2008_06 ADVENT

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A.D. 2008ADVENT - CHRISTMAS - EPIPHANY

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ADVENT A.D. 2008 3

Preparations WhenWe’re “Expecting”

Waiting for the birth of a childis a complicated thing filled withjoy and anticipation, doubts, andquestions. In the months beforeour children were born, I remem-ber the endless preparations anddecisions. What color to paintthe nursery? Do we find out ifit’s a boy or a girl? Cloth or dis-posable diapers? Bottle-feed orbreast-feed? Am I prepared forbeing a parent? Will I be a goodfather?

The anticipation of somethingas precious and awe-inspiring asthe birth of a child drives us tomake whatever preparations wecan. Expecting parents can’tmake the pregnancy go by anyfaster, but their joy and anxietycan definitely motivate them totake parenting classes, talk toother parents, tour the matern-ity ward, and pray a lot!Anticipation promotes prepara-tion.

Advent is such a time of expec-tation and anticipation. We notonly remember Jesus’ birth, butAdvent, perhaps more signifi-cantly, points us to the secondcoming of Jesus. As we prepare

to celebrate the past event ofChrist’s birth, we also remember— with joy, anticipation, andawe — that Christ will comeagain. This is fearsome goodnews—a reality that wakes us upfrom the ordinariness of life, tothe promises of Christ’s reign,and the possibilities that todaymay be the day of Christ’s com-ing. Anticipation of that realityshould promote our prepara-tions.

My prayer is that the excite-ment of celebrating Christ’s birthwill spill over into a joyful antic-ipation of Christ’s coming again.May the expectation of that won-derful and awesome eventawaken our hope and enlivenour actions. Through prayer andreflection, acts of mercy, andrenewed commitment to Sundayworship, may we be prepared tosay on the day of Christ’s comingthe words of the great Adventhymn, “Therefore we sing togreet our King; for ever let ourpraises ring.”

God’s blessings for a HolyAdvent.

—The Rev. A. J. Heine,St. Augustine’s,

Metairie, Louisiana


The Song of Mary

Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55)

My soul doth magnify the Lord, *and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior.

For he hath regarded *the lowliness of his handmaiden.

For behold from henceforth *all generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath magnified me, *and holy is his Name.

And his mercy is on them that fear him *throughout all generations.

He hath showed strength with his arm; *he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He hath put down the mighty from their seat, *and hath exalted the humble and meek.

He hath filled the hungry with good things, *and the rich he hath sent empty away.

He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel, *as he promised to our forefathers,

Abraham and his seed for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

— The Daily Office, Morning Prayer Rite I,The Book of Common Prayer, p. 50

Mary sings us salvation. She sings it to us with poetry and balanceand rhythm. And notes. She sings us her song. Magnificat.Mary’s is not a solo voice. She sings in harmony with the ancients.

She sings old words. She sings with the hope of every Son of Jacobwho has ever hoped. She hopes with the assurance of a people whocling to the promises of God. She waits with every descendant ofIsrael who has ever set a place for Elijah. Messiah would bring sal-vation, a day when justice would be established and covenant com-munity would be exacted.

ADVENT A.D. 2008 5

What are the images on her horizon? What colors her view? Doesshe see the poor and lowly exalted, because she herself is of lowestate? Does she see the proud scattered and the powerful broughtlow, because she herself is fragile and frail? Does she see the hungryfilled and the rich emptied, because she is hollow and ravenous?

Are these her own “sour Nazarene grapes”?Is she the poor with a chip on the shoulder, waiting for a reversal

of fortunes; the marginalized, waiting for the oppressors to gettheirs? Maybe. Maybe not. But the tradition that has grown uparound Mary would suggest, not.Mary’s is an antiphonal voice, a conversational chorus, in response

to prophets and the women who bore them. Mary borrows languagefrom Hannah of ten centuries past. Hannah refrains, “My heartexults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in my God ... the bows ofthe mighty are broken, but the feeble gird on strength.”In Hannah’s vision, “those who were full have hired themselves

out for bread, but those who were hungry are fat with spoil.” And“the poor rise up from the dust, the needy from the ash heap.”These women cry out for the righting of wrong, when there is

wrong done, not for the reversal of fortunes for the sake of the rever-sal of fortunes. They require equity, not wealth and prosperitymounting for some at the expense of others. They demand thatpower be exercised for health and salvation, not exploited for thecrushing of backs and the coercion of the weak.

Mary begs voice from prophets not yet born. In fugue-like fashionMary sings to a preacher’s son, 20 centuries yet to come, who’s beento the mountain and has a dream. Mary sings to him, and he echoesthe canon of an 8th century B.C. fig-dresser-turned-prophet, from theNorthern Kingdom, Israel: “Let justice roll down like waters, right-eousness like an ever-flowing stream.”Mary sees what has been ordered from the beginning. Nativity is

the episode; Incarnation, the precise moment when all of time is ful-filled. In verb tenses we don’t even understand, these mighty acts,she says, are begun in the past, continuing in the present and endur-ing and completed in the future.


Do we realize that when we sing Magnificat,we are Moses and Hannah and Isaiah;we are Martin Luther King, Jr. and the prophet Amos;we are Bishop Desmond Tutu and Sister Theresa and the Mother

of our Lord?Not a day goes by that the church doesn’t sing the Magnificat at

least twice, in the daily office for both morning and evening. We singher song, not because we necessarily venerate the Virgin Mary, butbecause her song is the essence of our salvation:

The peace of God;The presence of Justice and Righteousness;God’s kingdom on earth.

Magnificat is the rare note that spans the distance. It makes us waitwith expectation inAdvent. It makes us rejoice at Christmastide. Wethrill of it because it celebrates Incarnation; light into darkness andGod come down. But Magnificat is not seasonal.It is daily. It is life. It is normal fare. The church in its order of

praying arranges Mary’s vision of salvation as the setting for ourdaily lives. The wisdom of the church couches our day withMagnificat. It is where we live; God in the world and in the flesh.Magnificat is our battle cry for justice when we are oppressed. It

is sung Torah, a hymn-tune of equity and truth. It gives syllable forexultation when we are overcome by God. It fills us when we areempty and gives us a great company when we are lonely and goodthings when we are hungry.

Mary sings our salvation. The same mother voice that sings lulla-by, roars for justice and wails for God’s reign. The person of Marycan bring it dangerously close. She is warmth and comfort. She ispure and raw passion. She is accessible and vulnerable and she takesus in.With all those cattle lowing, in the silence of night, we can hear her

song. She can bring us God in his kingdom, because she birthed hisson, and gave God flesh.

— The Rev. Ruth Lindberg Cummings, Trinity, Columbus, Georgia

ADVENT A.D. 2008 7

The Empty Stocking

“The stockings were hung by thechimney with care, with hopes thatSt. Nicholas soon would be there.”

— Clement Clark Moore

If you like sentimental movies,your season has arrived. All thenetworks are dusting off thoseChristmas classics and very soonwill be showing them ad nause-um. Three special favorites areMiracle on 34th Street, It’s aWonderful Life, and The Bishop’sWife. The last one stars DavidNiven, Cary Grant, and LorettaYoung. It is a touching storyabout an angel named Dudley(played by Cary Grant) whocomes to earth to help the Bishop(played by David Niven) get hispriorities back on track. In thecourse of straightening thingsout, Dudley falls in love with thebishop’s wife (played by LorettaYoung). At the conclusion of thefilm, with snow gently fallingoutside, the Bishop preaches asermon with which I havealways been taken. What followsis my memory and adaptation ofhis remarks.

The Empty StockingThis is the story of the Empty

Stocking, a story which you mayor may not have heard before,

but which bears hearing againand again.

A long, long time ago on a won-drous night, a bright starappeared in the sky, a star whichmysteriously moved and finallystopped over a stable in the smalltown of Bethlehem. On that won-drous night, angels sang in theheavens in tribute to the childborn in that stable.

We still remember that night.We will gather in our churcheson Christmas Eve to celebratethat birth. We put a star atop ourChristmas trees and sing carols,the songs the angels sang. And asa part of the Christmas Seasonand Spirit, in imitation of theMagi, we give gifts. We work ourway frantically through storespicking up presents so our par-ents, children, brothers and sis-ters, nieces and nephews,cousins and friends, all thoseclose to us, will have a gift fromus on Christmas morning.Everyone’s stocking gets filled,except one. That stockingbelongs to the person whosebirth we celebrate on Christmas,the Christ Child. Sadly, it’s hisbirthday we celebrate.That empty stocking needs to

be filled with gifts from each of


us. What gifts can we bring to theChrist Child? The Magi broughthim gold, frankincense, andmyrrh. Enormous cathedralshave been built in his honor.What meaningful gifts can wepossibly give? We can give himprecious gifts which he and thisworld desperately need: humankindness, love, and compassionfor others! These are the onlygifts which will fill the emptystocking of the Christ Child. Theempty stocking is a symbol of theneed of so many people who livein our world. To celebrateChristmas but forget about thatneed is to miss the meaning ofhis birth.

When that star in the East hunglow in the heavens and drewthose people to the manger inwhich the Christ Child lay, itshone as a beacon of hope to all,to you and to me. That hope,born again on Christmas, is arealization of what it means to beone of God’s children. The star ofChristmas calls us to come closeto the manger and see the face ofGod in the person of an innocentchild, a child destined to growand give his life totally for oth-ers. When we look into themanger, we see an innocencewhich was once ours, an inno-

cence of goodness and trust towhich we are summoned toreturn.

It is so simple and yet so com-plex and confusing. Jesus is borninto a world of power and mightbut these are not the possessionshe craves. God enters the worldon Christmas in the person of theChrist Child — weak, humble,and defenseless. And he gives theworld the priceless gift of appre-ciation of these qualities. Maywe, I pray, come away from ourcelebration of Christmas with apersonal awakening of the Godlypower of these timeless values.

I hope that on Christmas morn-ing you will find your stockingsfilled with all that you want andneed. But I also hope that youwill hang up the stocking of theChrist Child and in this comingyear, will try to fill it with thegifts God gives to you — humankindness, love, and compassionfor others. Christ’s stocking can-not remain empty if there is to bepeace on earth. When the stock-ing of the Christ Child is filled,ours will be filled too.

— The Rev. Richard B. Tudor,St. Barnabas’,

Florissant, Missouri

ADVENT A.D. 2008 9

O Come, Emmanuel

“O come, O come, Desire ofnations, bind in one the hearts of

all mankind; bid thou oursad divisions cease, and bethyself our King of Peace.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shallcome to thee, O Israel!

Of all the Advent hymns, Ocome, O come, Emmanuel must beamong the all time favorites.When I read these words I amtaken back to my 6th gradeChristmas concert. This was backin the time when we hadChristmas events in publicschool. I remember driving toschool with my father at thewheel of the family car. Momwas sitting next to him. Mybrother, sister, and I were in theback seat trying to stay warm. Iwas very nervous and excited.This was to be my first publicsinging event. I do not rememberhow the evening went. I simplyremember that my family wastogether, and together, we hadbegun the season of preparationfor Christmas.

The season of Advent is basedon the long advent that led up tothe first Christmas so long ago.The chosen people, the nation of

Israel, have had a mixed history.At one season of their historytheir people prospered, theirnation and lands increased, andGod seemed to bless everythingthey did. At other times itseemed as if they could do noth-ing right, they were defeated byforeign powers, lost their landsand independence, and almostlost their identity. In the midst oftheir wandering away and backagain to God, God never lefttheir side. At every step alongthe way, God’s promise wastheirs. This promise was that oneday, a savior would come tothem. And this savior wouldlead them back home to the rela-tionship with God they had beenchosen to enjoy.

The first verse of “O come, Ocome, Emmanuel” speaks of thislong advent. The word“Emmanuel” means God withyou. The first advent was a peri-od of almost 600 years in whichthe nations of Israel and Judahwaited, anticipated, and longedfor the coming of the messiahand their restoration. The firstChristians realized that this firstadvent season came to an end inthe birth of Jesus in Bethlehem.The First Sunday of Advent

marks the beginning of our


annual season of anticipation forthe coming of Christ. For us,Advent is not primarily aboutthe birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. Itis about the coming of the messi-ah at the end of time, and to us asindividuals, at the end of ourown time. Like the first advent,none of us know how long thisperiod of anticipation will last.But because we are people whodwell in time and space, we havemarked out the four Sundaysbefore Christmas as a time toremind ourselves that we waitfor Jesus to come once again tolead us all home to that fulfilledrelationship with God we havebeen created to enjoy. The prom-ise is that this relationship,which we call the Kingdom ofGod, will be a new order inwhich humanity has learned tolive in harmony with God, eachother, and the entire createdrealm.

