself to the primitive Rule of the Carmelites. As partner with Teresa and in his own right, John engaged in the work of reform, and came to experience the price of reform: increasing opposition, misunderstanding, persecution, imprisonment. He came to know the cross acutely—to experience the dying of Jesus—as he sat month after month in his dark, damp, narrow cell with only his God!

Yet, the paradox! In this dying of imprisonment John came to life, uttering poetry. In the darkness of the dungeon, John’s spirit came into the Light. There are many mystics, many poets; John is unique as mystic-poet, expressing in his prison-cross the ecstasy of mystical union with God in the Spiritual Canticle.

But as agony leads to ecstasy, so John had his Ascent to Mt. Carmel, as he named it in his prose masterpiece. As man-Christian-Carmelite, he experienced in himself this purifying ascent; as spiritual director, he sensed it in others; as psychologist-theologian, he described and analyzed it in his prose writings. His prose works are outstanding in underscoring the cost of discipleship, the path of union with God: rigorous discipline, abandonment, purification. Uniquely and strongly John underlines the gospel paradox: The cross leads to resurrection, agony to ecstasy, darkness to light, abandonment to possession, denial to self to union with God. If you want to save your life, you must lose it. John is truly “of the Cross.” He died at 49—a life short, but full.

Comment:
John in his life and writings has a crucial word for us today. We tend to be rich, soft, comfortable. We shrink even from words like self-denial, mortification, purification, asceticism, discipline. We run from the cross. John’s message—like the gospel—is loud and clear: Don’t—if you really want to live!

Quote:
Thomas Merton said of John: "Just as we can never separate asceticism from mysticism, so in St. John of the Cross we find darkness and light, suffering and joy, sacrifice and love united together so closely that they seem at times to be identified."

In John's words:
"Never was fount so clear,
undimmed and bright;
From it alone, I know proceeds all light
although 'tis night."

Third Week in Advent

On the third Sunday of Advent, we light the rose-colored candle in addition to the two purple candles from earlier weeks. We evangelicals call this rose candle the Shepherd Candle, although why this week's candle is rose is not clear at all. But when we recall the more liturgical traditions of Advent denote this candle as being the Heaven Candle for Gaudette (joyful) Sunday, the lightening of the penitential purple to rose makes much more sense.

The Collect (collective prayer) for the Third week of Advent in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer reads:

O Lord Jesus Christ, who at thy first coming didst send thy messenger to prepare thy way before thee; Grant that the ministers and stewards of thy mysteries may likewise so prepare and make ready thy way, by turning the hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, that at thy second coming to judge the world we may be found an acceptable people in thy sight, who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Spirit ever, one God, world without end. Amen.

At Lake Murray, the families lighting the candles during First and again at Second Service read Scriptures from the 40th chapter of the Prophecy of Isaiah, starting at the eighth verse:

"The grass withers, the flowers fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, 'Behold your God!' Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him; behold, his reward is with him and his recompense before him. He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bososm, and gently lead those that are with young" (English Standard Version).

So at Lake Murray and at home we lit the three candles for the Third Week of Advent, ever keeping our sights on the One who came to earth as a humble infant and will come again with all His glorious and terrible majesty to judge the living and the dead. Rejoice, for His kingdom shall never end!

A Wondrous "Journey"

Aaaah, Christmas – the wonderful, magical time of year when we experience the season with the wonder of a child. Such was the delightful surprise that over 160 residents of Pine Valley and environs experienced as the Mountain Empire Creative Art Council's Pine Valley Players presented their first holiday production, A Journey Through Christmas, at Worthington Hall on the grounds of the Pine Valley Bible Conference Center on Saturday evening, December 13.

A Journey Through Christmas was written and directed by Pine Valley resident Dianne Holly (who also designed the extraordinary costumes!), ably assisted by Guatay resident Mary Aragon. Narrated by Christine Siders, the play chronicled Christmas celebrations starting with the Nativity, and proceeding through a Mexican Candlelight procession, a Victorian Christmas, a 1930's Depression-era family scene, and finished with a Soldiers' Christmas, represented by soldiers and their families from the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War II, and the present-day conflict. Each tableau was beautifully portrayed by approximately 25 local actors ranging in age from children of seven years to some venerable and bearded Wise Men and a jolly Santa Claus.

Between and during the tableaux, the dozen singers of the all-female choir, directed by Teri Carpentier-Antti (who also provided the piano accompaniment), provided beautifully-sung Christmas selections. At the close of the play, the audience joined the choir in singing some beloved carols.

