Holy Nights 2018, Light of Life

Holy Nights

1 John 1: 1-10

What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have beheld, and touched with our hands: the Word of God which bears all Life within itself -  the very Life revealed itself, and we have seen it and so bear witness to it and proclaim it to you as the life which is through all cycles of time. It was with the Father; now it has revealed itself to us. We have seen it and heard it, and we proclaim to you so that you also can live in spiritual community with us; that is, our community with the Father and with Jesus Christ his Son.

           

These things we are writing so that your joy may be full.

And this is

the message we have received from Him and proclaim to you: that God is Light, and there is not any kind of darkness in Him.

If we say that we have community with Him and yet conduct our lives in the darkness, what we say is a lie and what we do is without reality.

Only when our life is fully permeated by light, as He Himself is in the light, are we truly united in community, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us of all sin.

If we say that we are without sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

If we are conscious of our sinfulness and confess to it, then He proves faithful and just; he takes the sin from us and cleanses us of all unrighteousness.

If we say that we have never fallen into sin, we make Him a liar, and the divine Word which goes forth from him is not in us. 

Holy Nights

December 30, 2018

1 John 1: 1 – 10

The sun shining onto a lighted candle will naturally cast a shadow. The shadow of the solid candle. The shadow of the wick. But the light of the flame casts only the barest image of itself, outlined in white. The heat shimmer, the faintest shadow of smoke we can see. But the light itself casts no shadow.

 We can liken ourselves to the candle. Our bodies are like the solid wax. They cast shadows. But we can offer our inner substance to worlds, divine and earthly. The offering of self to God reflects back from Him to generate in us a love that is creative. The warmth of our love and enthusiasm ignite an invisible flame. The purity of our living thinking generates a light that is clear and without shadow.

John announces to us that God is light; and that in Him there is no darkness. What is it that casts shadows? Solid matter. But love and joining our lives with Christ generates light – Christ light in our daylight. The light of His life. We can hear in the poem by Nelly Sachs of the light of the living Christ:

All the while like flames

It chases through our body

As if it were yet woven through with

The star’s beginning

How slowly we light up in clarity –

O after how many light-years have

Our hands folded to ask,

Our knees sunk

And our soul opened itself

To thank?

Christmas Day 2018, Jesus Christ the Apple Tree

Christmas Day

Luke 2: 1-20 (adapted)

Now it came to pass in those days that a proclamation went out from Caesar Augustus that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone set out to be enrolled, each to the town of his ancestors.

So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he belonged to the house and lineage of David. He went to be enrolled with Mary his betrothed. And Mary was with child. And it came to pass that while they were there, the time was fulfilled for her to be delivered. And she bore her son, her first-born. And she wrapped him in linen and placed him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks in the night. And an angel of the Lord came upon them [appeared before them] and the light of the revelation of God shone about them. And great fear came upon them [they felt the fear of fears].

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for I announce to you a great joy, which shall be for all men on earth: today is born unto you the Bringer of Healing, in the city of David, Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign for you: you will find a little child wrapped in linen, lying in a manger.”

And suddenly around the angel was the fullness of the heavenly angelic hosts: their song of praise sounded forth to the highest:

God’s Spirit reveals itself in the heights

And brings peace to men of earth

         In whose hearts good will dwells!

Nativity by Gerard van Honthorst

And as the angels withdrew from them into the heavens, the shepherds said to one another: “Let us go to Bethlehem to see the fulfillment of the Word that has happened here, which the Lord let be proclaimed.”

And they came hastening and found both Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in the manger. And when they had seen, they made known the Word that was spoken to them concerning this child. [or, When they saw that, they understood what had been told them concerning this child.] And all who heard it were astonished about what the shepherds said.

But Mary treasured [preserved] all these words, pondering them [turning them over] in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God to everyone for everything they had heard and seen, which was just as it had been announced to them.