I may not be able to rememberhow the evening of my sixthgrade Christmas concert ended.But I feel reasonably certain thatI was too nervous to be thinkingof peace on earth and good willtoward all. I am confident of this.Those memories of Advents andChristmases past have pointedmy heart toward something new

and better; something that hasnever quite come fully true, yetmy heart knows beyond a shad-ow of a doubt will be realizedsome day, and which I awaitwith eager longing. I pray thatyour memories and this Adventpoint your hearts in this direc-tion as well.

As we go about this season ofdecorating our homes with orna-ments loaded with memories; aswe carefully shop for just thatright gift to express our love foranother; and, as we look forways to make a gift that willmake a life-changing differencefor those less fortunate than our-selves (like St. Nicholas did) let’skeep in mind what our hearts tellus to be true.

“Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shallcome to thee, ... “

That is God’s promise.

—The Rev. David Elsensohn,St. Peter’s by-the-Sea,

Sitka, Alaska

ADVENT A.D. 2008 11

The Voice Of This Calling

Jesus…saw a man called Matthewsitting at the tax office; and he saidto him, “Follow me.” And he aroseand followed him. (Matthew 9:9)

The twelve apostles whom Jesuscalled out to be especially withhim, and to be the foundationstone of the new Israel, thechurch which is the first-fruits ofthe new creation, were a strangeand motley crew. Fishermenfrom Galilee, two (James andJohn) nicknamed Boanerges “thethunder boys” like some antici-pation of a teenage gang; Judas abandit, one of the Sicarii; Simon arevolutionary, one of that Zealotparty who thought that takingup arms was the only way inwhich God would be forced toact and show his hand; andMatthew, the quisling tax-collec-tor, a first century cash-for-hon-ours type, compromising forgain and so outcast from thestrict puritanism of thePharisees. Built on the founda-tion of the apostles and prophetswrites St. Paul, built on thisgroup with, as the Gospels show,its rivalries about greatness, andwho shall be first; and a groupwho for all their being with Jesussleep through his agony in

Gethsemane as danger ap-proaches, and at his arrest runaway, with the exception of Peterwho denies him through fear,and the Beloved Disciple foundat the foot of the cross on whichthe king of glory dies in agony,darkness, and desolation. It isthis motley crew of which Jesusmakes the foundation of thechurch, transforming them bythe whirlwind Spirit from heav-en whose tongues of flame, thefiery wall of heaven in Jewishtradition, enflame and inspirethem. It is these apostles who arethe source of the apostolic min-istry handed down to us throughthe centuries as a supernaturalgrace and a precious gift to us. Itis something we receive, notsomething we frame and fashionfor ourselves. As the great nine-teenth-century theologian F.D.Maurice liked to remind us, “thekingdom of God does not comeby arrangements of our own.”

It is good that we shouldremember these things at thebeginning of this Synod whenthe nature and character of apos-tolic ministry will be so much atthe centre of our debates. It isgood that we should begin herestretching out our hands toreceive the Bread of Life and the


Cup of eternal salvation. It isgood that we should be remind-ed that only the Lord has powerto transform. To receive com-munion is exactly that — toreceive the belonging-together-ness which is our being in Christ,whose life-giving Spirit is thebasis of our identity.

If quires are places where they sing,then synods can be places wherethey prattle. Charles Wesleyprayed in a well-known hymn—“Preserve me from my calling’ssnare, and hide my simple heartabove.” The calling’s snare isthere for all of us, as it was forthe twelve who so often tried tofashion the kingdom Jesus pro-claimed in their own likeness. Itis there for bishops; it is there forclergy; it is there for those whoserve as staff. Over a half-centu-ry ago, Michael Ramsey went toa great gathering called by theWorld Council of Churches atEvanston, Illinois. He did notlike it. “For over a fortnight,” hewrote, “the whirl of oratory, dis-cussions, committees and docu-ments continued withoutpause.” This clouded judgement.

Great matters of religion needthought, and thought requiresspaces of quiet and leisure. The

profoundest matters of theologycannot be illuminated by high-pressure drafting. Why shouldsuch procedures be the mediumthrough which the Holy Spiritspeaks to the church? “Ithought,” he said, “that the dom-inant theologies in the discussionlacked the right starting point inthe doctrine of creation and theright goal in the Beatific Vision,with the call to holiness as theway to it: ‘we shall be like him,for we shall see him as he is.’”

The way of patience and prayer;the sense of the church and itsministry as a gift received; thecall to unity as that which theLord requires of us; vows beforevotes — all these are thingswhich we need to heed if we areto be truly a Synod — those whoare, as the very name of Synodreminds us, journeying on theway, in Christ and to Christ.

William Temple’s biographer,speaking of the ChurchAssembly, the predecessor of thisSynod, for which Temple hadfought so strongly, reflectedsadly, “the legalists were soon incontrol; the voice of theAssembly is now the voice of theadministrator, not of the prophet,and so long as its constitution

ADVENT A.D. 2008 13

and time-table remain unre-vised…its present tone and tem-per will persist.”

Matthew heard a voice, a com-pelling voice to come and follow,and he left the tax collector’soffice and followed Jesus. It wasa moment of transformation. It isa call to discipleship which weneed to hear over and over andover again. For we will be noth-ing, this Synod will be nothing, ifwe do not hear and respond to“the drawing of this love and thevoice of this calling.” TheAnglican Newman spoke ofcoming to this BlessedSacrament, of kneeling down inhumility, and of stretching out ofhands to receive the life of Christhimself. “In this way,” he said,“Christians receive the Gospelliterally on their knees, whichbetokens a different habit ofmind from that which sitting andlistening engender.”We pray that this Synod may

be preserved from its calling’ssnare, and like Matthew hear thecall to follow in obedience hisLord and ours.

— The Rt. Rev. Dr. GeoffreyRowell, Bishop of Gibraltar

in Europe, viaThe Times Online,

www.timesonline.co.uk

Christ’s Birth

While I was explaining whereJesus was born to a group in chil-dren’s chapel I asked them to tellme what they saw in the mangerscene. “Animals.” “Shepherds.”“A baby.”

“That’s right,” I said. I wantedto emphasize the fact that themanger was in fact a feed box foranimals and not a very specialplace — it was used to feed ani-mals. One little hand shot up intothe air and without waitingshouted, “That’s not Jesus; that’sjust a baby!” I explained thatJesus was in all respects just likeus — he was born, he spent timeas a baby, as a child, and even asa teenager before he was Jesusthe man.

Although the child understoodI think there was part of him thatdidn’t grasp that Jesus was a realbaby. I think the fact that Godchooses to reveal God’s ownimage in a baby is troubling - it isso vulnerable. It is so open tobeing wounded. The Bible’simage of a child in swaddlingclothes and lying in a mangeris pushing us to think in waysthat do not come naturally.


Vulnerable comes from the Latinword for wound.

In being born of a woman God isopening God’s self to beingwounded. It is God’s vulnerabil-ity that is so profound during theChristmas and Epiphany season.But it is also vulnerability thatshapes the season of Lent andEaster. In short, being vulnerableis the core of being Christian. Wespend so much time protectingourselves, insuring ourselves,defending ourselves. This seasonlet us contemplate what it meansto be vulnerable before God andeach other. If we are to build acommunity of faith that is trulyin the image of Christ, perhapswe should be letting go morethan taking control. Faith is notabout greater security but rathergreater vulnerability. BarbaraBrown Taylor correctly pointsout that it is “shocking ... tobehold the king of the universeunable to turn over on his backwithout assistance, utterlydependent upon the kindness ofhis creatures.”

To be called into relationshipwith God and each other is torisk pain. It is risky to be openwith one another in the same

way it was risky for God to opento us in Christ’s birth. In thisEpiphany season contemplatethe journey that the birth of Jesusstarted for Mary, for the shep-herds, the kings, the disciples.Where would this encounterwith God lead? This Epiphanycontemplate the journey that youare on. Is your journey riskyenough? Do you always feelsafe? As followers of Jesus weclaim that God walks with us inall of the dark places; rememberthe psalm: “Though I walk in thevalley of the shadow of death Ifear no evil; for you are withme.”

Perhaps being in the “valley ofthe shadow” is not a place wemistakenly find ourselves andthen take comfort in God’s pres-ence with us — like taking awrong turn into a bad neighbor-hood. First we find comfort inGod’s presence, then we willing-ly make ourselves vulnerable bystepping into life’s challenges,risk our beloved security, and sobecome a vulnerable servant ofthe vulnerable servant — JesusChrist.

— The Rev. Andrew Thayer,St. Bartholomew’s,

Corpus Christi, Texas

ADVENT A.D. 2008 15

Hurry Up!It’s Advent!

It was late September and Iwas in the K-Mart, looking for asmall wheelbarrow and a few fallgardening supplies. I headedback to the corner of the storewhere the Garden Shop had beenlocated all spring and summer.As I rounded the corner by theshampoo and toothpaste aisles,expecting the usual display ofrakes, hoses, garden tools and thelike, I was confronted by a teamof store employees erecting awinter wonderland of artificialChristmas trees, inflatable snow-men and Santas, and shelves fullof ornaments, tinsel and lights. Itwas late September! The GardenShop had become the North Poleand Santa’s Wonderland!

It’s that time of year when “TheHolidays” are launched. A televi-sion wit observed that we reallyshould declare the time fromOctober 31 through January 1 asone extended holiday called“Hallowthankmas-year.” He hasa point. Halloween is over;Thanksgiving is just around thecorner; and, it’s full speed aheadto Christmas. Messianic expecta-tion and the birth of our Saviorseem to hold a pale second place

to holiday sales forecasts and con-sumer confidence indices.The season preceding Christ-

mas, known as Advent, is to be atime of preparation, both inward-ly and outwardly, for the awaitedsecond coming of Christ as wellas for the celebration of God’sincarnation in Jesus. We areencouraged to “slow down andbe quiet.” A fine idea and a neces-sary undertaking to be sure.

If ever there was a need to con-template, more than superficially,the meaning of God in Christbeing born and coming into ourlives, it is in this tumultuous andtroubled day and age. But thereality in our culture, and in theChurch, is that this season is filledto the brim with preparations,activities, and commitments —most of which are for very goodpurposes. There are rehearsals forplays and pageants, Lessons andCarols, and glorious worshipservices. There are preparationsfor our Thanksgiving andChristmas holiday meals forthose in need. There is our toydrive, and our hat and scarf col-lection for children and adultswho have so little in their lives.There is our Christmas Festivaland other wonderful gatheringsthat bless and strengthen our


parish community. I’d like toslow down and be quiet, but“time’s a wastin’!”

Actually, if one takes a look atthe Holy Scriptures appointed forAdvent, there is a great deal ofurgency and haste, and preciouslittle peace and quiet to be found.We begin with a “voice crying out(not whispering) in the wilder-ness,” calling all to repentancewith a sense of immediacy. Weare told to watch, with ferventexpectation, “for we know notwhen the Lord will come.” EvenMary, pregnant with Jesus, has-tens to visit her cousin Elizabeth,the mother of John the Baptist, sothat they can rejoice together atwhat God is doing in and throughthem. Everyone in the Bible pas-sages for Advent is gripped witha sense of imminence andurgency. And so, I propose thatwe adopt a new mantra for thisseason: “Hurry up! Quick! It’sAdvent!”

Time is short! Don’t delay! In thedays between now and Christmasbe quick to forgive and slow toanger. Don’t wait to be kind, gen-erous, and giving. Pray immedi-ately, and more not less! Hastento love everyone, especially thosehardest to love. Maybe there can

be a way, in the midst of all ourbusyness, to be equally busy ingetting ready for God to be a realpart of our lives and not just anornamental display, here for“Hallowthankmas-year” and thenpacked away ‘til next year.

May you have a blessed andfruitful Advent.

— The Rev. James L. Burns,Church of the Heavenly Rest,

New York, New York

Lead Me Safely

God of the MountainsGod of the SeaGod of GloryMaker of me

God of the SunshineGod of the RainGod of all ComfortGod of Pain

Lead me safely through myvalley

’Til I reach the other heightHold my hand within theshadow

’Til I stand immersed in Light.

— Dorothy Knapp,Millbrook, New York

The Anglican Book Club winter selection is All the Peoplein the Bible: An A-Z Guide to the Saints, Scoundrels, and OtherCharacters in Scripture by Richard Losch.

“Born to be battered ... the lovingphone call book. Underline it, circlethings, write in the margins, turn downpage corners, the more you use it, themore valuable it gets to be.”

So reads an old advertisement by theSouth Central Bell Telephone Companywhich illustrates well what our approachto the Bible should be.

