Christmas tries to point to an inner light,
a tree of lights inside the house of our being,
and invites people to come close
and ponder its beauty.
We notice this light because
it is contrasted with an outer darkness.
And it defies the darkness,
refusing to allow the outer world
to dictate the terms of existence.
- - - John Shea, in Starlight
...it is precisely this experience of simultaneous leave-taking and homecoming that lies at the heart of Advent. As we travel toward Christmas, these weeks draw us into the stories of those who let God lead them beyond the lives they had known... Even as they allowed God to stretch them beyond the landscape they had known, each of these folks moved further into God's longing for their lives. As they welcomed Jesus--this wild and wondrous Word made flesh--they found their own welcome that took them deeper into the heart of God. This leaving-and-homecoming brings a tension that is not always easy to hold. Yet this is the price--and the gift--of incarnation: that as we open ourselves to the Christ who still comes among us, as we offer our own daring yes to him, as we turn our faces starward, as we leave our familiar landscape in this season of waiting and anticipation, we will find ourselves walking toward the One who has been waiting for us all along. -Jan Richardson |
Bill McKibben From McKibben's article, "The Problem with Christmas"
"Our environmental problem, at root, isn't that the stuff we're buying uses too much energy or too much plastic, or that its paint has lead in it, or that it's been shipped too far. Our environmental problem is that we consume way too much because we've agreed to try and meet basic human needs -- status, respect, affection -- with material ends. And no time more so than at Christmas, when Santa rides in on a Norelco razor. It's a kind of joint conspiracy that few of us dare break out of, even though we all understand at some level that it's not working. What if you don't give your kids a proper Christmas?
"But the second you do break out of it -- the second your family becomes one of those that exchanges used books at Christmas, or decides to follow St. Francis' Yule tradition of wandering the park and throwing seed so that the birds too could celebrate, or makes it an annual custom to serve turkey dinner at the homeless shelter -- then you start sharing in the deep human secret that consumer society is set up to obscure: the things that please us most are almost always counterintuitive. We need to be out in the cold air, we need to think about others, we need to serve." |
Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2010, 7-9 p.m.
Presented by Associated Ministries and Christ Episcopal Church 310 North K St. Tacoma, WA 98405
All faiths and congregations are welcome to this year's Thanksgiving Interfaith Service. Experience the religious ceremonies, symbols, sacraments and music of different faith traditions as we join togehter in thanksgiving. A reception will follow the service. For information, call 383-3056, ext. 107, or visit www.associatedministries.org. |
The trust to which God calls us is not a timid trust. It is a bold, courageous trust that is written large so that even a passing runner can read it. It is a deep and hearty trust, one that leads us ever closer to God.
- Jan Johnson
The Upper Room Disciplines
Make me worthy, Lord, to serve you and all the world’s people who live and die in loneliness, hunger, poverty, and sickness. Give them through my hands this day their daily bread, and by my love, give them peace and joy.
- Norman Shawchuck and Rueben P. Job
A Guide to Prayer for All Who Seek God
Thanksgiving Interfaith Service