Christmas II, Dawn

December 25, 2018

Luke 2: 1-20

Lucas Cranach I, Virgin and Child under an Apple Tree 

An old legend describes a very first gift to the Christ Child very early Christmas morning. Mary and Joseph and the Child are settling, in the quiet light. The door opens to the figure of an ancient woman. She is dressed all in gray, with a hood covering her face. Mary is concerned. Slowly, with each step an eternity, the woman approaches. As she comes to the crib, the Child awakens, and Mary notices that the eyes of both are the same. The old one bends down over the Child, and her hand brings forth something from under her gray mantle; she hands it to the Child—His first gift.

The old figure straightens, as if freed from a great weight. Her face shines wonderfully young. Her head rises nearly to the rafters. She moves away and disappears into the night.

Eve, for it was she, had come to bring the Child, as His first gift, the red apple of the first sin, the calamity of all mankind. And now, in the Child’s little hand, the apple turns golden. It becomes the image of a new world that is born with Him. There is an old hymn that likens Christ himself to an apple tree:

Christ Child with Apple, Michel Erhard 1470

The tree of life my soul hath seen
Laden with fruit and always green…

His beauty doth all things excel
By faith I know but ne'er can tell…

This fruit does make my soul to thrive
It keeps my dying faith alive…

Which makes my soul in haste to be
With Jesus Christ the apple tree. *

*Elizabeth Poston, Jesus Christ the Apple Tree. Lyrics: http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/jesus_christ_the_apple_tree.htm

For a lovely performance, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SixnHKwyrjI

4th Advent 2018, Human Form Divine

4th Advent
Matthew 25, 31-46 (Madsen)

When the Son of Man comes, illumined by the light of revelation, surrounded by all angels then he will ascend the throne of the kingdom of his revelation. He will gather before his countenance all the peoples of the world and he will cause a division among them, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, the sheep on his right, and the goats on his left. Then, as king, he will say to those on his right, “Come here, you who are blessed by my Father, you shall receive as your own the kingdom which has been intended for you from the creation of the world. I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in; I was naked, and you clothed me; I was ill, and you looked after me; I was in prison and you came to me.”

Then those who are devoted to God will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you starving and we fed you, or saw you thirsty and gave you to drink? When did we see you as a stranger and take you in, or see you naked and clothe you? When did we visit you when you were you ailing or in prison?

And the king will say to them, “Yes, I say to you, what you did for the least of my brothers and sisters, that you did it for me.”

S. Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna

Then he will say to those standing on his left, “You will not remain near me. You are subject to the burning fire in which the aeon is consumed, and in which dwells the Adversary and his messengers! I was hungry, and you did not give me to eat; I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me to drink; I was a stranger and you did not take me in; I was naked, and you did not clothe me; I was ill and in prison and you did not visit me.”

Then they will also answer, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and did not give you to eat, or thirsty and did not give you to drink, or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison and did not help you?”

Then he will answer, “Yes, I say to you, what you neglected to do for the least of my brethren, you failed to do for me.” And thy will become subject to the aeon of anguish, while those devoted to God shall find the aeon of life. 

4^th Advent

December 23, 2018

Matthew 25:31- 46 (Madsen)

By their nature, goats are curious and adventuresome. They are lusty and will eat anything. They are often used to symbolize our lower nature and even the adversary forces that work in us. Sheep, on the other hand, are by their nature mild. They give freely of their coats of wool. And they allow themselves to be led to the slaughter without resistance. John the Baptist referred to Christ Jesus as the Lamb of God. This Lamb represents the highest forces in us – the offering of self for the good of the other.

We human beings are of dual nature. We each have a goat and a lamb within us. In the end, whether our soul stands on the right or the left of the Lamb’s Throne will depend on which side of our nature we breed and cultivate: Whether we cultivate our own self-enjoyment or the Lamb within the soul.

In the parable, Christ makes it clear that our curiosity and adventuring, our relationship to food and drink and love are to become Lamb-like. They are to be placed in the service of others. We are to feed others; place the courage of our adventurousness at the service of the approaching stranger, the ill, the imprisoned. Like the Lamb, we are to clothe others out of our own substance. For it is clear that Christ dwells in other human beings.