E and J were in two tableaux: the Victorian Christmas and in the final Soldiers scene as part of the Civil War family. E wore a gorgeous skirt of a shiny material that changed from green to red in certain lights (and was hemmed by hand by our dear friend Judith). J wore his "basic" (white shirt and black pants) with a green satin cravat -- both can be seen in the photo above as part of the Soldiers' Christmas. Although E played J's mother in both scenes, they only had lines in the Victorian tableau.

Before the production, the Free Teen Guitar Class (including J) of Alpine Anglican Church of the Blessed Trinity, directed by Fr. Keith Acker, provided guitar music for those who were finding their seats and perusing the Art Ornament Auction. Many thanks to all of the local artists who donated the beautiful ornaments and to Marshall and Mary Chapman who organized the auction, and especially to Mark Aragon and Debby Alexander for lighting and sound direction, along with kudos to many individuals and groups too numerous to list here.

E and T (and J once or twice) helped create props for several Saturdays before the final production, but T was down sick on the night of the show, so only B was an usher at the front door, gtrreting playgoers and handing out the wonderful programs created by our MECAC Director, Judith Dupree. The inclement weather was a serious challenge as heavy downpours created flooding in parts of the prop room and in the parking lot. During the Saturday afternoon rehearsal, fierce winds blew over and broke a canopy that would have protected actors waiting to enter at the back door for the candlelight procession. Despite a rather shaky final dress rehearsal with several missed cues and dangerous weather issues, the performance on Saturday night was nearly perfect and was much enjoyed by all who attended.

Great appreciation and rounds of applause also go the Pine Valley Bible Conference Center for providing rehearsal space (along with the Pine Valley Improvement Club) as well as a beautiful (and warm!) production venue, and to our local advertisers and all who attended the play for their support of arts in the backcountry. And special thanks go to Alpine Anglican Church of the Blessed Trinity for their financial support and for bringing up the Free Teen Guitar Class to strum some Christmas favorites before the production started.

A magical evening was enjoyed by all who experienced this first of what we hope will be many theatre productions of MECAC's Pine Valley Players in the Mountain Empire area.

The Marks of the Early Church

Over the past eighteen months I have become a fan of the writings of Pastor John H. Armstrong of Act 3 Ministries. (Thanks to William for introducing me to Armstrong's ministry.) Armstrong's ecumenical outlook is fresh and, in my humble opinion, absolutely Biblical. His latest weekly series is on the Early Church and their idea of the word "catholic" in the Creeds of the faith. He opens the article with several quotations, and this one spoke especially to me:

"You did not first learn the Lord’s Prayer and after that the Creed; but first the Creed, from which you should know what to believe, and afterward the Lord’s Prayer, from which you should know whom to invoke. The Creed outlines the articles of faith, whereas the Lord’s Prayer tells you how to address your petitions; because it is the man of faith that has his prayers heard." -- St. Augustine

The entire article can be read by clicking right here. It's food for thought for every Protestant, especially every evangelical and challenges what we think about unity within the Church. He specifically mentions the inherent danger (perhaps too strong a word, but then, perhaps not) substitution of the words "Christian" or "universal" for the word "catholic" in the Apostle's Creed -- which has indeed occurred in my own evangelical church at times.

I've just added the weekly Act 3 Ministries letter to my Google Reader so I'll never miss an issue. You may not always agree with Armstrong, but he certainly gives us much to ponder about how we live our Christian lives and how we consider Christians of different traditions.

A Surprise Christmas Gift

A couple of weeks ago, a large, registered Priority envelope was delivered to our PO Box. Keith brought it home, wondering if I had ordered something. I had not.

The registered information sported a bemusing return address: From Santa Claus on Workshop Lane, the North Pole. The only real clue was the Santee zip code in the upper corner.

Inside was a Costco gift card, but no amount was listed on it. An enclosed note wished us a Merry Christmas, printed in Christmas colors by a common laser printer.

The following weekend Keith forgot about using the gift card for our weekly Costco run, which is where we buy the vast majority of our food: meat, canned tomatoes and tomato sauce, Cheerios, eggs, dairy, butter, bananas, baby carrots, etc. The stuff of life. We eat as gluten-free as possible due to the kids' and my own sensitivities to heavily-processed food, and Costco carries much of what we need each week -- about 75% of our weekly food budget.

So after last week's forgetfulness, Keith stowed the gift card in front of his Costco card so that there was no way he could miss using it when he next went grocery shopping. (He shops while I plan meals and write out the lists each week -- a very nice division of labor.) I made a list a bit more extensive this week and added a few paper goods we have been without for a while, hoping that the card was for fifty dollars or so.

The card had a balance of five hundred dollars.

So if the saint(s) who sent us the Costco card happen(s) to be a reader here, we thank you so much for blessing us! What an amazing gift for us when Keith has been out of work, doing handyman jobs to help us make ends meet. And special thanks to all of our friends who are praying for us as well. We continue to rest in the goodness of our God and in His beloved saints who live and love in the image of Christ.

