Advent is probably my favorite liturgical season. My favorite book for Advent is called Redeemer in The Womb, by John Saward. When I think about an omnipotent God choosing to dignify childhood by not only becoming a child, but becoming an embryo, I find it overwhelming. John Saward opens his book by saying, "God the Son became man at the moment of his conception by the Holy Spirit......for nine months, he whom the heaven of heavens cannot hold was housed, as a real human baby, within his mother's body." As Christians we often think about Our Lord's death on the cross, but His choosing to become human at the time we are most vulnerable, in the earliest stages of our existence, is also a sacrifice of Himself.
John Donne wrote some very beautiful poetry on this subject:
ANNUNCIATION.
Salvation to all that will is nigh
;
That All, which always is all everywhere,
Which cannot sin, and
yet all sins must bear,
Which cannot die, yet cannot choose but die,
Lo
! faithful Virgin, yields Himself to lie
In prison, in thy womb ; and though
He there
Can take no sin, nor thou give, yet He'll wear,
Taken from
thence, flesh, which death's force may try.
Ere by the spheres time was
created thou
Wast in His mind, who is thy Son, and Brother ;
Whom thou
conceivest, conceived ; yea, thou art now
Thy Maker's maker, and thy
Father's mother,
Thou hast light in dark, and shutt'st in little room
Immensity, cloister'd in thy dear womb.
NATIVITY.
Immensity, cloister'd in thy dear womb,
Now leaves His well-beloved imprisonment.
There he hath made himself to his intent
Weak enough, now into our world to come.
But O ! for thee, for Him, hath th' inn no room ?
Yet lay Him in this stall, and from th' orient,
Stars, and wise men will travel to prevent
The effects of Herod's jealous general doom.
See'st thou, my soul, with thy faith's eye, how He
Which fills all place, yet none holds Him, doth lie ?
Was not His pity towards thee wondrous high,
That would have need to be pitied by thee ?
Kiss Him, and with Him into Egypt go,
With His kind mother, who partakes thy woe.
In our little domestic church, we begin Advent by setting up our advent calendar and beginning nightly prayers with the Advent Wreath. The children all love this and especially blowing out the candle afterwards. Excitement builds every week as we add another candle.
Mr. B. leads the blessing of the wreath with holy water:
I love this one with the cute bare feet showing:
John Francis was chosen to be first to blow out the candle, which he did with great enthusiasm:
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