All the People in the Bible was written with the express pur-pose of helping us better understand more of the characters inScripture. Giving special attention to the “lesser characters ofthe Bible,” this book also serves as a valuable and readableScriptural resource, and witnesses well to the seasoned min-istry of the retired Episcopal rector who is its author. — KSH+

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ADVENT A.D. 2008 17

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Serving the Church since 1953

ADVENT A.D. 2008 19

JACK B. BUCKLEY

MICHAEL

THE REV H ROSS GREER

THE RT REV ROBERT NELSONSPENCER

THE REV MILLER ARMSTRONG

EVELYN PENICK

THE REV J SULLIVAN BOND

THE REV JAMES THOMAS HENDRIX

MY MOTHER,MRS EDDIE ATKINSON SULLIVAN

THE RT REV FREDERICKW. PUTNAM

ELLEN RICHARDSON DILTZ

JASPER EDGAR RICHARDSON

STANLEY MATTHEY

FATHER HOMER F ROGERS

LUITGARDIS ROTSAERT

THE REV FRANCIS W CARR

MARY WILSON BANKS

GWENDA M HAMEL

JOAN H LYONS

THE RT REV CHRISTOPH KELLER JR

THE REV ISAAC F MASON &GRACE R MASON

EUINE FAY JONES

LINDA J WALLS

THE REV MURRAY BULLOCK

SAMUEL F SAMPSON

L JOHN LUTZ

N FRANK LONG JR

OUR BELOVED DEPARTED

MARILYN MCBRIDE ALEXANDER

ARTHUR BEN CHITTY

THE RT REV ROBERT H MIZE JR

ROBERT BASIL BALDWIN JR

THE REV HOWARD LANE FOLAND

MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL

BARBARAADAMS

HILLSPEAK ANGELS

HOWARD S JORDAN

WILLIAM CLARKE COX

LORRIE RHODES

JARRELLWYATT

THE REV WILLIAM ATKINSON

BISHOP MIZE & BISHOP SPENCER

MARIAN ROSE MCCORD

DR CATHERINE ROETT-REID

LOUISE P VORHIS

ANGEL FOOD MINISTRIES

RICHARD ARTHUR GAGNON

THE REV'D HOWARD G NORTON

CHARLES OLIN NORTON

MARY JANE SEYK KENT

DR PHILIP D BONNET

RAY GORDON ROSS

FIFTY YEARS of ANGELSThese are the angels our readers have honored at the 50th year ofTHE ANGLICAN DIGEST’S ministry to the Church.


THE REV HARRY G SECKER

THE REV JOHN CASKEY

ROBERT GEORGE REASE

CRAIG, ELMO & BUCK

NICHOLAS AMCGALLIARD

SANDRAWALPERT

LINDAANNANDERSON

SAM HESS

MRS MARGARET TAYLOR BUSH

SIDNEY P HAYWARD

HELEN HIGBIE MOWER

LINDADILKS

CHARLES MCGRATH

MISS KANIKA JANET JONES

GLADYS COREY

THE REV ARNOLD B CRAVEN

MARY HANNIFIN

THE RT REV ROBT MIZE &WILLIAM E CRAIG

THE REV WILLIAM C WAY(1876-1962)

HELEN PLUMMER LEE(9/18/51-1/16/08)

THE RT REV FRED PUTNAM &ARTHUR BEN CHITTY

MARY S GUYER

PHYLLIS ANN HAYS

HARRY PARKS

RICHARD J WATSON

MAX DAMRON

MARIAN ALLEN

DON J SERVINE

ROBERT SCOON

THE REV KEN BARTA

BEVERLY ANN COLETON

SAINT LUKE

MALCOM DAVID PENDLETON JR

DOROTHY WINSTON;PHIL WATERMAN

THE REVEREND THACK DYSON

JOHN DANIEL HOBART

THE REVS JAMES B SIMPSON &CHARLES WYATT-BROWN

ROGENE ANN HANTKE

THE REV THOMAS TURNBULL

CLARA JEAN SPRINGER PIRONI

IN MEMORY OF ELSIE SODERLUND

JOHN C ENTZ

BILLY SWISHER

THE REV RICHARD J BROWN

DILLON COLE SMITH/DON ELDON SMITH

STEPHEN DOUGLAS MCADAMS

WILSON WAITES

THE REV THOMAS H FANNING

JOSIE ELVEY

WARREN E BANKS JR

AMANDAMEYER

THE RT REV RUSSELL RAUSCHER

THE REV JAMES BRICE CLARK

STANLEY SIROTE

PHELMAANDERSEN HASLBAUER

OTTO FRANK HASLBAUER

ADVENT A.D. 2008 21

LYNNE SCHWARZAUER

IN MEMORY OF DAVID L FELTS,BELOVED HUSBAND

BETTY FETTERHOFF

JANE BAIRD

HELEN SCRIVENER

MARY TOWNLEY RAIGUEL

JOSEPHINE DAVIS

CHARLENA PRIOLEAU JACOBS

MARQUETTE PRIOLEAU

THE REV HOWARD LANE FOLAND—WITH LOVE

JOHN J ALEXANDER

BERTHA, STEVE, LOREN

PATRICIAWHITNEY

THE REV VICTOR E PINKHAM

CAMILLA PARKER

MARION RYMAN &ESTHER KRAMER

LINDSEY & LOIS ELLIS

MARCY KING

THE REV ROBERT COOK,HUNTSVILLE, AL

DELOMAREDDING

MARGARET I MCBOURNIE

BETTY ANN CASEY

PHILIP H MOOERS

LEONARD COPELAND

WILLIAM CRAIG GALT

THE RT REV ROBERTM WOLTERSTORFF

THE REV MYRLE E DIENER

THE REV ALBERT H HEAD

MARY N SHOOP

THE REV WALDOW HUNT

RUTH NEIKIRK

THE REV WILLIAM N SHUMAKER

THE REV NORMAN GEOHRING

KITTY BALLOTTI

THE REV DR HARRY RUDY ZEIGLER

SCOTT ANDREW SHAFFER8/20/1971 - 1/20/1997

ROBERT ANDREW GROOVER

ISOBEL THODE

SARAH LOUISE CRITCHFIELD

EVELYN PROHASKA

HAZEL INMAN

SARAH NORFLEET CHURCH

MARILYN YARGER

CAROLYN BLOUNT

THE RT REV VICTOR RIVERA

THE REV CANON JAY BREISCH

C C JOHNSON SPINK

THOMAS M EVANS

JANE LITSINGER

DEPARTED FAWKES &TAYLOR FAMILY MEMBERS

MRS CORINNE SOMMER

ALMA SHERWOOD BALDWIN

SANDRA STRONG

THE REV PETER INGEMAN,CHRIST CHURCH, VALDOSTAGA

ALLEN JORDAN GRAHAM


DOROTHEAMINER

ELIZABETH K LUCAS

EMMACHAPMAN

IDA LUDLAM

PENELOPE S PHELPS

THE REV RONALD RESLEY

CONSTANCE C RENO

THE REV HENRY CLAY MAYER

GEORGE B SEAMAN SR

DOROTHY S RAMM

DONALD RUBINO

IN HONOR OF THE RT REVEDWARD SALMON JR

RAY F BIRCHARD

BILLIE A LEWIS

RONALD MAY &THE REV JOHN NELSON

CHARLES E LEE

THE REV ERNEST HARDING

POOKIE CRITTENBERGER

JAMES K BOUGHTON

THE REV HERBERT OLDFIELD

THE REV ROBERT B BOLLMAN TSF& THE REV WAYNE L PONTOUS

ROBERT NORMAN

JOHN PHILIP TRAUT

THE REV BEAUFORD MARCEIL

ELISABETH D APRILL

THE REV A E CORNISH

MOPSEY

GEORGE N HADDEN

HAZEL J LUNSMANN

CLARENCE ALLEN

MARGERY SIMS

J C & EDNA B JOHNSON

ELLEN JENNINGS STANLEY

KATHERINE MURPHY

THE RT REV ALLEN W BROWN

CECELIA BALDWIN MOORE

DOROTHY MCILWAIN MATTISON

THE RT REV ROBERTWOLTERSTORFF

THE REV WILLIAM R WETHERELL

PHILIP L MCDONALD

PAUL PICKETT

THE REV RICHARD ECUNNINGHAM

GLORIA E DOYLE

LINDA BOEKE DAY

HAMPTON & DICKIE CRAWFORD

THE REV WARREN F MERRIT

DR CLIFTON E WALDEN

ALLEN C MEURER

THE REV ROMILLY “COTTON”TIMMINS

SAINT MICHAEL

PATRICIAMCGOUGAN JONES

PHYLLIS RANEY

ROBERT HAMES

DR RUTH AWILLARD

THE REV WILLIAM H RALSTON JR

JOAN DALRYMPLE — GRACE SEARS— “TEASIE” WITTE

ADVENT A.D. 2008 23

ELLIS JAMES WOMELSDORF

FLO PAINTER

DR JED PAUL

JOSEPH PERI

FRANK C WOOD

GUION & MARY OSBORN

ANNE CASSEL

FREDERICK E STOUT

FRANCES OLDFIELD

EDWARD A& JOSEPHINE RBELMORE

WILLIS SCOTT CARTER

THE REV ALFRED ST JOHNMATTHEWS

THE RT REV WILLIAM C RSHERIDAN

MARY LUKAS

ANN STEWART TRAGESER

THE RT REV AUSTIN PARDUE

JOHN A LOHMAN

MARIAN LESTER

OUR 3 BABY ANGELS:MARY, DEBORAH, CATHERINE

ANN & STEPHEN ANDREWBLACKINGTON

MARGARET JEAN (AKEHURST)HUTCHINS

CAROLYN ANN SMITH

EDWARD BURNS MCLEAN

MARIAN WASHINGTON

THE RT REV WILLIAM FCREIGHTON

DANICAA ROARK

1ST GREAT GRANDCHILDSYLVIA TORRENTS

GLEN KELLY, HUGH PERRY

ROSALIE ALLARD KELLY

BRIAN & MARY HOBDEN

THE RT REV PAULMOORE

RUSSELL P WELSH

GEORGE JOY

MILDRED MCNEILL

MICHAEL

THE RT REV ROBERTWOLTERSTORFF

BETH BRINE (CHURCH ORGANIST)

THE REV FREDERICK EASTHAM

CATHERINE PURDOM QUICK

NANCY DEVANNY ELDER

OLIVE GAY

JOHN C DEHMER

JANE G LAIRD

DAVIS BROOKE JONES

EDGAR DUMMER

CAROL P PHILLIPS

BERNARD GEIDE

SAINT CLARE OF ASSISI

LORETTA

MARGE DE MAGGIO

ADM KARL & WYNNE HENSEL

DAVID NOBLE SHORT

DAVID J BOYLE

DOLLY WILLIAMS

RICHARD K JANKE


STANLEY C HINTON

VICTORIAANNE HINTON (BABY)

HELEN B KRESSER (MOTHER)

ELIZABETH DICKINSON

GRACE EMMAMARGARETSTEENBOCK — BLESSED MOTHER

THE REV CANON VINCENT JANDERSON

THE VERY REV KENNETH W KADEY

SOLOMON MEYER

DIANA R COHOON

ELIZABETH ANNE GRENHAM

THE RT REV CHANDLER WSTERLING

MURL HOOVER

BARTON LYNN HOPCRAFT

JOEL F DANIELS LT USAF

CONOR MICHAELMORAN

ALICE L PARRISH

ABBIE ROGERS

THE RT REV EDWIN B THAYER

EILEEN RAFFERTY DUNKUM

TROY H MIDDLETON JR

NANCY BUGGE

JUDY CUTHBERTSON

WILLIAM L JONES

WALTER R SWINDELLS

MARGARET SWINDELLS

ELSIE WORSDELL JENNINGS

JEANNETTE RAWLES WEEMS &WALLACE EDWARD WEEMS SR

ERNEST S REDFIELD

AUDREY J DENISON

BERKELY & MACIE MARTIN —FRANK & DOROTHY HAILE

THE REV JAMES R TITCOMB

LESTER R EVERSON

KATHLEEN DAWSON &DEACONESS MARY E S DAWSON

DICK FORD

THE REV ANTHONY GERALDSTEVENS OHC

JUNE OSBORNE —WACO, TEXAS

GEORGE W HEIGHO

GORDON L SCHAEPPI

ERIC RAYMOND MOBERG

KIM CLARK WILSON

ERSKINE MCCOLLOCH

THE REV F BLAND TUCKER

MY BROTHER, THE REV CANONRICHARD WWILSON

DOREEN M PETERSON (WIFE)CHRISTOPHER PETERSON (SON)

FATHER WILLIAM ANDWIFE BETTY ZULCH

THE REV W FRANCIS ALLISON &KARLLOTTAALLISON (WIFE)

