Reflections for Advent and the Christmas Season
- First Sunday of Advent
- Second Sunday of Advent
- Third Sunday of Advent
- Fourth Sunday of Advent
- Christmas Eve
- First Sunday After Christmas (Holy Family Sunday)
- Epiphany
Reflections
USING THESE RESOURCES...
The resources provided here offer individuals, families and other small groups a way to remember the reason we celebrate this holy season. The reflections begin the first week of Advent and follow through the Feast of Epiphany.
+Before Advent begins, make an Advent wreath. Find a book with instructions or follow these simple directions. Take a large, flat shallow bowl (at least 9 inches in diameter) and fill it with sand or coarse salt. Place four purple candles securely around the edge of the bowl. Place a large white candle in the center. Make a circle of evergreens and place them around the bowl.
+You will also need a manger scene, a Bible and matches. Light one purple candle the week of Advent I; two the week of Advent II, etc. Light all five beginning on Christmas Eve.
+Set aside time each week to worship, perhaps after a meal on Sundays. Invite those who may be alone to join in.
+Depending on the ages of those in your group, adults may want to read the biblical reflections beforehand. Incorporate parts or all of the Advent-Christmas calendar/journal on pages 15-18 into worship time, especially as a discussion starter.
+Read and discuss one Reflection at each meeting. Sing along with the well known tunes of the "Carols with Justice" CD or from SimpleLivingWorks.org >> Archives >> Carols.
+Gather around the Advent wreath. Take turns reading, lighting the candles, praying, singing and sharing feelings and ideas.
1st Sunday of Advent
Isaiah 64:1-9; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:24-37.
Creating Unforgettable Christmas Traditions
Katerina Katsarka Whitley
Experiencing the wondrous expectancy of Advent and the fulfillment of Christmas may appear delightful to contemporary children who live in times of plenty but it is unforgettable when experienced in the midst of want and suffering.
Not even the sweetness of seeing my grandchildren opening a Christmas gift compares to my memories of the Christmases spent in Greece during the forties and early fifties.
We belonged to a small community of truly evangelical Christians in Thessaloniki, we, the descendants of a Christian tradition starting with Saint Paul's ministry in our city. We had no religious literature of our own; the Greek Orthodox chants and prayers were alien to our community, the church's language ancient and unfamiliar to ordinary people. But we were gifted youngsters determined to create our own Christmas traditions. And in that word, create, lies the wonder.
First came the choir we formed around the piano my father bought second-hand for his three daughters, a legacy of our mother who was dying with tuberculosis but who left us the eternal gift of music. We translated hymns from English and German, and we wrote our own plays which we then performed for the adults in the congregation to their delight and our pride.
But the best memory is our caroling. We walked to the apartment buildings of our church members in the city, stood below the stairwell and sang hymns unknown to Greeks in the years before tape recorders and the homogenization of television. Above us doors opened. We were bringing the good news of Christ's coming to people who did not know him. I don't remember a single Christmas present from childhood, but I remember our heady creativity - the best Christmas tradition imaginable. Inevitably, I became a musician and a writer.
Discussion Questions
- Share a memory of a Christmas past that did not involve a gift.
- How have you experienced wonder in the midst of a holiday or ordinary times in your life?
- In what ways does wonder make a difference in your life?
- What are some new traditions that could be created this year that would pass alog a sense of wonder?
Katerina Katsarka Whitley is the author of four volumes of dramatic monologues:
- Seeing for Ourselves: Biblical Women Who Met Jesus
- Speaking for Ourselves: Voices of Biblical Women
- Walking the Way of Sorrows: Stations of the Cross
- Waiting for the Wonder: Voices of Advent
Whitley leads retreats on "Reading the Bible for its Wonder," on "Saint Paul for the layperson," on "Justice in Palestine so the land can again be called holy," and on other creative subjects. She can be reached at katewhitley@charter.net
2nd Sunday of Advent
Isaiah 40:1-11; 2 Peter 3:8-15a; Mark 1:1-8
Waiting with Mary,
Preparing with John the Baptist
Susan Vogt
We wait for the mail, for the rain to stop (or start), for our birthday, for a loved one to return home, for results of a medical test, for a trip to start or a wedding day. It's hard to wait. And it should be so because waiting is part of the experience. If everyday was your birthday, at first this would seem wonderful but eventually we would find the thrill diminished as a special day becomes everyday. If the rain stopped or started at our command, at first it would seem idyllic and convenient, but part of the joy of beautiful days is knowing that they are not always that way. We need to pay attention and savor it. If we never had to wait for a loved one to return, would the arrival be so cherished? Would the wedding day carry such power if couples did not have to wait for it?
