December Rector’s Warden Message
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace” – Isaiah 9:6
Welcome to Advent! The next four weeks are a time of great preparation. At home, it is a time of to-do lists and self-imposed deadlines set down in an effort to manage the chaos and find some time to relax and enjoy the festivities. At Church, there is decorating and baking to be done (see you at the Cookie Walk on 12/3!), manger animals to order, and angel wings to straighten (see you at the Nativity Pageant on Christmas Eve!). In worship, we work to understand the gift and mystery of Christmas by breaking down Advent into four distinct periods that focus successively on the hope of the prophets, the peace of Bethlehem, the joy of the shepherds, and the love of the angels. While turning to hope is sometimes cast as an act of surrender, the hope with which we begin Advent is positive and dynamic. It is forward looking towards a destination that, like the expecting Mary, we are determined to reach. It is the hope that requires us, like Joseph, to believe that something we cannot perceive is watching and working for us, beckoning us to trust and follow. Like the work to complete our holiday to-do lists, the hope of Advent is deliberate; it requires effort and attention to complete the journey to Bethlehem.
In our transition, it is with this hope of Advent that we step into a new stage in the search process, the stage in which the Vestry works to formalize our call to an Interim Priest-in-Charge to start in January. In the meantime, Rev. Dave and Deacon Dennis will continue to lead us in wonderful worship through the journey that is Advent to the gift of Christmas.