WARREN Z “DUB” ROLLER

DR WILLIAM O SEITZINGER JR

J RAYMOND LORD

THE REV FREDERIC SOLOMONEASTMAN

MURIEL C POWERS

FRANK W BLOUGH JR —THE BLOUGH FAMILY

ADVENT A.D. 2008 25

LEWIS W GREGORY

GRETCHEN PERRY

JERALD S HANKS

MARIE J HUFF

LILLIAN BUGIANI

HAZEL BENNETT

SHERMAN H WATERS

DIANN BUXTON

THE REV WARREN H STEELE

YVONNE CARROLL GRAY

DR DANIEL FRANCIS CORRIGAN

MRS LEATHIAW NICHOLSON

TO ALL THE ANGELS —TO VOLUNTEERS

THE REV CANON C FREDERICKBARBEE

JAMES N PURMAN

GRACE H KELLEY

HARRY LOUISE WEBER

MARTHAW STAUFFER

THE REV HAROLD BARRETT

CHARLES B DUKE JR

ARTHUR BEN CHITTY

THE REV PATRICIA EUSTICE

MARGARET WHITE

HOWARD G PERDUE

MARY SUE HUBBARD

THE REV DR CURTIS W V JUNKER

THE REV ARCHDEACONFREDERICK G ONGLEY

ANNE

THE RT REV PAUL KELLOGG &HELEN KELLOGG

ANNACLARK GORDON

JOYCE MCKNIGHT COOPER

ELLEN MARIA YOUNG

WILLIS KING NASH

MARTHAVAGUENER

OLIVER M ROWE

GEORGIA BLAZER NORRIS

THE REV. JAMES McCUE

THE REV ROBERT TYRREL

ALFONSO SMITH

THE REV JOHN HARVARD

GLADYS PERNIE WASHER

THE REV J B SESSOMS

PATTI LUTZ

MARGARET CARROLL

ROSANN CARPENTER

EVELYN E NEWEY

ELIZABETH WENDHOLT

PHYLLIS PIKE

RITA FRANKLIN

RUTH BOYES

THE REV BENJAMIN W NEVITT

VENERANDA “RENA” CLARK

THE BROTHERS OFST JOHN THE EVANGELIST

FATHER CLYDE WHITNEY

THE REV FATHER WALTER FITCH

JESSE

RICHARD ACOHN


RAYMOND & RHODA SWANN

THE REV DUDLEY J STROUP

FATHER ELMER J SMITH

DOROTHY COX FLAUTT DODDS

MARY CLAY

MARY R SCOTT

MARGARET JACKSON

JANE

MARGARET KERR

CLAUDE C BOYDSTON

CAROLYN WATTS QUIGLEY

ALLANGELS

EUDORA S BOLLING

THE REV LUTHER ISON ANDHELEN ISON

JULIA BERGWALL

THE RT REV & MRS WILLIAM PAULBARNDS

JOAN L SCHAUBEL

NELLIE ELIZABETH HOPSON

MAVIS IRENE DENNES

MAMIE M ZIEGLER

THE RT REV JOHN GILBERT BAKER& THE REV CANON JANE HWANG

Christian YearHere we are in November with

Advent a stone’s throw away.Are we ready for another round?I mean another round of theChristian Year.John Keble wrote a beautiful

book of poetry called TheChristian Year. I remember FatherTanghe having a first editioncopy of which he was veryproud. Keble wrote a poetic“round” of devotion and theolo-gy which, as it encompassed thewhole Christian Calendar,encompassed and embodied toothe whole Christian story. Thisbook was part of the literature ofthe Oxford Movement whichformed a basis for so much ofour own rich tradition.The sequence of Sundays and

Feast Days that begins onAdvent Sunday is the wholestory of God’s mighty acts. Asthe Prayer Book puts it, “We givethanks to you, O God, for the good-ness and love which you have madeknown to us in creation; in the call-ing of Israel to be your people; inyour Word spoken through theprophets; and above all in the Wordmade flesh, Jesus, your Son. Forin these last days you sent him to beincarnate from the Virgin Mary, tobe the Savior and Redeemer of theworld. In him, you have delivered us

ADVENT A.D. 2008 27

from evil, and made us worthy tostand before you. In him you havebrought us out of error into truth,out of sin into righteousness, out ofdeath into life. “(BCP p.368)On Advent Sunday we begin

again the journey through theweeks and months of ourChristian story. We have ups anddowns, light and dark, joy andsadness, sin and forgiveness,questions and answers. There areshort, sharp periods like Adventand Lent, intense periods likeHolyWeek followed by the glori-ous 50 days of Easter, and longreflective periods like “afterPentecost” culminating in thefestivals of Thanksgiving and ofChrist the King. Join this journey.Don’t just think of church asSunday after Sunday. Think of itas a story that unfolds. Antici-pate the next installment. Lookfor the colors and the melodiesthat express a change of mood - achange of meaning. This story isrich in symbolism and inmetaphor. This is a story ofGod’s sacramental presenceamongst us. The story is told inscripture, in preaching, in liturgyand music, and above all in theprayerful dialogue we hold withthe Divine Master who made thisplan for us to follow in time andspace. Join one another and, like

the travelers on the road toEmmaus, discuss the events youwitness. Then hear him open it toyou so that you say like them“did not our hearts burn withinus?”“O watch and pray ere Adventdawn!

For thinner than the subtlestlawn

Twixt thee and death the veil isdrawn.

But Love too late can never glow:The scatter’d fragments Love canglean,

Refine the dregs, and yield usclean

To regions where one thoughtserene

Breathes sweeter than wholeyears of sacrifice below.“

John Keble, 1827,“The Christian Year —

Sunday next before Advent”— The Rev. John Bolton, Churchof Our Saviour, Atlanta, Georgia

Society of King Charles the MartyrAnnual Mass

11 a.m. Saturday 31 January 2009Music of Charpentier and Tomkins

The Rev’d F. Washington Jarvis, PreacherS. Stephen’s Church

114 George St., Providence RI 02906Luncheon reservations $15 by 20 January

to Church office, note SKCM LuncheonSociety inquiries: www.skcm-usa.org

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Guide, O Lord, the feet that seek to follow in

the trail of Thy bright passing: on burnished

peaks of light, or scoured beds of rushing water,

and quietly by the sheltering folds of sheep. In

wide places and in small, haste Thy blessing

upon the Wyoming land, that her people faithful

be, their lives attuned to Thy gracious splendor

upon the buttes and grassy pasture, the wooded

home of elk or bear, and the hearths of human

friendship

at the ending of the trail;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

–The Very Rev. Francis B. Sayre, Jr., Dean Emeritus, Washington National Cathedral.

ADVENT A.D. 2008 29

The Garden of Eden

This reflection began back inthe Garden of Eden. It began as aspringboard for a reflection onfive central qualities of theBenedictine life, but rapidly tookon a life of its own, catapultingme not into Benedict, but into thewords of the “J” writer who pro-foundly reveals the heart of God.It all began, as I said, back in

the Garden of Eden, in a park-land “planted” by God to be, asits name suggests, a place ofdelight, enchantment, and pleas-ure. The story that unfolds thereis foundational for understand-ing human nature and the courseof human history and providesthe basic material for everyOscar and Grammy. It is a storythat plays itself out in fourscenes:-

I: Genesis 2:4b-17Placing Adam in the gardenII: Genesis 2:18-25

Creating a partner for AdamIII: Genesis 3:1-7

Disruption in the gardenIV: Genesis 3:8-24

Expulsion from the gardenAlthough each scene is interre-

lated, Scenes I and IV clearlybelong together; the firstdescribes human entry into thegarden, the fourth describes the

leaving of the garden. Similarly,Scenes II and III belong together.One describes the establishmentof community; the other, its vio-lation. Together they form thesetting in which the human rela-tionship with God is lived outand it would be fun if time andspace permitted to explore thestory in full. However, I want tofocus on three verses which areoften overlooked and seen onlyas background to the drama thatunfolds.Genesis 2:15 Man is placed in

the garden and given responsi-bility for it;Genesis 2:16 Man is given free

reign over everything in the gar-den; and,Genesis 2:17 Man is forbidden

to eat of the tree of the knowl-edge of good and evil.Those verses form the basis for

human life in God’s world, eachhighlighting one aspect of thatlife — vocation, promise, andprohibition.It begins with vocation. Adam

is to “till and tend” the garden;words that evoke images of gar-dening and shepherding. It is, Ithink, telling that what herebelongs together separates andbecomes the source of conflict inthe story of Cain and Abel. Butthe point I want to make is that,


before disobedience becomespart of the story, work exists.Work, therefore, is not punish-ment, nor is it the enemy of thespiritual life, a drudgery to beendured in order to be able tolive and enjoy life. Work is intrin-sic to God’s plan for us and at theheart of God’s purpose for ourlives. Much in our western cul-ture has distorted and robbedwork of its true meaning, anddone untold damage to humansin the process, but work itself is aholy thing, for it is a sharing inthe work of God. As such, workis, perhaps, the most spiritual ofall activity, the most sanctifyingthing we can ever do. Our callingis to treasure and nurture all thatGod has so graciously entrustedto us and, in the process, to makethe world what God intended itto be.

We live in a world obsessedwith status, position, and power.Our world rewards people out ofall proportion to the contributionmade. Worth is measured not interms of worldly rewards butrather in the indescribable privi-lege of our calling to share in thework of God and to participatein what God is doing in theworld. All life is vocation — aliving out of the call to “till and

tend” creation. However lowlyour position in worldly terms,however unimportant what wedo may seem to be, our work inthe community, in our home, andat our place of employment isentrusted to us by God. The mys-tery of grace is such that it isoften the lowliest jobs in the eyesof the world that are greatest inthe kingdom of God.

The gift of Eve as “helper” and“partner” for Adam introduces anew element of vocation. It is notgood for the man to be alone.Vocation is lived out in partner-ship, in a duality that is a unity,and that reflects in its veryessence and being, the wonder-ful mystery of the “spiritualunity between Christ and hisChurch.” Vocation is lived out inpartnership and the partnershipitself becomes vocation. Thatnew aspect of vocation is materi-al for a meditation of its own.

Our vocation, both to “till andto tend” and as “helper and part-ner,” is worked out, says thestory, in the context of bothpromise and prohibition. It is, Ithink, telling that the popularunderstanding of the story focus-es on prohibition rather than per-

ADVENT A.D. 2008 31

mission. The two belong togeth-er and whenever one is heldabove the other perspective isdistorted and human life isskewed either into legalism orlicentiousness.

The garden is a place of God’sabundant providence and bless-ing. Everything is gift and causefor wonder and celebration.Everything is permitted and asource of ongoing delight andpleasure. But there are alwaysboundaries, and the garden isbounded by one prohibition. Thestory does not explain the prohi-bition for the prohibition in andof itself is unimportant. What isimportant is the authority of theone who speaks and the expecta-tion of an absolute obediencethat is born of trust. This is God’sworld and we live in it on God’sterms.

The conversation that comeslater between the woman andthe serpent is fascinating. Theprohibition is interrogated andchallenged, and what is a givenis reduced to an option. In theprocess, what was boundarybecomes threat, promise isobscured, and what was trustbecomes defiance. In his com-mentary on Genesis, Walter

Brueggemann rather scathinglysays, “Theological-ethical talkhere is not to serve God, but toavoid the claims of God. . . . Theserpent is the first in the Bible toseem knowing and critical aboutGod and to practice theology inthe place of obedience.”

I wonder how often we “practicetheology in place of obedience?”How often do we use it to avoidthe claims of God on our life?When the prohibition is violatedin the garden, the promises areperverted and vocation is under-mined. The energy once spent in“tilling and tending” God’s cre-ation is now focussed entirely onthe self and its new-found free-dom that is not freedom butbondage.Vocation, promise, prohibition

are three strands of human lifelived in God's world on God'sterms, interdependent facets ofdivine purpose. They must beprayerfully woven into a three-fold cord that is not easily brokenand can sustain us in our min-istry. All life is vocation.May the three-fold cord of

your life be renewed this Adventand Christmas.

— The Rt. Rev. Brian Germond,Johannesburg, South Africa


Golden Anniversary CelebrationOctober 22, 2008

On a windy fall day, the family and friends of THE ANGLICAN DIGESTgathered at Hillspeak in the Ozarks of Northwest Arkansas to offerthanks to God for fifty years of blessing and to renew our commit-ment to serve the world-wide Anglican Communion with this littlemagazine.

Bishops Ed Salmonand John Buchanan,Dr. Mitch Singleton,the Rev. Chris Colby,and Mr. WilliamAtwood as well asthe Trustees’ Wardenalong with the Rev.Kendall Harmon andMr. Tom Walkerare pictured. Threemembers of theBoard were unable to

attend: Ann Cady Scott, Bishop Gethin Hughes, and Bishop JohnBauerschmidt.

Bishop Anthony Burton, rectorof Church of the Incarnation, Dallas,Texas, was our keynote speaker,recalling the ways in which TADhas ministered to the AnglicanChurch over the last 50 years andencouraging a renewed commitmentto that ministry for the future.