Interestingly, it is not necessary to be able to recognize Christ in other human

Homeless Man

beings before being inspired to give of oneself. Those on the right were just as surprised and unaware of Christ in the other as those on the left. But nonetheless, they had acted in right relationship, in self-forgetfulness. And in the end, it was revealed to them what their deeds amounted to. The preponderance of their mercy toward others compensated for the times when their otherwise natural self-centeredness held sway.

The poet Willam Blake* sums up our complicated nature:

To Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love

All pray in their distress;

And to these virtues of delight

Return their thankfulness.

For Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love

Christ as Good Samaritan, Codex Rossanensis

Is God, our father dear,

And Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love

Is Man, his child and care.

For Mercy has a human heart,

Pity a human face,

And Love, the human form divine,

And Peace, the human dress.

Then every man, of every clime,

That prays in his distress,

Prays to the human form divine,

Love, Mercy, Pity, Peace.

And all must love the human form,

In heathen, Turk, or Jew;

Where Mercy, Love, and Pity dwell

There God is dwelling too.

* William Blake. “The Divine Image” 

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3rd Advent 2018, Pregnant Souls

Annunciation, Arthur Hacker

3rd Advent

Philippians 4:1, 4:4-9

Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and my crown of glory, stand firm in the power of the Lord.

Rejoice in the nearness of the Lord at all times! And I say it again: Rejoice!

Let a gentle kindliness be evident toward all human beings you encounter. The Lord is near! Let not worry have power over you; let your concerns in all things be known to God by sending your supplication and prayer upward in thankful thoughts. And the peace of God, which transcends anything that the intellect can grasp, will keep your hearts and thoughts safe in the Being of Christ….

And lastly dear brothers I say to you:

all that is true,

all that is worthy of reverence,

all that is good and holy,

all that is lovely to look at and beautiful to hear,

all that has virtue and deserves praise:

let these be the content of your conversations and thoughts. All that you have had handed on to you, what you have heard from me and seen in me—put all this into practice; then the God of Peace will be with you!

3rd Advent

December 16, 2018

Philippians 4:1 and 4:4-9

Mili Weber, Moonrise

We are entering a time of the year when the souls to be born in the coming year are gathering near the gateway of birth. They are still carried in the arms of the angels, who will show them a vision of their future life. Yet no matter what their future, as they enter earthly life, they will be supported and strengthened by the living Christ, working here on earth.

Today’s reading holds out to us something of this pre-earthly radiance, a radiance which we have all passed through on our way to earth. And the reading helps us to remember the warmth of our intention to unite ourselves with Christ’s working here on the earth.

Mili Weber

Particularly now at Advent, here on earth, our souls are pregnant with the possibility of giving birth to Christ within. It is God’s Healing Spirit that impregnates us with the possibility of giving birth to the Being of Love. The pure light of His being can become a rainbow in us: shining with the colors of awe, truth and goodness; radiant with the hues of integrity, beauty and virtue, which overflow as joyous praise.

In growing this rainbow of qualities within, we become those in whom good will dwells; those through whom the God of Peace is born anew in the world.

2nd Advent 2018, Accept or Refuse

Conrad von Soest

2nd Advent

Luke 1: 26-38

During the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth to a maiden engaged to a man named Joseph of the descendants of David, and the maiden’s name was Mary. And coming in, he said her, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”

But she was confused at those words, and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God.

And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son and you shall call him Jesus.

He will be great, and will be called the Son of the most High,

And the Lord your God will give him the Throne of David your father.

And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever;

And his kingdom will have no end. “

And Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have never known a man?”

And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; And for that reason, the holy offspring shall be called the Son of God. And behold, even your kinswoman Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For no word is spoken in the worlds of the spirit that does not have the power to become reality on earth.

And Mary said, “Behold, I am the Lord’s handmaid; may it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.

2nd Advent

December 9, 2018

James Janknegt

Luke 1: 26-38

"Annunciation"

Denise Levertov

We know the scene: the room, variously furnished,

almost always a lectern, a book; always

the tall lily.