But our culture tries to rob us of the joy that comes after waiting - especially during Advent. Stores celebrate Christmas before its time and many of us are sucked into celebrating Christmas with parties and festive homes before the actual feast.
Perhaps we need to take our lead from pregnant women. In the quiet, dark womb growth is taking place both physically and emotionally. The mother starts to change her habits and mindset. For the reflective mother, there is also spiritual growth as slowly she lets go of control over her body and her desires and realizes that motherhood is a long process of sacrificing self for the good of another. But this waiting is not only internal. Responsible parents prepare the home. We buy baby supplies, prepare a space, and perhaps prepare siblings for the upcoming birth.
So too, it can be with Christmas. As the pregnant world waits for Jesus to come again into our midst, we need quiet, dark, internal growth similar to John the Baptist's time in the desert. But that doesn't mean we need be inactive. Preparing the home, gradually; buying gifts so that we will be ready; keeping it simple lest stress crowd out our calm are part of active waiting. Yes, waiting is hard, but it makes the longed for event more momentous. Let the first day of Christmas be truly the first day of Christmas and not just the first day of the next Christmas shopping season. Let us wait.
Discussion Questions
- What does it feel like to wait?
- Does waiting change the way you look at things?
- How can waiting for Christmas help us prepare for Jesus to come again into our midst?
- How do we as a family plan to find the quiet time we need during this season?
Susan Vogt is a freelance writer and speaker on marriage, parenting and spirituality living in Covington, KY. For additional writings on these themes visit SusanVogt.net, including her book "Raising Kids Who Will Make a Difference,"
3rd Sunday of Advent
Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; 1 Thess. 5:16-24;
John 1:6-8, 19-28
Giving to the Wrong People
Art Simon
The overwhelming majority of Christmas gifts in the U.S. go to friends and relatives who, like their givers, are affluent. For many of us the problem is figuring out what to buy for people who already have everything they need. Those truly in need - poor and hungry people, for example - are lucky to get anything from us. If remembered at all, they tend to be an afterthought.
Is something wrong with this picture? Doesn't Jesus (not to mention other biblical witnesses) make pretty clear that our generosity should be directed first and foremost to those who are hurting for lack of essentials?
Of course, there is no biblical text telling us to use our Christmas money on poor people rather than on our friends and relatives. Or is there? Jesus came pretty close when he said, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed" (Luke 14:12-14, NIV).
In the great judgement scene portrayed in Matthew 15, Jesus does not say to those who are welcomed into the kingdom, "I was a prosperous relative, and you showered me with things I didn't need." Rather, he says, "I was hungry and you gave me food, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you gave me clothing, sick and you took care of me, in prison and you visited me."
A friend of mine decided years ago to give at least as much at Christmas to help the poor as he spends on gifts for others. Doesn't that better reflect God's gift of love to us?
Discussion Questions
- Do you know personally anybody who is "hurting for lack of essentials"?
- How much would our family give to help the poor if we did the same as Mr. Simon's friend?
- What Christmas gift could we give that would please Jesus as much as it pleases ourselves?
- If we adopted a family in need this Christmas, which of our gifts or traditions would we share with them?
Art Simon is founder and president emeritus of Bread for the World and author of "The Politics of World Hunger," "Bread for the World," "Grace at the Table: Ending Hunger in God's World" and "How Much Is Enough? Hungering for God in an Affluent Culture."
4th Sunday of Advent
2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16; Romans 16: 25-27; Luke 1:26-38
Advent
Daniel Berrigan
IT IS NOT TRUE that creation and the human family are doomed to destruction and loss -
This is true: For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.
It is not true that we must accept inhumanity and discrimination, hunger and
poverty, death and destruction -
This is true: I have come that they may have life, and that abundantly.