SPEAK Board of Trustees

ADVENT A.D. 2008 33

Friends — manyassociated with TADfrom its earliest days —gathered to join inworship and remem-brance of past editorsand Board members.Kendall Harmon andBishop Burton gaveinspired (and inspiring)talks.

The regular staff,whose efforts wererecognized, joinedin the celebration,visited with ourguests, and enjoyed apicnic lunch of friedchicken and the“fixin‘s”.

Picnic baskets created the feel of “dinner on the grounds” as werelished a bit of reminiscing.

Thanks to all who support us with their prayers, their financial gifts,those who volunteer their time and talent — we look forward toanother 50 years!


THE SEASONS of the ChurchYear set the tasks and pace

for the Hillspeak work force.They revolve around the mailingof THE ANGLICAN DIGEST (TAD)which, in turn, depends uponthe date of Easter Day.Two issue dates are fixed: the

Feast of the Transfiguration (6August) and Michaelmas (29September), but the other fourcan vary as much as from 22March to 24 April for the Easterissue alone. The remaining threewill vary according to theChurch Year dates of AshWednesday, the Day of Pentecostand Advent Sunday.Generally speaking, TAD’s

mailing date is roughly thirtydays before the issue date, e.g.,the Transfiguration TAD will bemailed on or about 6 Julywhether the Pentecost has beenmailed in April or May.Whether the time between

TAD mailings is thirty days orforty-five days, that time mustbe used to mail ANGLICAN BOOKCLUB selections, orders from THEANGLICAN BOOKSTORE, corre-spondence and — almost daily

— books to or from OPERATIONPASS ALONG. Twiddling-fingerstime is in short supply.

Inasmuch as TAD is publishedby a very small staff consist-

ing, in the main, of an editor andmanaging editor, the lead timefor material for the magazine, forthe most part, is prepared in theseason or seasons preceding theissue scheduled. As an example,the material, including this“Hillspeaking”, for the Adventissue is being prepared duringlate Transfiguration and earlyMichaelmas. And the commentsbeing received are most likelyabout the Transfiguration or ear-lier issues. It does make for a bitof confusion from time to time.

If one is working on Advent itmust be August. To paraphrasethe Preacher, “There is atHillspeak time to be busy, verybusy; and time, not to be idle,but less busy.”

At any season, come visit. Justdon’t ask what season it is.

— The Trustees’ Warden

HILLSPEAKING

ADVENT A.D. 2008 35

Greet the UnexpectedAs I write this, I am prepared tomake one forecast with absoluteconfidence: in the next twelvemonths much will happen to usand to our world that will betotally unexpected. It was that,not very original but curiouslyneglected, thought that drew meto one of my most quoted textsfrom Philippians.

“I am ready for anything throughthe strength of the one Who liveswithin me” (Phillips Trans. 4:13).

Note that it didn’t say, “I cando all things .... “ Paul was notbragging about what he coulddo, but confiding the secret ofhow to greet the unexpected: “Iam ready for anything — I cantake it.”

Over the centuries we havebeen battling to protect ourselvesfrom the unexpected. Every soci-ety has produced its crop of for-tune-tellers and palm readers.They’re still in business. Noteven the most brilliant diplomator historian has any inside infor-mation as to what will happen inthis field. If we listen to too muchadvice, we wind up makingother peoples’ mistakes. Thereare no iron-clad rules that govern

the future except the will of Godto which we appeal every timewe say, “Thy kingdom come; thywill be done.”

The Bible is not a code-bookcontaining mysterious predic-tions as to the immediate future.Rather, what I find in the Bible isthe celebration of the unexpect-ed. For example, the NewTestament opens with the adventof the unexpected Messiah —unexpected at that moment andin that place. Anna and Simeon— ready for anything and pray-ing for the coming Messiah, sud-denly are confronted with a childin their arms — vulnerable andhelpless, born in a manger andpursued by Herod. When Jesusgrew up and launched his min-istry, was there anything moreunpredictable? He walked awayfrom the so-called “righteous”and socialized with the so-called“sinners.” When he was expect-ed to preach sermons, he toldfunny stories. When he wasexpected to be the strong com-forter at a friend’s funeral, “Jesuswept.” And when he was expect-ed to be weak and tremblingbefore Pilate, he looked him inthe eye until Pilate turned awayin embarrassment. And whatwould have been more unex-


pected than a crucified Messiahrising from the dead?The gospel that flowed from

this extraordinary interventionof God in human affairs had themost unpredictable success inthe Roman world. How did ithappen? The Christian answer isthat it happened because menand women found in the gospelof Christ an inner strength tomeet the trials and overcome thetemptations of life in a time thatwas as chaotic as ours.

To be a Christian is to be hum-ble enough to know that we needsuch a power beyond ourselvesand beyond any mortal aid. Thefirst day of a new year is a goodtime to remember that suchreliance on the indwelling Christis not something to keep in storefor emergencies only. It is fornow, since the unexpected canarrive at any moment. To beready for anything requires thatwe make space in these crowdedhours each day for prayer, thatwe seek regular refreshment inworship with our fellowChristians, that we practice thepresence of Christ in unexpectedplaces and at all possible times.

— The Rev. Dr. Craig Kallio,St. Stephen’s,

Oak Ridge, Tennessee

Adoption and Grace

We owe a great deal to St. Paul.He spent a life-time struggling toput into human terms the mostprofound truths and inexplicablemysteries of God’s saving love. Itwas by no means an easy task.Those who made up the member-ship of the early Christianchurches were a mixed lot — tra-ditional Jews who believed thatJesus was the Messiah foretold bythe scriptures; sophisticatedGreeks who were attracted by theinnovative teaching of theApostles; simple followers newlytransformed from a life of paganpractices by the witness of thosewho proclaimed and lived theGospel. How could Paul conveyto such a varied group the enor-mity of what God had done forthem in Christ?

A powerful concept he discov-ered was something we hearmany times in our readings inEpiphany, and especially in theservice of Holy Baptism:Adoption. “God has made us hischildren by adoption and grace.”It was a wonderful way todescribe God’s action, as well asthe basis for each Christian’s newrelationship with Christ. They allknew what it meant.

ADVENT A.D. 2008 37

The Jewish Christians werefamiliar with adoption. The storyof their journey as the people ofGod was replete with manyexamples of being chosen. Moseswas “adopted” by Pharaoh’sdaughter when she found hisinfant cradle in the bull-rushes.The lovely book of Esther toldhow that faith-filled lady wasadopted by the holy man,Mordechai. Adoption was part ofHebrew tradition — not exactlyin our modern legal sense — butthe moral expectations wereexplicit that when a family mem-ber or a neighbor died, leavingchildren orphaned, they were tobe raised as one’s own off-spring.The newly converted Greek

and pagan Christians understoodadoption in a similar way. It wasa common legal custom, regulat-ed by the careful codes by whichthe Romans ran their world. Ababy could be adopted at birth. Atrusted slave could be adopted

and treated as a freeman. Anorphan or foster-child could betaken into a family. In each casean irrevocable relationship wasestablished; the adopted baby orperson was entitled to the familyname and could claim all therights, privileges and inheri-tances due to any member of thathousehold.

Adoption. That, said St. Paul,is what it means to belong to God,and he used it several times in hisEpistles. But most of all Paul usedthe language of adoption toexplain what happens at Baptism.Through Baptismwe become partof God’s family. We are named asGod’s children. We are given“Christian” names. We are enti-tled to enjoy all the privileges thatGod’s children enjoy. We aremade God’s Children by adop-tion and grace.This beautiful concept is

reflected in the prayer on Page311 of our Prayer Book:All praise and thanks to you, most

merciful Father, for adopting us asyour children, for incorporating usinto your Holy Church, and for mak-ing us worthy to share in the inheri-tance of the saints in light; throughJesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

— The Rt. Rev. Gethin B.Hughes, via St. Mark’s

Cathedral, Shreveport, Louisiana

THE ORDER OF ST. ANDREWA Religious Order of men and

women, both married and single,not living in community.For information contact:

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St. Nicholas, the PatronSaint of Children

On December 6, the Churchremembers Nicholas, thatfamous saint of old. We all knowhim as St. Nicholas. He is other-wise known as Santa Claus.First, we do not know muchabout St. Nicholas, except he wasBishop of Myra, and lived in the300s A.D. We also know he suf-fered torture and enduredimprisonment under the Romanemperor Diocletian during atime of persecution. Eventuallyhe attended the Council ofNicaea in 325 A.D. In later cen-turies Nicholas was honored as asaint and he became well-knownthroughout the West. Nicholas isthe patron saint of seafarers andsailors.

But he is best known as thepatron Saint of all children. Itbecame tradition that onDecember 6, Nicholas wouldbring gifts to children (hence thebeginning of Santa Claus in latercenturies). His symbol is oftenthree bags of gold, representingthree young girls he saved fromdishonor.

St. Nicholas’ godly life remindsus in the Advent season of Jesus’

words in the Gospel of Mark,chapter 10: “Let the little chil-dren come to me; do not stopthem; for it is to such as thesethat the Kingdom of Godbelongs. Truly I tell you, whoev-er does not receive the Kingdomof God as a little child will neverenter it.”

There is nothing more preciousin this world than new life, theinnocent, the children. And thereis no better image of this thanJesus holding the little ones in hisarms and blessing them. It doesnot matter if you are two feethigh or six feet tall, Jesus is readyto hold you in his arms. He holdsyou and me and blesses us. Weare to approach our Lord andFather with a child-like heart,believing and trusting in hisnever-failing love and care.

This time of the year we preparefor that holy arrival of the ChristChild who is the very Kingdomof God set right before our eyes!May the hope and joy in God bewith you all the rest of thisAdvent season. Amen!

— The Rev. James L. Pahl, Jr.,St. James’,

Wilmington, North Carolina

ADVENT A.D. 2008 39

THE ANGLICAN BOOKSTORE

Offering books that might not otherwise come to your notice

THE PRAYING CHURCH, by Donald M. Hultstrand, ninth Bishopof the Diocese of Springfield and former Executive Director of theAnglican Fellowship of Prayer.“The Praying Church can transform the life of a congregation. I base

that claim on personal experience. When I was a parish priest inFlorida, the clergy, wardens, and members of the vestry corporatelystudied Bishop Hultstrand’s important work and made one simplecommitment: to form prayer partnerships within the vestry. The pro-found spiritual impact the book had on us individually and as parishleaders led us to invite the entire parish into the reading and theexperience—and life in that place changed profoundly, affectingeverything from personal spirituality to outreach ministry and evan-gelism.” — The Right Rev’d Dorsey F. Henderson Jr.

Bishop of Upper South CarolinaItem A00IT (softbound, 122 pp, study guide) $14.95

A COMPANION TO BEDE: A Reader’s Commentary on theEcclesiastical History of the English People, by J. Robert Wright, St

Mark’s Professor of Ecclesiastical History at GeneralTheological Seminary in New York City.The Venerable Bede’s history of the Christian

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ONLY A STAR, by Margery Facklam; illustratedby Nancy Carpenter.Were there decorations that first Christmas

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GOOD KING WENCESLAS, by John M.Neale, illustrated by Tim Ladwig.This story based on actual tenth-century

events, tells of a kindhearted king and hispage who set out on a cold winter’s night tohelp a poor man and who experience a mira-cle along the way. Ages 4-8Item E931T (32 pp, picture book) $16

NOW IT IS WINTER, by Eileen Spinellis; illus-trated by Mary Newell DePalma.When a young mouse yearns for spring, his

mother gently reminds him of snowflakes andsleds, oatmeal and warm beds—the wonders ofwinter he can enjoy now. Ages 4-8Item E887T (32 pp, picture book) $16


ADVENT A.D. 2008 41

ONE NIGHT IN A STABLE, by GuidoVisconti; illustrated byAlessandra Cimatoribus.An old ox welcomes many animals into his

stable during a storm, but when a donkey carry-ing weary travelers seeks shelter, the ox mustfind room for them. Ages 4-8Item E886T (32 pp, picture book) $16

PRAIRIE CHRISTMAS, by ElizabethVan Steenwyk; illustrated by RonaldHimler.Emma is disappointed when her moth-

er, a doctor on the 19th century prairie,has to deliver a baby on Christmas Day.But soon Emma realizes she isn’t the onlyone whose Christmas has been interrupt-ed. Ages 5-9Item E996T (32 pp, picture book) $17

THE HURON CAROL, illustrated by FrancesTyrrell.This gloriously illustrated Canadian carol

combines the details of daily Huron Indianlife with the wonder of the Christmas story.Ages 5-10Item E804T (32 pp, picture book) $16

(for ordering information, please turn page)


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� DEATHS �� THE REV. LANGFORD BALDWIN,91, in Worcester, Massachusetts.A graduate of Virginia Theologi-cal Seminary, he was ordained in1951. During his ministry, heserved at St. Barnabas, Ardsley,New York; St. Andrew’s, NewBedford, Massachusetts; St.Barnabas & All Saints, Spring-field; and, at Grace, Amherst. Heretired in 1977.