Arrived on solemn grandeur of great wings,

the angelic ambassador, standing or hovering,

whom she acknowledges, a guest.

But we are told of meek obedience. No one mentions

courage.

                  The engendering Spirit

did not enter her without consent.

                                            God waited.

She was free

to accept or to refuse, choice

integral to humanness.

Henry Ossawa Tanner

Mary is the archetype of the human soul. And annunciations come to all of us. Even in barrenness, our own souls, too, can conceive. We can absorb accurate conceptions of Christ. We can open ourselves to how He wants to be conceived in us. We can make our souls virginal, incapable of harm and receptive for God's healing Spirit so that we can bear Him within. And we can say yes or no to whatever God sends as personal destiny, as community destiny, as world destiny. We can agree to serve His purposes in humility. Or not.

Christ wants to be born in us. His angels draw near, whispering words of great moment and encouragement. And as angels always say when they approach, 'Do not be afraid. The Lord is with you.'

God is waiting. We are free to accept or refuse.

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1st Advent 2018, Drawing Near

1^st Advent

Luke 21: 25-36 (adapted by the author)

Revealing spiritual signs will appear in sun, moon and stars, signs that the spiritual world is again drawing near to humanity. On the earth, however, the peoples will be in distress, helpless before the rushing of the world ether sea, whose waves touch the earth. Human beings will lose the inner strength that is based only on the earthly,  in fear and foreboding of everything that is coming over the earth.

Eye of God, Helix Nebula

For even the world powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then, however, they will look upon the Son of Man, the future image of human beings, how He approaches out of the being of the clouds that surround the earth, how He comes in dynamic power, a power that is higher than anything that approaches human beings; how he comes in the shining of his God-imbued revelation. When this begins to happen, stand upright and raise your mind’s senses to the spirit.

For the hour of your liberation, free to experience the spirit world, is near.

And He spoke a parable: look at the fig tree and all the other trees. When they are in bud, you can see this and you yourself know that summer is near. Just so, when you see all this, shall you recognize the world transformative events through which the divine kingdom wants to open your inner being from now on, for the kingdom of God is approaching you.

Roland Tiller

The truth I say to you: this humanity living today will not pass away before all this is fulfilled. Heaven and earth will perish; my words, however, will not perish. 

Do not burden your hearts with excess in eating and drinking, so that your hearts do not fall prey to lethargy or intoxication. And beware of all unnecessary worries about your outer subsistence, so that the light of world-days does not come over you unprepared, like a choking snare. For it will come for all who live on the face of the whole earth. So at all times be of wakeful spirit in prayerful thought, so that you may find the strength to escape everything that is to happen, and may stand before the Son of Man.

1^st Advent

December 1, 2018

Luke 21: 25-36

Buddha, Jan de Kok

Although we are approaching the depth of midwinter, the gospel reading, oddly perhaps, speaks of the coming spring. It brings to our mind’s eye the image of the fig tree bursting into leaf. In Christ’s time, the fig tree was like the bodhi tree of enlightenment under which Buddha sat; it was the tree that represented a broader, enlightened awareness.

This reading, however, gives us the content of a higher awareness: the living Son of Man, radiant and powerful, coming toward us in the realm of the clouds, in the biosphere, the realm of life.

This year has been a year in which there have been shifts in awareness. There

Brian Jekel

are signs…signs that human beings are moving into an anxious awareness of the damage to the wholeness of the living earth; into a heart awareness that aches at the catastrophic treatment of other members of the human family. These are signs that the kingdom of God is arising in human hearts. The angels, full of hope, are watching closely.

But, as the poet Denise Levertov says:

Sometimes the mountain

is hidden from me in veils

of cloud, sometimes

I am hidden from the mountain

in veils of inattention, apathy, fatigue,

when I forget or refuse to go

…to reconfirm

that witnessing presence.*

 Now especially, we are urged to pay attention, to stand upright, awake and at the ready. For He who is the living Spirit of the Earth is once again approaching us. 

---

* “Witness”, by Denise Levertov in Selected Poems

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