It is not true that violence and hatred should have the last word, and that
war and destruction rule forever -
This is true: For unto us a child is born, and unto us a Son is given, and
the government shall be upon his shoulder,
And his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, the Everlasting,
the Prince of Peace.
It is not true that we are simply victims of the powers of evil who seek to
rule the world -
This is true: To me is given authority in heaven and on earth,
and lo, I am with you, even unto the end of the world.
It is not true that we have to wait for those who are specially gifted,
who are the prophets of the church, before we can be peacemakers.
This is true: I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and daughters shall prophesy,
your young shall see visions,
and your old shall have dreams.
It is not true that our hopes for liberation of humankind, of justice, of
human dignity, of peace
are not meant for this Earth and for this history -
This is true: The hour comes, and it is now, that true worshipers shall worship
the Father in spirit and in truth.
So let us enter Advent in hope, even hope against hope.
Let us see visions of love and peace and justice.
Let us affirm with humility, with joy, with faith, with courage:
Jesus Christ - the Life of the world.
(from "Testimony: The Word Made Flesh" by Daniel Berrigan, S.J. ©2004.
Used by permission of Orbis Books. Photo by John Toolan. Visit www.maryknoll.org and plowsharesactions.org
Discussion Questions
- What are we hoping for this Christmas?
- How would we celebrate Christmas differently if we really believe that Jesus is the Prince of Peace?
- How do we share the love God has given us with others in our community?
- What actions can we take this Christmas that will give hope to someone else?
Daniel Berrigan is a renowned poet, priest, and peace activist. His commitement to peace and justice, shared with his late brother Philip, have brought international attention and controversy, including being twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. He has authored numerous books and continues to work for God's Kingdom of justice in our society.
Christmas Eve
Isaiah 9:2-7; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 (15-20)
William Sloane Coffin
Christians are properly troubled by a commercialized Christmas. My own greater concern is with a sentimentalized one. A commercial Christmas at least never pretends to be anything else. Sentimentality, however, does not arise from the truth; rather it's what's poured on top blurring and distorting the truth. Let me illustrate by drawing a comparison.
The smallest street in Paris runs off the Seine River on the Left Bank near Notre Dame. It has a colorful name -- "La rue du chat qui pêche." (The street of the cat who fishes.) It's only a few yards long and very narrow. Every summer thousands of tourists walk by, read the sign, and exclaim, "How picturesque." Were they, however, to go down the dank and sunless street, they would quickly conclude that the "street of the cat who fishes" is more suitable for cats than for human beings.
Now let's consider the Christmas crêche. The baby lies in the manger because no one in the inn would make room for a pregnant woman. The ox and the ass are not picturesque guests who just had to come and see; this is their home. The Christmas truth is that he who was to be the bread of life for human beings is laid in the feed box of animals.
At the beginning as at the end of Christ's life, we come off badly. The inhumanity, as we used to say, "of man to man" is exceeded only by man's inhumanity to God. But God comes off wonderfully. Both the manager and the cross are symbols of God's infinite love for us. The babe in the manger is God's love, in person, on Earth. The Christmas message is that there is more mercy in God than sin in us. Sometimes I think God is not too hard to believe in, just too good to believe in, we being strangers to such goodness.
(written for Alternatives, March 10, 2005)
Discussion Questions
- How can being too sentimental blur or distort the meaning of Christmas?
- Re-read the Christmas stories from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Where are there examples of inhumanity?
- What are some examples of inhumanity happening in the world this Christmas?
- What are some examples of God's goodness and mercy happening in the world this Christmas?
William Sloane Coffin served as chaplain at Yale University and Williams College, was senior minister of Riverside Church, and is President Emeritus of SANE/FREEZE: Campaign for Global Security. He became famous while at Yale in the 1960s for his opposition to the Vietnam war. He was jailed as a civil rights Freedom Rider, indicted by the government in the Benjamin Spock conspiracy trial, and has been immortalized as Rev. Sloan in the Doonesbury comic strip. He continues activism today on behalf of nuclear disarmament. Both Union theological Seminary in New York and Yale University have established scholarships in his honor.