� THE REV. PHILIP CLOUGHBENTLEY, 89, in Palm BeachGardens, Florida. A graduate ofVirginia Theological Seminary,he was ordained in 1943 andjoined the US Navy as chaplain,a post in which he served until1967. He then served parishes inVirginia and Florida until retir-ing in 1986. He was also a chap-lain at the VA Medical Center inWest Palm Beach and was activein Cursillo and Kairos.

� THE REV. ROBERT D. HERZOG,74, in Severna Park, Maryland.A graduate of Virginia Theolog-ical Seminary, he was ordainedin 1964 in the Diocese ofWashington and served thereand in the Diocese of Marylanduntil retiring in 1999.

� THE REV. J. DAVID MCCALL-UM, 83, in Tomah, Wisconsin. Agraduate of Philadelphia Divin-ity School, he was ordained in1953. He served parishes in theDioceses of Kansas, West Mis-souri, and Wisconsin. He was amissionary to the MosquitoIndians in Nicaragua for 14years. He retired in 1997. Fr.McCallum was also an associateof the Order of the Holy Cross.

� THE REV. HAIG JOSEPHNARGESIAN, 85, in Northport,Connecticut. A graduate of theGeneral Theological Seminary,he was ordained in 1948 andserved parishes in New Jersey,Connecticut, and Maine untilretiring in 1988. Active in dioce-san affairs in both Connecticutand Maine, he was also an asso-ciate of the Community of St.Mary, Eastern Province.

� THE REV. WILLIAM PAYTON,67, in Atlanta, Georgia. A gradu-ate of the General TheologicalSeminary, he was ordained adeacon in 1965 and a priest in1966 in the Diocese of Georgia.He served parishes in Georgia,Rhode Island, and Marylandbefore retiring in 2003.


REMEMBER TADIN YOUR WILLYou can help the ministries

of the ANGLICAN BOOK CLUB,THE ANGLICAN DIGEST,OPERATION PASS ALONG, THEANGLICAN BOOKSTORE andTHE HOWARD LANE FOLANDLIBRARY by remembering usin your will. You may do soby using the following word-ing:“I hereby give, devise and

bequeath to the Society forPromoting and EncouragingArts and Knowledge of theChurch (SPEAK), a not-for-profit corporation, with thepresent address of 805County Road 102, EurekaSprings, AR 72632-9705 andits successor, the greater of$__________ , or __________percentage of my grossestate, to be used in suchmanner as determined by itstrustees.”

� THE REV. MICHAEL SPILLANE,58, in Menlo Park, California. Anative of England and a graduateof St. Patrick’s Theological Sem-inary in Canada, Fr. Spillane wasreceived from the Roman CatholicChurch and ordained a priest inthe Episcopal Church in 1992. Heserved several parishes in theDiocese of Idaho before beingcalled to Holy Trinity in MenloPark as rector in 2007. He was achaplain in the Order of St. Luke.

Rest eternal, grant unto them O Lord,and let light-perpetual shine upon them.

Advent PrayerLord Jesus, Master of both thelight and the darkness, send yourHoly Spirit upon our preparationsfor Christmas. We who have somuch to do seek quiet spaces tohear your voice each day. We whoare anxious over many thingslook forward to your comingamong us. We who are blessed inso many ways long for the com-plete joy of your kingdom. Wewhose hearts are heavy seek thejoy of your presence. We are yourpeople, walking in darkness, yetseeking the light. To you we say,“Come Lord Jesus!” Amen

— Henri J. M. Nouwen

ADVENT A.D. 2008 45

MOST WANTED

FOR the Foland Library: (NOTE: All the books in The Howard Lane Foland Library, comprisingsome 15,000 titles, have been donated.) • Volumes 1 and 4 of Kinship of God and Man, by J. J. Lanier, published by the author;

• Volume 2 of Spiritual Studies in St Luke's Gospel, by Arthur Ritchie, published by The Young Churchman Company;

• In the Pelican History of England Series: Volume 1, Roman Britain, by Ian Richmond; Volume 5, Tudor England, by S. T. Bindoff; Volume 6, England in the 17th Century, by Maurice Ashley;

• Volume 2 of The Antiquities of the Christian Church, by Joseph Bingham, published by Reeves and Turner.

FOR Operation Pass Along: • The Parker Society’s The Zurich Letters, Volumes 1 and 2; • The Life and Work of St Paul, Volume 2, by F. W. Farrar; • Voices in the Wilderness, by N. S. Katzinikolaou; • The Care of the Dying, by Richard Lamberton; • The Little Book of Our Lady, by Shirley Carter Hughson; • In the Old Testament Library series, Haggai and Zechariah, by D. L. Petersen;

• What Do We Know About Jesus?, by Otto Betz; • The Vocabulary of Politics, by T. D. Weldon; • Faith and Its Psychology, by W. R. Inge; • Real Presence, by Andrew Lytle.

Any of these may be sent to:MOST WANTED

Ministries of Hillspeak805 CR 102 • Eureka Springs AR 72632-9705


Season of Epiphany’Tis the season of Epiphany, fa,la, la, la, la . . . I know, no oneever sings that song but maybewe’re missing an opportunity.For me, Epiphany is just notgiven its due. It’s sandwiched inbetween Christmas and Lent likea piece of wilted lettuce. Afterthe tumult of the holidays, we allneed a settling period, and let’sface it — the six days betweenChristmas and New Year’s justisn’t enough time to recover andmake a resolution that is lasting.

So if we’re really going to makea change, shouldn’t we look atthe Magi a bit more thoughtful-ly? Those who followed the starto Bethlehem and discoveredGod in the humblest of circum-stances twelve days after hisbirth were changed forever.Their trip home no doubt tooksome time — they “went homeby another road.” What might our new way look

like? The gospels during thesefour weeks recount Jesus’ bap-tism and the disciples whoturned from what they weredoing and followed. I don’tknow about you but I could cer-tainly benefit from reexaminingmy Baptismal Covenant and tak-ing a metaphorical new path.

If I were to grade myself onkeeping that most essential ofcovenants, I might deservesomething along the lines of a B-on proclaiming by word andexample the Good News of Godin Christ. As for seeking to serveChrist in all persons, loving myneighbor as myself, that coulddefinitely use some work. Andstriving for justice and peaceamong all people, and respectingthe dignity of every humanbeing, well that’s a tall order. Just how am I going to turn

this into an epiphanous month?Maybe one way is to start by ask-ing for God’s help, listening tothe answers that are all aroundme, all around us, and then react-ing. If I were to ask, listen, andthen respond, it seems doable.I’m willing to bet that if I couldthere would be lots of epipha-nies, lots of resplendentmoments, and the star of won-der, star of light would guide mecloser to its perfect light.

May your Season of Epiphanybe filled with resplendence andyour path illuminated by theyonder star.

— Cece Fowler,Christ Church Cathedral,

Houston, Texas

ADVENT A.D. 2008 47

The Counter-RevolutionLuke 2:15-20

We had plans for every possibleattack and counter attack. We hadplotted and planned, for cen-turies really, until every eventual-ity had been carefully called intoaccount. We knew how everypossible move He could makecould be thwarted. Yet, we neversaw it coming.But I get ahead of myself. Best

to go back to the beginning. Itstarted when our leader, Lucifer,led a revolt against God. We werecast down, for the time being, butLucifer had a plan and while wehad lost the battle, the revolutionhad begun. We could win the warfor heaven and earth. We justneeded to wait and watch, for theright time.Sin came into the world effort-

lessly enough. It only took a sin-gle choice to get humans to turnaway from God. It didn’t matterthat the choice was the knowl-edge of Good and Evil, it couldhave been the knowledge ofwhere to get the perfectCappuccino. Ask a human todeny his or herself a choice andsoon enough they will do thevery thing that is forbidden.And so humans learned to turn

away from God. But we knew

that was not the end of the matter,for God cared for the miserablelittle creatures so much that hekept working at it. God sentprophets and kept sending them.It was all too easy to get thosewhiners put to death. You don’teven need to dispatch a demon tosit on someone’s shoulder for ajob like that. Try to disturb thestatus quo and soon enoughyou’ll pay. And the prophets weremade to pay. Isaiah might haveinstilled hope in humanity for atime, but he was sawn in two in ahollow log. Then up would popanother prophet, like Zechariahwho was slain in the Temple of allplaces. Again and again theprophets called on the people toturn back to God. Some peoplewould listen, while others wouldkill the prophet.This is when we started run-

ning all the scenarios, playingthem out in the minutest detail.We knew the prophecies betterthan any Hebrew scholar. But wenever saw the bigger picture. Weknew the Messiah would be bornto a Virgin. We knew he would bea descendant of David. We knewto look in Bethlehem. We knew itall. But the piece of the puzzlethat we never comprehended wasthat that baby boy would be God.Not like God, not some adopt-


ed child of God, but God. Thatinfant wrapped in swaddlingclothes in a Bethlehem stable wasthe fullness of the Trinity. Godbecome human. Incomprehens-ible. Emmanuel—God with us.Who would have ever thoughtthat God had really meant that lit-erally? Hah! The maker of all thatis enters into the creation itself.We never would have done that.Lucifer himself would have neverdeigned to have anything to dowith creation if he could havehelped it. It was an elegantly simple

approach in retrospect. There wasa problem within creation and soGod entered the creation to repairthe fabric of the cosmos from theinside. But come on. How could we

expect such an attack on the wayof the world? Why would Godcare so much? Why would Godbother? That question is the oneI’ve never gotten my mindaround. And yet, it happened.Incomprehensible or not, it hap-pened. Of course, we thought it meant

our victory was assured. We werecocky in those days. With Godmade man, we only had to snuffout the God-Man Jesus. Herodnearly pulled it off too, in killingall the babies around Bethlehem.

Weakling, he should have killedevery baby they could find any-where. Didn’t he understandwhat was at stake? No, of coursenot. Like most of them, he couldnot see beyond his own power,his own interests. Herod neversaw the larger picture.

But we knew in time that Jesuswould be brought down. It wasas inevitable as the death ofany other prophet. BecomingGod among humans would natu-rally mean a lot of people wouldwant him dead before too long.And eventually it happened. Onthat battered hilltop calledGolgotha—the place of a skull—he died without his closest fol-lowers, abandoned it seemed byGod and man. Oh how we celebrated that

Friday. And on the Saturday wethought would never end, werejoiced. God had played the finalhand and we were holding all theaces. By Sunday, we knew the truth.

The death of Jesus was not theend. The death of Jesus was thebeginning of a counter-revolutionagainst the way of the world—our ways. Jesus’ resurrectionturned the whole world upsidedown. The most degraded of vic-tims became the ultimate victor.

We had revolted against Godand Heaven. But now with Jesus,the last became the first. Thehumble was exalted. It waseverything he had babbled onabout for three years made visi-ble. The counter-revolution hadbegun.

Well, maybe not exactly. Theproblem was that the counter-revolution really started thatnight in Bethlehem. A poor moth-er, a hapless stepfather, and somegrubby shepherds crouchedround the maker of heaven andearth. The birth of that one babyin a stable in Bethlehem was likewrenching loose the cornerstone.Sooner or later our great plans forhumanity’s destruction wouldcome crashing down. That babychanged everything.Emmanuel—God with us.

Amazing. And God remains withthem still. Even now.We’ve already lost. We don’t

talk about it. But we know. Nowit’s only a matter of time. You’veread the final book, you’ve seenthe last reel. Good wins. Evilloses. Over and over again. But,how could we have known? Wenever saw it coming.

— The Rev. Frank Logue, King ofPeace, Kingsland, Georgia

ADVENT A.D. 2008 49

Guest Quarters atHILLSPEAK

Whether seeking the serenityof an Ozark mountain re-treat, searching shelves inOperation Pass Along, ordoing research in the FolandLibrary, Hillspeak’s guestquarters are ideal. Scenic vis-tas from atop GrindstoneMountain and the proximityof Eureka Springs draw visi-tors from around the world.Each unit accommodates atleast four people with a fullyequipped kitchen. See themonline at anglicandigest.orgor call for more information orto make reservations. Linensare supplied but no maidservice. Plan to spend sometime with us.

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Blessed Hope

I listened recently to a clergyman (no one I knew) speaking on thetheme of hope: a great theme, and he knew how to talk. It becameapparent, however, that the more he talked the less he was saying. Inparticular I was struck by what he managed not to say: what wemight hope for, and what we should hope in. His was a vague,generic hope, without any actual content, and without any actualfoundation: which is to say, not hope at all, just bland reassurance.

