Seasonal Musings

The Final Week

The Final Candle is lit today in this four-week journey through advent as we prepare to make room in our hearts, in our homes for the birth of our Lord Jesus. It is a time for hope and transformation in our world. Now is the time when the spirit can enter into our lives and make all things new. Emmanuel, we wait in joyful hope to celebrate your presence among us. In this season of anticipation, of Christmas parties and preparations, help us remember those who have lost everything. We remember the victims of the hurricanes in our own country, and those who will not be able to afford fuel this winter. We remember the victims of disasters overseas: of hurricanes in Latin America, of earthquakes in Pakistan, India and Afghanistan, of famine in Western Africa, and armed conflict throughout the world. We know, Emmanuel, that you are with them, and that you call us to join you. Help us to be a light of hope in the darkness. Help us to stand with those who live in times of difficulty.

Crossing the Borders

Emmanuel, as we enter closer to Christmas, I wait in joyful hope to celebrate your presence. This week your people in churches here in Costa Mesa, in Mexico and throughout Latin America celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. They will remember the story of how she appeared in what is now Mexico City to a poor peasant, Juan Diego, and asked him to bear her message and her miracles to the bishop and ultimately to the world. Today migrants who have left their homes to look for good jobs and futures for their families will light candles and write prayers to Our Lady of Guadalupe. Retracing the steps of history, many will crawl on their knees as a sacrifice, carrying the burdens of the families with them. Many bear her with them throughout the dangerous desert crossing into the United States, a trek that last year alone claimed nearly 450 lives. We know, Emmanuel, that you are with them, and that you call us to join you.

Today we pray for hope for a different world, a world without injustice, without discrimination. My prayer is that I may be a courier of God and a courier among men and women for goodwill, and that I may be part of the love that tears down walls, destroys borders, and builds bridges. Lord my prayer is that we may be a light of hope in the darkness. Help us to stand with those who live in poverty, to lift voices and to proclaim their dignity. Amen.

Week Two Conversion by Immersion

For unto us a child is born…Isaiah 9:6 ~ As we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus we remember children who are born to us somewhere in the world every day who suffer from poverty and hunger, who are our brothers and sisters, who are the least among us, whom Jesus taught us to love. As the first purple candle is lit, let us pray ~ To have hope and to believe that history will continue to be open to the dream of God and to human creativity.

Now as the second purple candle is lit, we pray ~ To have hope is to continue affirming that it is possible to dream a different world, without hunger, without injustice, without discrimination.

Emmanuel, we wait in joyful hope to celebrate your presence among us. As we celebrate a conversion of heart, let us do so with an immersion into faith. This week many children will prepare and celebrate in the company of loving adults. Yes, in the developing world, more than a quarter of the children are malnourished. For such as these there is barely a meal a day, let alone a celebration that includes treats and toys. Many don’t even have shoes, and the adults in their lives struggle to provide a future for them. Lord ~ Help us to be a light of hope in the darkness. Help us to stand with those who live in poverty, to lift their voices and to proclaim their dignity. Amen.