His most recent book Credo
First Sunday After Christmas
(Holy Family Sunday)
Isaiah 61:10-62:3; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:22-40
Gretchen Denton
This coupon entitles the bearer to give love instead of mass-produced gifts.*
Let your friends and family know that your love isn't bought and sold with extravagant Christmas gifts - or with material gifts at all.
The coupon contrasts with the piles of catalogs I've been receiving - glossy pages glowing with new clothes, home furnishings, profusely-blooming amaryllis, shiny stainless steel pans, kitchen gadgets, bird baths, gizmos that light up to entertain folks at your front door, and fresh balsam wreaths.
"Buy," the catalogs murmur, "you'll be happy because your friends and family will know you care."
I grouse about catalogs and then enjoy browsing them. Not a prolific shopper, we buy gifts for only the children in our extended family and in our immediate circle, we purchase practical things that are fun to wrap and open. Even so, I realize that our buying habits are far different from what others in the world can and do spend. This year the average U.S. consumer plans to spend more than $702 on Christmas. This is about the average per capita income in Kenya which is less than $875 per year.
What's my point? I wonder what those seductive catalogs and hours spent shopping have to do with Christmas, the celebration of God's Son dwelling among us, the Son who offers wholeness and abundant life. Perhaps they divert me from the joyous news that Jesus loves me. And because you and I know such love freely given we are called to share it extravagantly in all seasons. We can't buy love. Love is God's gift. Now, there's Good News that doesn't come from a catalog!
Discussion Questions
- What kinds of gifts can you give your family that don't cost money?
- How can our gifts show our love for our family AND God's love for us?
- If you were to make a book of love coupons for your family, what would you include?
- If a family in a developing country received the money your family spends on Christmas gifts this year, how would they spend it?
(from Presbytery of Detroit, Dec. 2004 newsletter. One of the monthly columns by Gretchen Denton, Rochester Hills, MI, as 2004 presbytery moderator.)
* This coupon comes as a post card, bulletin insert or stationery in Alternative's Christmas Campaign Kit on SImply the Best: Over 30 Yeras of Alternatives CD-ROM.
Epiphany
Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12
Epiphany Gifts
Susan Briehl
"I made this for you." "Merry Christmas."
"Do you like it?" "I love you."
"Blessed Epiphany!"
Human beings give gifts. I have saved swirling finger-paint abstracts, crayon drawings of people whose arms and legs sprout directly from their heads, and squiggly attempts at making numbers - all gifts from my daughters. One slip of paper bears the first written words of my firstborn child: ME FOR MAMAMAMAM. In the beginning, a child's every artistic work is an epiphany, the revealing of her heart's desire, a gift of herself to her beloved mother, father, sister, friend.
On these holy days we give the gift of ourselves to our beloved ones, hoping that what we give will be received: our love cherished and returned, our apology accepted and forgiveness granted, gratitude expressed and heard, sympathy bestowed, joy shared. Offering gifts always includes the risk of rejection. Yet offer we do, for we yearn to reach beyond ourselves to another, gift by gift, word by word, strand by strand, weaving the web that creates human community.
"This is for you," we say, meaning, "I am for you."
As in the beginning, God gives gifts. The whole universe, including our lives, is a gift constantly flowing from the Creator of sun and moon and star-filled night. On this day, the Feast of the Epiphany, we celebrate the gift that reveals God's inmost heart, a heart beating with mercy and overflowing with love. God gives the Beloved Son to every child of Earth. Risking rejection, betrayal and death, Jesus comes among us, giving himself to us and to the whole world.
"I am with you," he says, meaning, "I am God-for-you." On this feast day, God invites us to become what we receive: living gifts, the presence of Christ, an epiphany of mercy in the world.
Discussion Questions
- How have you seen love shown this season?
- What would the gift of your heart look like to another person?
- You are God's living gift. What do others see in that gift?
- Where does God's love gift need to be seen in today's world?
Susan Briehl, a Lutheran pastor, serves as an associate with the Valparaiso Project on the Education and Formation of People in Faith. She and her husband, Martin Wells, live in Spokane, Washington, where they anticipate receiving their daughters on the Epiphany.
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Page updated 11 Sept. 2013
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