THE ADVENT PROJECT
Why
The Advent Project?
Because we can!
And we ought!!
Christianity
long ago lost Advent to the Christmas culture.
The Christmas decorations lurking in the back corners of supermarkets and
home supply stores from late August, join with boutiques, pharmacies, and other
retail establishments, just waiting for Halloween to pass so that they can all
explode into their full manifestation. We begin to live within an unrelenting
barrage of television and other electronic media advertisements and music for
the holiday season. Against all this
the Church has little defense against the global culture of Christmas eclipsing
the season of Advent, and its focus - the manifestation of God’s reign.
Many congregations simply surrender to the Christmas
culture and hold such services as “Lessons and Carols” as early as the First
Sunday of Advent. Certainly, Advent
calendars, replete with chocolate treats, are little more than a “count
down” to Christmas. Advent spirituality is reduced to pleas to take time out
to reflect on these things amidst the bustle of the season. Thus, by the
beginning of December we are well on our way to Bethlehem. The problem with
this, of course, is that the primary focus of Advent is the full Reign of God to
come. This is the exclusive focus of the Scripture readings from the Sunday
after All Saints’ Day (November 1) until the last week of Advent.
In its origin, the season of Advent was nearly seven
weeks. By the time of the 16th
century however, few remembered that Advent had once been longer. The original
intent of the season is to look to the end, to the fulfillment of the Mystery in
the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The focus is on the Christian hope for the
Reign of God - looking to the end, to the eternal moment that makes sense of all
our moments.
The kingdom parables of the long summer and autumnal
season after Pentecost follow Jesus around the countryside,
Now the kingdom parables take on a harvest-time or in-gathering and
fulfillment character. And this Gospel focus is supported by prophetic and
apostolic readings. These themes of our worship call us not so much to cringe
before an angry Judge who will wreak apocalyptic havoc on a creation gone bad,
but to our responsibilities as agents in-Christ helping participate in God’s
reign for a renewed creation. We are encouraged to look toward a vision, perhaps
best realized, when it is set to the glorious music that nearly everyone knows
from Handel’s Messiah: “the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdom
of our God and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever.”
Amen
to Advent.