Catholics and Protestants alike will be struck by this piece by Debra Dean Murphy in Christian Century: “The Advent We Hope For.”
The Advent We Hope For
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22 responses to “The Advent We Hope For”
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Beneath the question of how we observe Advent is the question of how we structure the Advent-Christmas season.
Some local parishes have their seasonal concert before-Christmas. Even if they call it an Advent concert, it tends to be a Christmas concert. One parish seems to have a better idea of doing the seasonal concert on Epiphany Sunday. It gives them an opportunity to reprise their Christmas music rather than doing it early. Also allows the choir to do material they have not done. And they have no competition from other parishes.
The Anglicans seem to put a lot of emphasis upon a processional, hymns and readings service for the first Sunday of Advent. That seems to be a good place to put a real Advent “Concert”.
The local Orthodox parish structures its “Christmas Lent” on the Lent-Easter model. They have Vespers each Wednesday beginning in November (40 days), parallel to the Wednesday Vespers-Communion services of Lent. They also have Vespers each night for the week before Christmas (Christmas Holy Week), culminating in the Vigil Service on Christmas Eve. Again a strong parallel, but a notch down, from the Lent-Easter pattern.
The Roman Rite has a mini-sub-season to Advent in the week before Christmas, but it is mostly in the Divine Office, e.g. the O Antiphons which in some places were accompanied by bell ringing.
The Posadas also observe this time of the nine days before Christmas. With the greater influence of Hispanic culture, particularly of Our Lady of Guadalupe, I suspect we will begin to see Advent more as the season of Mary’s pregnancy. Rocco Palmo does an excellent job of covering this area:
http://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/2011/12/big-week-begins-in-la-mass-and.htmlWith greater emphasis upon evangelization, it could also become the season of the Church’s pregnancy. Rocco is looking for some possible tie together in the Papal celebration of this feast in Rome this Monday.
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My parish, being partly a university community, also traditionally built up from Christmas towards Epiphany, since the population of the parish drops in late December…
I will also note that Christmas itself carries a lot of negative baggage for many people: it’s a reminder of loss (especially for the recently bereaved and prospectively for those who are facing a terminal diagnosis), of separation, of expectations dashed. A lot of people suffer tremendous seasonal depression at Christmas. For all these people, an excess of “Joy To The World, Dammit!” can make these burdens heavier.
Epiphany, at least in non-Latino American culture, tends not to carry this baggage, so building up to celebratory splendor at Epiphany can offer hope and cheer to those, but with less risk of darkening their current sense of diminished light, as it were.
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There is of course the well documented clinical and social phenomenon of post holiday death, where an ill person is able to remain living to celebrate a birthday, or holiday looking far better than they really are, only to die a day or two later. Andrew Greeley said somewhere that this is more prevalent among Catholics.
It happened in the case of my mother. Although she had been given 6 months to live three years before, when I left from visiting her from Christmas through New Year’s, I though she would live for another several months. I was shocked by her death days later, and even more by my own aging quickly at age 50 from a psychological 35 year old immortal into someone definitely older than 50.
There are no Twelve Days of Christmas for me any more.
Fortunately, I have always observed Epiphany as the Byzantine Feast of the Theophany of Christ in his Baptism.
And so if there is no snow on the ground on January 6th, I may again go to the barren windswept shore of Lake Erie, and stand alone, facing the cloudy skies, the winds howling out of the North, and the churning, muddy waters, and crashing waves at my feet to chant the Great Blessing of Waters
http://www.anastasis.org.uk/megagiasm.htm
The voice of the Lord is upon the waters.
The God of glory thundered upon the waters.The waters saw you, O God, the waters saw you and were afraid.
The Jordan turned back when it saw the fire of the godhead descending in bodily form and entering it.
The Jordan turned back as it contemplated the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove, descending and flying about you.
The Jordan turned back as it saw the Invisible made visible, the Creator made flesh, the Master in the form of a servant.
Great are you, O Lord, and wonderful your works, and no word is adequate to sing the praise of your wonders (x3).