A blessed Advent and Christmas season to you all, dear readers.

"Advent 1955" by John Bejteman

I discovered this Advent poem on the blog Go to Bethlehem and See, a special Advent blog by the members of the Boar's Head Tavern. If the true concepts of Advent and Christmas struggled with commercialism over fifty years ago, how much worse is it today? And how are we as Christians culpable?

Thanks, BHT, for posting this convicting and inspiring gem:

"Advent 1955" by John Bejteman

The Advent wind begins to stir
With sea-like sounds in our Scotch fir,
It’s dark at breakfast, dark at tea,
And in between we only see
Clouds hurrying across the sky
And rain-wet roads the wind blows dry
And branches bending to the gale
Against great skies all silver pale
The world seems travelling into space,
And travelling at a faster pace
Than in the leisured summer weather
When we and it sit out together,
For now we feel the world spin round
On some momentous journey bound -
Journey to what? to whom? to where?
The Advent bells call out ‘Prepare,
Your world is journeying to the birth
Of God made Man for us on earth.’

And how, in fact, do we prepare
The great day that waits us there -
For the twenty-fifth day of December,
The birth of Christ? For some it means
An interchange of hunting scenes
On coloured cards, And I remember
Last year I sent out twenty yards,
Laid end to end, of Christmas cards
To people that I scarcely know -
They’d sent a card to me, and so
I had to send one back. Oh dear!
Is this a form of Christmas cheer?
Or is it, which is less surprising,
My pride gone in for advertising?
The only cards that really count
Are that extremely small amount
From real friends who keep in touch
And are not rich but love us much
Some ways indeed are very odd
By which we hail the birth of God.

We raise the price of things in shops,
We give plain boxes fancy tops
And lines which traders cannot sell
Thus parcell’d go extremely well
We dole out bribes we call a present
To those to whom we must be pleasant
For business reasons. Our defence is
These bribes are charged against expenses
And bring relief in Income Tax
Enough of these unworthy cracks!
‘The time draws near the birth of Christ’.
A present that cannot be priced
Given two thousand years ago
Yet if God had not given so
He still would be a distant stranger
And not the Baby in the manger.

Interesting Article on the "Unreached"

I do keep up with the Internet Monk's blog. Writing as a post-evangelical yet still a devoted Christian, his insights are intriguing and very often truthful. And in this recent post, he addresses an issue that has bothered me to no end in evangelical circles: the idea that so-called Christians of other denominations, especially liturgical ones like Catholics, Orthodox, Anglicans, Lutherans, etc., are not "really" Christians and need to be "reached" with the "true" Gospel.

I remember one of our former pastors making the point that there were very few "Christians in Russia, totally bypassing the millions of practicing Orthodox Christians. I felt shocked and saddened by this view that people who practice Christianity somewhat differently than we evangelicals do are considered "unreached."

Michael Spencer, the Internet Monk, addresses this issue of the "Reached" and "Unreached" in his newest post: click here to read it.

What do you think?

The Inevitable....

Why, oh why does it always seem to happen this way?

Tonight is the big Christmas production being put on by the Pine Valley Players, a division of the Mountain Empire Creative Arts Council. My parents and my brother and his two kiddos are coming up the mountain from the coast to meet us for dinner at Major's, a fun 1950's diner and one of the two restaurants in our town (if one doesn't count the drive-thru Frosty Burger). E and J are in the play, with J providing music with the Free Teen Guitar Class for half an hour before curtain. T helped make props (especially the Christmas goose) and he and B are slated to be ushers. I'm the House Manager, in charge of the ushers, the doors, making the obligatory cell phone announcement, etc.

So of course, two things have occurred to damper the day. The first is rain. The hall at the Pine Valley Christian Conference Center does not have a green room, so the actors have to huddle around heaters outside between scenes. We're attempting to put up canopies at the front and rear of the hall for the actors. The temperatures by curtain time are supposed to be in the high 30's. We're praying that the rain, scheduled as a 50% chance during the hours of the play, will wait until AFTER the play has ended. The actors also have to enter from different doors so could get quite wet and have to ramp through mud. Not good.

Then T felt quite ill last night, and by bedtime had been sick. And he has been sick a total of nine times overnight. So much for his seeing the play, being the usher, and I've had to call my brother and tell him not to bring his kids over early to play with our kids. Keith will videotape the play so T can watch it later. But I'm sad for him and am praying that no one else gets sick, especially my two actors. At least until after the play tonight,,,,

So somehow when we have big family plans, something always happens -- especially illness. Sigh. It almost always happens to one of us or another....