Advent

Advent is my most favorite of the church seasons. I love the beautiful blues that decorate our sanctuary; the familiar, poetic words of Isaiah and the prophets we hear in worship; and the rich, moody hymns that echo the season's themes of waiting, longing, hope, peace, joy, and love. Read on for a variety of ideas to enrich your celebration of this season.

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

Devotions

• The Heaven and Nature Sing devotion book is available at the back table in the sanctuary. You can also purchase the Kindle version here for $1.99.
• Check out this podcast series from SALT called "Understanding Christmas", a four-part series taking a fresh look at the deeper meanings of one of the world’s biggest holidays. Here's part one, "Hope Against Hope".
• From the Women of the ELCA, "A Different Kind of Journey: Advent as a walk, not a sprint," a free download with activities and practices for Advent reflection.
• Advent Pilgrimage in Palestine is a four-week virtual pilgrimage from the ELCA’s Peace Not Walls and Young Adult Ministry teams featuring young adult voices from the ELCA and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land. Find videos and Bible study materials here.

Advent wreath

• An Advent wreath is a great way to mark time during this season, both at in worship and at home. To make your own simple wreath, gather four votive or pillar candles and place them on a plate with some greenery from your yard. Light an additional candle each week as you read a prayer, a scripture passage, or devotional piece. Alternatively, make a simple Christmas Countdown candle like this one and light it for a bit every day.

Sounds of the season

• Check out these Hymns of Advent from member churches of the Lutheran World Federation.
• I've been enjoying this "Simple Advent" playlist on Spotify.

For kids

• Pick up a Faithful Families "Advent Family Practices Countdown Calendar" from the table in the sanctuary.
• Follow the adventures of the Wandering Wisemen on Facebook.
• Read Christmas books together - Goodnight Manger is one of my favorites!
• Create a nativity set from your toys or other household items, then act out the story together! I'd love to see a photo of your creations.

Further reflection

• So much of the language we use in Advent relies on themes of light and darkness, where "light" is used as a synonym for good/holy and "darkness" for bad/evil. In modern times, it is impossible to fully separate this language from the way we talk about race and skin tone and the harmful belief in the supremacy or inherent goodness of light/white skin. In various settings across the church, our BIPOC siblings (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) have shared how harmful it is to be invited to sing or pray about "banishing darkness" or "casting away the works of darkness." There is richness to be found in the use of metaphor, but we must be attentive to the language we use and how it is heard by those with different life experiences than our own. For further reflection and conversation about this topic, check out this presentation I gave last year with the other members of our synod's Authentic Diversity & Justice Team, called The Language of Advent.

However you mark the days until Christmas, I pray that you would experience God's presence with you during this season, whether you are feeling joyful or sad, anxious or celebratory. Come, Emmanuel!