[People: Glory to you, Lord, glory to you!]
For by your own will you brought the universe from non-existence into being, you hold creation together by your might, and by your providence you direct the world
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The question of when and how much to play Christmas music is also a tricky one for radio stations.
WKSU has all classical music, folk music, all news, and classical music and news formats on both the internet and now 4 channel HD radio. During the Holiday season they have two extra internet channels, one for classical holiday music and another for folk holiday music
http://www.wksu.org/features/holiday2011/
I think this enables them to satisfy people who want to “get into the holiday spirit” with wall to wall holiday music on demand while not departing much from their normal format on their regular channels. In looking at today’s schedule they have programmed exactly one “carol” type song per hour on the regular classical stream. So they are not ignoring the season nor giving into it.
Of course normal format on classical has a fair amount of the classical religious heritage including chant. I certainly hear more chant and polyphony there by about a hundred fold in comparison to local parishes. As a “liberal” music friend laments, “I had to join the civic choir to sing this music since we don’t sing it in church choir. The choir director doesn’t even know how to pronounce Latin.”
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“that Christmas is nowhere yet in sight”
I think she gets this wrong – the texts of RC Advent very much have Christmas in their sights. The manger and trees and pointsettias might not be in sight, but our looking for and looking forward to the celebration of the coming of Christ at Bethlehem and in glory at the end of chronos.
Perhaps the vision that Advent gives us of Christmas is how we should truly “see” that celebration, and not mistake its external visual and aural manifestations for the reality of the Incarnation.
[And many, MANY kudos to the pastor of St. Brendan’s for “The Second Sunday of Awkward” – – hilarious!] -
A tricky issue, and even more so in the US than in the UK (in a Catholic university here in the US, the Christmas tree was lit on November 30, and Christmas already dominates the visuals in the churches).
Last year I tried to rationalise this–and the link might be of interest:
http://www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/20101229_1.htm -
I’ve thrown in the towel a long time ago. Our private high school had a very stunning Lessons and Carols last Friday in our church–all Christmas music. Our elementary school had theirs last night (all of these concerts are packed). We have the community Chorale singing next week and another organization next Friday–all concerts in our Church. Of course everyone is having Christmas parties and their homes have long been decorated. Some have that done in time for Thanksgiving. And yes, in the south all the decorations come down either on Christmas day or the day after. Fr. Endean’s article is very good and realistic.
Of course, we don’t do Christmas music at Mass until Christmas, but that is little consolation and really out of step with the department stores and what our non-liturgical and some liturgical Protestant Churches are doing already.-
I’m always amused by people who are shocked that merchants use the Feast of Christmas to market their goods! If you’re sick of all the ads on TV, turn off the boob tube and read a good book, or even the Good Book! Nothing is sillier than complaining about store clerks who say “Happy Holidays!” instead of “Merry Christmas!”. If you want to worship God, go to Church. But don’t be surprised if Mammon is the deity of the Mall!
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It may help if more priests made an extra effort to really celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas. One pastor I had seemed to rush through the season and get the decorations out of the church ASAP. He really seemed uncomfortable with the notion of celebration. Our parish had had a long tradition of a procession of Three Kings for Epiphany. That same pastor tossed that tradition, possibly because it wasn’t in the rubrics, but I suspect mostly because it made the Mass a little longer!
I’d also like to see a greater emphasis on my mother’s favorite feast – the Feast of the Holy Family. The readings that day are a real instruction for adult children!
It’s also way past time to really get a handle on New Year’s Day. My daughter refers to that day as Snipmas. It used to be the Feast of the Circumcision, but it looks from here that the readings changed when we went to the vernacular. It looks as if a lot of males were too embarrassed and/or too uncomfortable to retain the feast. (I say males, because as far as I know, no females were ever involved in developing the cycles of readings!) New Year’s wandered around for a while as a world day of Peace or a Marian feast and really lost any focus or meaning.
I’d really like to see the current readings for the Sunday after Christmas and January 1 swapped. I think a feast honoring the Holy Family focused on how we can better treat our own families during the upcoming year would be wonderful.