The question of hope is one of the great themes of this Advent sea-son, as it is of human life as a whole. What may we hope for? Andwhat may we hope in? And how do we lay hold of this hope? One ofThomas Hardy’s poems, “The darkling thrush”, leads us into thesequestions. It opens with the poet in “bleak mid-winter,” leaningupon “a coppice-gate/ When Frost was spectre-gray,/ And Winter'sdregs made desolate/ The weakening eye of day.” In the tangle ofdead vines, the poet sees “strings of broken lyres,” the traditionalsymbol of death’s victory over poetry itself. One is inevitablyreminded by theme and rhyme with “lyres” of “bare ruinedchoirs/where late the sweet birds sang”. The theme is one as old aspoetry itself: in nature’s annual dying and the inevitable, irrevocablepassage of time (the poem is dated 1900), he sees the defeat of thehuman spirit.

The land’s sharp features seemed to be The Century’s corpse outleant,His crypt the cloudy canopy,The wind his death lament.

For Christian faith, midwinter is a time to celebrate the new birthgiven to us by the one born in Bethlehem; a time to prepare for theLord’s coming with souls fervent with the fire of the Spirit (the para-ble of the wise and foolish virgins, Matthew 25:1-13). Not so for thepoet.

ADVENT A.D. 2008 51

The ancient pulse of germ and birthWas shrunken hard and dry,And every spirit upon earthSeemed fervourless as I.

It is perhaps illuminating to recall that in 1900 Hardy was sixty yearsold, enduring an unhappy marriage, and, after the savage criticalresponse to Jude the Obscure, had given up writing novels. His firstcollection of poetry, published in 1898, had been received withoutenthusiasm. His own prospects may have seemed rather bleak.

Yet in this landscape of inevitable death and defeat both natural andhuman, something inexplicable happens.

At once a voice arose amongThe bleak twigs overheadIn a full-throated evensong Of joy illimited;An aged thrush, frail, gaunt, and small,In blast-beruffled plume,Had chosen thus to fling his soul Upon the growing gloom.

Himself an “aged thrush” the poet may well have wondered whatthis bird has to sing about. With no “household fires” to warm him,winter may mean death. As the allusion to “evensong” suggest, hissong is a kind of Nunc Dimittis, the song of aged Simeon as he goesto his death (Luke 2: 29-32).

So little cause for carolingsOf such ecstatic soundWas written on terrestrial thingsAfar or nigh around,That I could think there trembled throughHis happy good-night airSome blessed Hope, whereof he knewAnd I was unaware.


In this “ecstatic sound” he hears the fervor of spirit which nature’sdying gives no reason for. Something more than “terrestrial” mustexplain this “joy illimited.” Perhaps there was “some blessed Hope,whereof he knew/And I was unaware.” The phrase “blessedHope” comes from the Prayer Book’s collect for the Second Sundayin Advent, and is the final, unmistakable hint of the poet’smeaning.

The poet sees that Hope cannot be hope for, or hope in, “terrestrialthings,” which must inevitably pass away. For hope to be hope — asure and certain expectation, which no winter can chill — it must,first, be hope for God — who is the “joy illimited” above all “terres-trial things.” Second, hope must be established in God, in confidenceof his power — that most “ancient pulse of germ and birth”, theAncient of Days, whose eternal son is born of a Virgin to regenerateus in the fervor of the Spirit. Thirdly, hope must be known, andknown through God’s revealing of it to us. I don’t know whatHardy’s religious views were, but on the evidence of this poem, Iwould guess he was a reluctant agnostic, who could long for this“blessed Hope” but was unable to know its certainty. He leans on the“coppice-gate”, and listens wonderingly and wistfully to thethrush’s song; but does not go through.

The poet has brought us thus far. At the Advent gate of the Christianyear, he has tuned our ears to the thrush’s wordless “carolings.” Forus to go through this gate, we must hear and receive the wordswhich the Church’s faith supplies for this music, words which arefound in all the carols and hymns of this season. Insistently and joy-ously do these holy words declare the Advent of Hope into theworld. For the Word of Hope has been made flesh, and born of Mary,for us “to embrace and ever hold fast” with all the powers of ourmind and will.

— The Rev. Gavin G. Dunbar,Saint John’s, Savannah, Georgia

ADVENT A.D. 2008 53

Your Questions, MyQuestions, Our Questions

After reading the Rev.Frederick W. Schmidt’s book,What God Wants for Your Life, * Ithought it might be worthwhileto consider the question Fr.Schmidt’s book title posits. Whatdoes God want for our lives? Fr.Schmidt teaches that we cannotknow what God wants for ourlives until we are willing to beopen to and available to God.

The basic problem we all face isegocentricity. This is not a sin; itis a natural condition. We all aremore aware of our own wantsand needs before we becomeaware of the wants and needs ofothers. Thinking of ourselvesfirst is a way we assure our sur-vival in a dangerous world.However, Fr. Schmidt suggests,if we are to ever truly under-stand our true needs and desti-nation, we must turn the ques-tions around to, “What does Godwant for us?” This too may seemegocentric on the surface, but ifthe question is asked carefullywe will know the answer in abroader sense beyond our inter-nal reasoning.

What I mean is that the ques-tion should be, “How does Godwork in me despite my wish toput me first?” It seems that whenwe address God we are mostlyseeking God’s favor, God’s sup-port, and God’s magic.

Certainly, most of us don’tbelieve that God works magic,but we do believe that Godworks miracles, which we oftenconfuse with magic. What Imean by that is we go to Godwith a particular problem(maybe we have been diagnosedwith a life threatening illness)and we ask God to work magicfor us and take the illness away.Instead, to be more closely intune with God, we are to askGod to use the illness or otherproblem as a method of demon-strating God’s love for all ofhumanity.

Praying for health and healingis not wrong, but we must useJesus’ example of seeking God torelieve us of a terrible burden.Recall, while Jesus was prayingin the Garden of Gethsemaneand fully cognizant of what wasto come next, he prayed that theburden he was about to face

* Frederick W. Schmidt, What God Wants for Your Life, 2005, Harper San Francisco.


could be lifted from him. Wecould suggest that at thatmoment Jesus was experiencingdoubt. He may have even doubt-ed his mission and purpose inlife. Nonetheless, he submittedto God’s will and completed hismessianic mission.

Fr. Schmidt suggests that thequestions we ask are all too oftenwhat he refers to as “I- ques-tions.” What he means by that isthat what we want is moreimportant than what Godintends or what God wants forus.

The idea is that we think of Godin far too small a way. To beattuned to the “God-questions,”as Fr. Schmidt calls them, is tosee or to understand God in alarger context than ourselves.The basic issue is one of culture.We live in a culture that is “I-cen-tered.” The opposite, of course, isa culture that is “God-centered.”We may not be able to build aGod-centered culture, but we candevelop a God-centered life.What would a God-centered lifebe like?Possibly it can be built on a

question that asks, ‘’What canGod do through me?” We cannotask the “through me” question

until we recognize that we can-not compartmentalize our lives;separating our lives by function.In a work place I might behave away that is totally different thanwhen in a social environment.Certainly, work skills and tasksrequire us to do things we wouldnot do in another place, but whatI am addressing is attitude, per-sona, or image.

To be God-centered and to bewilling to ask the God-questionsis to recognize that God is notcompartmentalized. God is everpresent in life and in everyaspect of life. This requires us tobe ever constant that what wesay or do reflects our relation-ship with God.

To be clear, I am not suggestingthat we must live like cloisteredmonks or nuns. What I am think-ing about is how we reflect in ourlives the reality of God. Thatmeans we address people withcivility, we are prepared toforego our egos for the good ofothers, and we understand thatGod is found in the other as wellas in ourselves.

The ultimate reality is that Godis not in a box. God is not insidethe church building waiting for

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us to return or not next Sundayto worship God. God is in life.God is in our lives and in thelives of all of humanity. Ask theGod-question, “What does Godwant done to make the world abetter place?” When we ask thatquestion the power of God tochange the world becomes evi-dent in us.

Thus, moving out of ourselves,our egos, is the beginning of afull and hopeful life. Settling forjust the BIG-I is not satisfying.Much of what we think of as lifeis unrewarding, mundane, andspiritless. But, when we open ourminds, our hearts, and our verybeing to becoming God’s agents,seeking to discern what Godwants done, we begin to under-stand what Jesus meant that hehas come to give us an abundantlife.

Unless we allow for the God-question, writes Fr. Schmidt, yourquestion, my question, and ourquestions are thin and hopeless. Itis God who gives substance tothe questions of life.

— The Rev. William F.Bellais, Ed.D.,Grace Church,

Chillicothe, Missouri

Americanized Christmas

As a holy day on the Churchcalendar, Christmas is a latecom-er. One of the early Church lead-ers, Clement of Alexandria, sug-gested May 20 as the most likelyday for the actual birth of Jesus,but it wasn’t a celebrated occa-sion. The earliest mention ofDecember 25 as the Nativity ofour Lord dates to the year 336. In the Eastern Church, January

6 commemorated the baptism ofJesus as well as the Epiphanyand was considered more impor-tant than Christmas. By the fifthcentury most of the Christianworld observed December 25 asthe day of Jesus’ birth. TheChurch in Jerusalem held on toJanuary 6 until 549, which isinteresting considering that theChurch of the Nativity, where theevent supposedly took place,was already in existence inBethlehem. The secular side of Christmas

was even slower to develop andsome of what we think of asChristmas “traditions” aredownright modern. The celebra-tion was always marked by mer-rymaking but a lot of modernChristmas customs are influ-enced by Charles Dickens. In 1809 Washington Irving


published a History of New York,which was meant to be a spoof ofDutch culture. In it, Santa Clauslost his bishop’s apparel andappeared as a bearded Dutchsailor with a pipe and a longgreen coat. Santa Claus as weknow him didn’t appear untilClement Moore’s poem, A VisitFrom Saint Nicholas (betterknown as The Night BeforeChristmas) was published in theTroy, New York Sentinel onDecember 23, 1823. For the firsttime the eight flying reindeerwere given names. In 1863 Thomas Nast (a politi-

cal cartoonist who gave us theRepublican Party elephant, theDemocratic Party donkey, andUncle Sam) drew the first pictureof a portly Santa Claus. Untilthen he had been tall and thin.Even then it wasn’t until 1885that the red suit became stan-dardized. Some have suggestedthat Coca-Cola advertisinginvented the red and white suit.That isn’t true, but there is nodoubt that Coca-Cola marketingcemented the costume of SantaClaus forever. It is a mixture of the sacred

and the secular, the holy and theordinary. And maybe that isn’tall bad. Maybe that has a lot tosay about the nature of this won-

derful and magical holiday thathas captured the imagination ofgeneration after generation. Tobe sure, Christmas can be over-whelmed by all the hoopla thatsurrounds it. Sometimes — may-be even a lot of the time — thecommercial side of things seemsto be out of balance. For some Isuppose the season is mostlyabout Santa Claus and has little,if anything, to do with Jesus. But the secular and the sacred

are not so separate as we mighthave imagined. That is, after all,the point. God has entered intothe human story in the fullnessof love. The holy has touched theordinary, and the ordinary hasbeen made holy. There isn’t a part of the world

that is God’s and a part that isn’t.The goal of Christmas isn’t tomake our lives more spiritualand less ordinary. The goal is tosee the holiness of all that is ordi-nary. Christmas calls us to seethe holiness in all things and inall people. That is why it speakswith such hope and such power. To paraphrase the words of

Tiny Tim, “God bless us every-one, no exceptions.”

—The Very Rev. Joe Reynolds,Dean, Christ Church Cathedral,

Houston, Texas

ADVENT A.D. 2008 57

Christ, the King

Jesus, remember me when you comeinto your kingdom. Luke 22:35-43

In her book My Grandfather’sBlessings, Dr. Rachel NaomiRemen tells the story of a col-league who was one of the fewwomen on the university hospi-tal faculty. A full professor ofmedicine, she was the model ofthe kind of physician her stu-dents wanted to become. Asuperb researcher, clinician, andteacher, her passion, energy, anddedication were legendaryamong the staff.

Then she discovered a lump inher breast. The chief of thedepartment performed her sur-gery and the mass was found tobe malignant. The chief went tothe recovery room to tell her thehard news as soon as she awak-ened. Still groggy from the anes-thesia, she listened to the sur-geon’s words. She then closedher eyes for a brief time and saidin a barely audible voice themost difficult words she hadever uttered: “Now someone willhave to take care of me.” Her plight left the rest of the

medical staff shaken. It hadtaken cancer for this hard-work-

ing physician to give herself per-mission to be cared for. We are all in need of compas-

sion, of forgiveness, of support,of assurance. All of us, in someway, to some degree, are vulner-able, hurting, despairing. In theshadow of the cross, we are ableto finally admit our need forhealing, for peace, for God. Like the doctor who now must

accept her own mortality and thecare of others, the “good thief”hanging on the cross next toJesus is finally able to see whathis life has become and recognizehis need for God — and Jesusdoes not disappoint him. The hope of the cross begins

with confronting our sinfulnessand accepting responsibility forthe wrong we do; only then canwe begin to realize our potentialfor the healing and grace that cantransform our lives in the loveand hope of God. On Christ the King Sunday, we

stand on the edge of paradiseand look through the doorway toheaven. When Jesus responds tothe thief, he opens for him andall of us who may feel like this,the door to true freedom. Jesusinvites us to enter into Paradisehere and now, because he hasalready established the reign ofGod on earth. All we have to do


— and certainly this is no smalltask — is to put aside our hurtsand slights, drop our demand forrestitution and vengeance andrealize our need to be recreatedin the love of God. The thief finally recognizes all

of this and calls out to Jesus; andhow does Jesus respond? Withcompassion and hope. So, as weclose out yet another liturgicalyear and prepare ourselves forthe coming of Advent, let us pro-claim boldly this reign of God bysaying: Alleluia! Christ is risen!

