We Need to Take Advent Seriously

As I was driving down Mamaroneck Avenue, I happened to notice that all the Christmas decorations were out before Thanksgiving. Even my car radio was playing secular Christmas songs by the middle of November. I also saw ads for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. I don’t want to sound like Scrooge and spoil all the fun of our consumer activities as we skip from Thanksgiving to Christmas, with nothing in between.

I think of Advent, that church season that has been lost as we trample over it in our rush to places like Kohl’s orMacy’s. Modern people, of course, sit in front of the computer or hold their phones and order from Amazon on the internet.

When I think of Advent, I think of one of my first years here at St. John’s, when the Herz family would come by the parsonage and give us little Advent calendars. Each door hid a piece of chocolate. In a way, it was kind of childish, but in another way it told me there were many days to prepare for the coming of the Christ child.

Long ago a quilting group met here and asked me if they could do something for us in lieu of rent. I told them we needed an Advent banner. They made a beautiful one, hanging in our sanctuary every Advent ever since, together with the banners Lisa Kehrle made.

These two examples are just a small way to stop our December frenzy as we prepare for Christmas. However, if you go to church every Sunday, you notice that Advent has important stories that highlight the season, and I think of all we are missing when we don’t observe it:

There is the call to stay awake for the thief in the night.

There is the Baptist’s call to repentance and to make straight the road - a highway for our God.

There is the announcement to Mary that she is with child.

There is the Old Testament prophecy of the shoot coming out from the stump of Jesse.

To simplify matters, Advent is about preparation. One of the first maxims of becoming a girl scout or boy scout is: “Be prepared”. That preparation pulls us through the wilderness of John the Baptist. It goes on to show us the simplicity of shepherds hearing the good news sung to them by angels in a field. It’s a message of Peace on Earth and Goodwill to All.

So, the work of Advent is really that of repentance, rearranging what is important in our lives, addressing the unconverted corners of our lives, and opening our hearts to a child that is born once more into our world.

The Baptist’s message is to remove the worthless chaff in our lives and to fill it with a positive and hopeful message. We project it through how we live and what we do. As Mary says, “My soul doth magnify the Lord”. Does yours?

MEH