Advent Day 19, December 19, 2024
As the days of Advent-waiting move us ever closer to the Light, I reflect on how we can continue to be Advent People who carry the light together, especially after the tree is taken down and the ornaments placed in their dusty boxes and the calendar flipped to 2025. That light and our unity will matter in the seasons ahead of us.
So much division exists and so much of it has to do with how we see others. Do we see some people (Christians, Jews, Muslims, “nones”) as different and therefore less worthy? Do we categorize and label people (Democrats, Republicans, liberals, conservatives) and then sort them into the “good boy” and “bad girl” boxes? Do we harbor a fear that if we share (as all spiritualities teach), with some people (the homeless, hungry, immigrant) we will possess less and so be less? As we approach Christmas, I ponder the Christ that assured us that God is a God of abundance, that God is love, not just to some select group of people, but to all people, and I wonder if we can adjust our views as we continue our journeys, seeing others through the eyes of Christ? Can we, as spiritual author Joyce Rupp writes, be vessels of “the sacred presence of the one who dwells among us,” even after Christmas is over?
Here is Rupp’s prayer to Christ/Light/Love and her hope for us:
May we look for your goodness in people who seem least likely to carry your love.
May we behold your radiance in the ones we quickly pass by at home or work.
May we discover your love in our deeper self when we feel unloving and irritable.
May we embrace you in the persons who faithfulness we take for granted.
May we see your empathy in those serving the wounded of the world.
May we recognize your courage in the valiant people who speak out for justice.
May we notice your non-judgmental acceptance in those who keep an open mind.
May we search for your gentleness when it is covered with harshness in another.
May we reveal your mercy when we pardon someone for having turned against us.
May we welcome your joy in the delightful voices and happy play of children.
May we detect your patience in those who put up with our impatience and hurry.
May we unite with your perfect peace hidden beneath the layers of the world’s disharmony. *
May we unite with your perfect peace hidden beneath the layers of the world’s disharmony.
May we try to do so, and when we fail or get discouraged, or are short-sighted, may we try again and again, all for the sake of Love.
And as we try to see others through Christ-eyes, may we also turn those eyes upon ourselves. We, you and I, are included in the “all people” for whom this child was born.
Blessings ~ Rosemary
Included in Goodness and Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas, Orbis Books, 2015.
Photo credit: Pixabay
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