— The Rev. Mark L. Fitzhugh,Christ Church Greenwich,Greenwich, Connecticut

The IncarnationI once heard a preacher refer to

Jesus as one who was “born inthe shadow of the cross.” By thishe meant that even at Jesus’ birthwe anticipate his crucifixion. The preacher is entirely cor-

rect. However, if we primarilylook at Jesus as the “man born todie,” we miss the deeper truthsof the mystery of the Incarnationof the Son of God. We are, with-out doubt, redeemed by Jesus’death and resurrection. But if theChristian doctrine of theIncarnation is true, then Jesus’

entire life is redemptive. BecauseGod took on human existence inJesus, all aspects of human lifehave a transformed meaning.The ordinariness of our lives isno longer ordinary. Because Godhas joined with us in the trialsand the tragedies, in the tri-umphs and the joys of everydayhuman existence, all of life isinfused with new meaning. The opening chapter of John’s

Gospel begins by telling us aboutthe eternal “Word” who waswith God from the beginningand who took on flesh in JesusChrist. John writes, “And theWord became flesh and dweltamong us, full of grace and truth... “ (John 1: 14). Paul puts it verysimply in his Epistle to theGalatians when he writes, “ ...when the time had fully come,God sent forth his Son, born ofwoman, born under the law, toredeem those who were underthe law, so that we might receiveadoption” as children of God(4:4). And in his Epistle to thePhilippians, Paul tells us that inthe Incarnation Jesus Christ,“emptied himself, taking theform of a servant, being born inthe likeness of men” (2:7). Pauladds that Jesus’ death on thecross is the hallmark of his obedi-ence and his self-humiliation.

ADVENT A.D. 2008 59

We see, then, that the NewTestament teaches that we mustnot only focus on the death andresurrection of Jesus, but also onthe mystery of his Incarnation.Why should we do this? As theApostle Paul showed, theIncarnation of the Son of Godprovides us with a living testi-mony to the self-humiliation ofGod. In becoming human, theSon of God humbled himself andtook on the form of a servant.Paul tells us that we should havea similar outlook. We should bewilling to humble ourselves andserve others. The Incarnation ofthe Son of God provides us witha model of humble service.

The Incarnation also teachesus about the true nature of therelationship between God andhis human children. God doesnot gaze on our existence fromafar. God became an active par-ticipant in human life by becom-ing a human being in JesusChrist. The mystery of theIncarnation means God’s sharingin the sufferings and joys ofhuman existence are enduring.An early Christian Bishop, Leothe Great, said, “as long as weare in the body, the sufferings ofChrist continue.” Jesus Christ,the Incarnate Son of God, contin-ues to share in our humanity. So,

when we contemplate the cruci-fied Christ, we can truly see thesufferings of Jesus and those ofcrucified humanity. It seemsmuch of American Christianityhas departed from this centraltruth of the Christian faith. Weseem to imagine Jesus as a tran-scendent being who bouncesdown to earth from heaven, suf-fers momentarily, and thenbounces back. And we imaginesuch a Jesus can magically deliv-er us from the difficulties andsufferings of life. The deepertruth of the Incarnation is some-thing altogether different. InJesus Christ, God himself sharedin human life and he continuesto share in our lives. Theinevitable sufferings and thetragedies of our lives have a dif-ferent meaning because of theIncarnation. Our sufferings arenot ours alone. Jesus Christ trulyis Emmanuel, “God with us.”

Let’s remember we are cele-brating the Feast of theIncarnation; the birth of theChrist child. We are givingthanks that God came into ourworld in human form to redeemus.

— The Very Rev. James H.Clendinen, St. John’s,Bainbridge, Georgia


Questions for Christmas

Season’s GreetingsThis year I became aware that

the Shopping Season is evendeveloping its own sequence ofholidays. First there is BlackFriday, which is a good daybecause it is the day when storesgo in the “black” because of theirsales. The newest feast day is“Cyber Monday,” a day holy tothe practice of on-line shopping.No doubt other days of the weekwill soon be designated for spe-cial retail activity as well. Eventhough this may short-list me forthis year’s Ebenezer ScroogeAward, I don’t think shopping isthe answer.

If shopping isn’t the answer,what is? If we are going to spendmost of this month getting readyfor Christmas anyway, whatmight we do that has a goodchance to make us end the monthfeeling as though we have beenpersonally blessed, that our com-munity has been renewed, andthat there is, indeed, hope andlight for the world. Put another way, can

Christmas answer three basicand enduring questions: Whatabout me? What about us? andWhat about them?

What about Me?Take a moment to consider

what you most desire for your-self. And then ask what is behindthat desire — if your wish is forsomething more, something else,or something different, what isbehind that desire? We’re intodeeper territory than the adultversion of a child’s list for Santa.Take a moment — this can be dif-ficult and painful — to thinkabout what is missing from yourlife, what you most regret, whatyou deeply wish you couldchange. These are difficult, scaryquestions; ones which we some-times feel are pointless to askbecause we doubt if anythingsignificant can really change. Weoften devote considerable energyto not asking them and even tosuppressing our consciousawareness that the issues exist.How much shopping do youthink it will take to make all thislastingly better?

In Advent, we make an inten-tional effort to ask these hard,difficult, and even painful ques-tions. Part of the purpose ofAdvent is to remind us of whywe need a savior at all. If wewere doing so well on our own,why would we need anyoneelse?

ADVENT A.D. 2008 61

Part of the purpose of Christ-mas is to show us how Godintends to respond to what wemost need. First note that theanswer is not an “answer,” nor isit a magical suspending of thenormal laws of nature, nor is it afairy tale ending. This deus is notex machina but is in a manger.Mary does not prove to be along-lost princess, the value ofthe Magi’s gifts seems to be morein their meaning than their mon-etary value, and for all of theangels and signs in the heavens,Joseph and his family just barelyget out of Bethlehem with notime to spare before Herod’sstorm troopers come in and killall the baby boys. We might wantanswers, magic, wealth, or pro-tection, but what we get is a per-son whom we will come toknow; examples of courage andfaithfulness, new definitions ofwealth and power, and warningof dangers which are never faraway.

We get, in short, an invitation toa new way of thinking, a new setof values, and a new way to liveour lives — probably not the sortof thing you put on yourChristmas list, but maybe whatwe all need the most. God’s holi-day invitation to you is to atransformed life.

What about Us?The biblical Christmas story is

very much a family and commu-nal event, but not what youmight expect. No sooner do wemeet Joseph in Matthew’s ver-sion than we see him trying tofigure out how to break up withMary with the least humiliationand embarrassment for the twoof them. He’s looking for some-thing like the first century equiv-alent of “It’s not you, really, it’sme . . . “ It takes God’s directintervention, in the dream-visitof an angel, for Joseph to discov-er that the right thing to do is justthe opposite of what he wasraised to believe. Family life wascomplicated for them, too. We hear little of the emotional

lives of Mary and Joseph in thestory, but we see them each act-ing generously and graciouslyunder extreme stress. In Luke’saccount we see Mary’s perspec-tive on her pregnancy, how sheaccepts her problematic statusand, like Joseph in Matthew, seesin it God at work, regardless ofwhat anyone else might think.She seeks out her elderkinswoman, Elizabeth, whosewarm welcome seems to helpMary to see her condition as aspecial blessing. Zechariah andElizabeth, through their hospital-


ity, help Mary to understandwhat the angel has said to her.Luke gives a good example of thepower of God and God’s peopleworking in harmony for the com-mon good.

By the end of the story, Maryand Joseph have each been bravein their own way — brave in fac-ing down their doubt, in facingphysical danger, in making diffi-cult choices, and in stayingtogether. Perhaps among the les-sons for families and communi-ties at Christmas is that difficulttimes can be opportunities fordeeper blessings, what we havealways believed needs to be test-ed against what God might becalling us to now, and loving actsof support and faithfulness arecore elements of the health of theHoly, or any, family.

What about Them?Are we allowed to talk about a

“them,” to think of some peopleas “those others”? Perhaps whenthe Kingdom of God is fully real-ized, such distinctions will ceaseto exist, but, for now, they seemto be a fact of our perspective.There are plenty of “thems” inthe Christmas story. It’s perfectly fine for the shep-

herds to be abiding in the fields

by night with their flocks, as longas they stay there. But when theycome down to where we aredoing our best to survive a birthin a stable, I’m thinking, Whatelse is going to happen tonight?Shepherds are outsiders, unable,by the demands of their profes-sion, to keep the various require-ments of the law. But they didnot stumble onto the manger byaccident; they were, in Luke’saccount, the only ones with ahand-delivered invitation fromGod. And God doesn’t send justa messenger; he dispatches thewhole tabernacle choir in theirbest vestments to back up themessage with a full chorus. It’s apretty big deal for working shep-herds who generally never makeit to the top of anyone’s guest list,ever. God is not just speakingplatitudes about hospitality andinclusion, God is making sure theworking people on the night shiftget included first. God gives agood party. If Luke makes it clear that the

working poor are the honoredguests, Matthew gives the placeof honor to Arabs from the East,unclean outsiders of a differentsort than shepherds. The Eastwas the direction of Babylon, theancient place of exile, and Magiwere certainly pagans, and

ADVENT A.D. 2008 63

whether kings or astrologers,were definitely not peopleobserving the traditions of thepeople of God. And yet they, notthe King in Jerusalem, were theones zeroing in on the true Kingof the Jews. The distinguishedtemple scholars knew that if theMessiah ever were actually tocome, it would be in Bethlehem,but they were clueless that it washappening right now. The out-siders get it; the insiders, at best,are blind, but at worst are likeHerod who sends in his troops towipe out the possibility of adestabilizing insurgency cen-tered on another “King of theJews.”

The Christmas story reminds usthat God sometimes speaks to“them” more directly and moreclearly than to people like “us.”God went to considerablelengths to be sure that night-shiftshepherds and pagan astrologersgot the word — they got ticketsto the premiere and practically alimo to deliver them to the redcarpet. If that is how God treats“them,” perhaps there is a lessonthere for “us.” I think these stories can hold

their own against songs aboutroasting chestnuts, meltingsnowmen, little drummer boys,and even, dare I say it, underap-

preciated reindeer. The essence ofthe Christmas story is not seeinga little good in everyone, beingrescued by the unlikely hero, orcelebrating a sentimentalizedversion of children. (In fact, Jesusis the only child in the actualChristmas story: God comes to usnot to celebrate children, but toaddress the crippling and heart-breaking needs of all people, and,indeed, most of the children whoare helped by Jesus are helpedbecause their parents know himand go to him in faith.)The essence of the Christmas

story is that in the darkness, lightshines, and the darkness does notovercome it. The other lights willbe packed up and put away, treeswill go to the curb, and all thatwe bought will fade away. But ifwe can take all that Christmas isreally about, and, like Mary, pon-der it in our hearts, then what aseason, what lasting blessings,and what a life of joy and peacelies ahead of us.

— The Rev. John G. Hartnett,St. Elizabeth’s,

Ridgewood, New Jersey

anglicandigest.org

Contents

Preparations When We’re “Expecting” .................. 3The Song of Mary ........................................................ 4The Empty Stocking ................................................... 7O Come, Emmanuel ................................................... 9The Voice of This Calling ......................................... 11Christ’s Birth ................................................................ 13Hurry Up! It’s Advent! ............................................... 15Fifty Years of Angels .................................................. 19Christian Year .............................................................. 26The Garden of Eden ................................................... 29Anniversary Celebration ........................................... 32Hillspeaking ................................................................ 34Greet the Unexpected ................................................. 35Adoption and Grace ....................................................36St. Nicholas.....................................................................38Deaths ............................................................................ 43Season of Epiphany .................................................... 46The Counter-Revolution ............................................ 47Blessed Hope ................................................................50Questions .......................................................................53Americanized Christmas ........................................... 55Christ the King ............................................................ 57The Incarnation ........................................................... 58Questions for Christmas ............................................ 60

Documents

2008_06 ADVENT