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There is of course the well documented clinical and social phenomenon of post holiday death, where an ill person is able to remain living to celebrate a birthday, or holiday looking far better than they really are, only to die a day or two later. Andrew Greeley said somewhere that this is more prevalent among Catholics.
It happened in the case of my mother. Although she had been given 6 months to live three years before, when I left from visiting her from Christmas through New Year’s, I though she would live for another several months. I was shocked by her death days later, and even more by my own aging quickly at age 50 from a psychological 35 year old immortal into someone definitely older than 50.
There are no Twelve Days of Christmas for me any more.(Jack’s quote stops here and my reply begins. I’ll figure this out yet!)
My Irish grandfathers grew up in extreme poverty. They embraced Christmas with a passion, and threw themselves into the celebration with thankfulness that their families were finally warmly clothed, well housed and well fed. My kids tease me for all the decorations I put up around the house, but it is partially in memory and fully in Communion with those fine gentlemen!
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Thank you!
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Thanks, Fr Endean. In the 80’s worked for a pastor who was at war with the culture; berating folks every Advent Sunday about starting to celebrate Christmas way too early, etc. He became tiresome and his anger overwhelmed any good points he had to make.
Reality – even in catholic institutions – must be embraced and made a sacrament in some way.
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I notice that some parishes take a gradual approach to decorating the church for Christmas – the decorations are added to each Sunday until the church is fully decked out for Christmas Eve. I get the idea, not sure how I feel about it. It does build a sense of anticipation, though.
It’s interesting that at this time of year a number of quasi-liturgical things get spotlighted – the giving tree that becomes the parish’s official Christmas tree, the Advent wreath, the creche – when the readings, which are so rich, are glossed over. If I’m not mistaken, I believe that the creche is not to be in the sanctuary, where unfortunately it often competes with and sometimes dominates the altar for attention.
I’m saddened to see that so many parishes have abandoned the use of rose for Gaudete (and Laetare) Sundays. It was probably more meaningful when Advent was celebrated as a truly penitential season, instead one of “joyful expectation.” In many places the only remnant of this practice is the rose candle / ribbon in the Advent wreath, which I’m sure puzzles a lot of people if rose is not used as the color of the day.
I find the liturgical celebration of Christmas rather unsatisfying. The overcrowded church, the gaudy decorations (those who insist on twinkle lights inside the church should be liable for excommunication), the wholesale replacement of authentic Christmas music with carols, the pro forma homilies, the nativity pageants inserted into the mass. Give me the Mass at Dawn!
For a few years the parish at which I served opened the Mass at Night not with “O Come, All ye Faithful” but with the proper introit chanted unaccompanied in English, with the people singing an adapted antiphon. What an incredible effect! The “big” moment came at the Gloria. But we did not drop “O Come” (and risk the outrage of the faithful), we sang it with gusto as the ministers processed to the creche to bless it immediately after the Gospel had been proclaimed. Very…
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Great analysis, Tony and strongly agree. Wonder if that is why we, at times, see what Jack is referring to and is outlined by Rocco Palmo – the Hispanic celebrations, done properly, emphasize a community on a journey filled with hope and waiting. The symbols of processing, candles, visiting homes, carol singing, etc. really do support an Advent and naturally lead to Christmas.
Someone else remarked on the Lessons and Carols for Catholics (are we Anglicans). But wonder if this is not an anglo method of expressing what I see in the Mananitas. Our parish does both – but really wonder if that only separates anglo and hispanic? But remember when we were part of Vincentian parishes and the Advent Novena was done – O Antiphons sung each nite 9 days prior to Christmas.
We used to also add decorations leading up to Midnite Mass. We also used a version of the Roman Martyrology (I know – Prime was suppressed by VII along with this) in darkness with little light until the Gloria…..folks would all have a lighted candle. The homily would integrate with the creche and child in church alcove and a procession.
Also, miss the rhythms of Advent including Rose Sunday.
Fact – this year we will have no midnite mass and only one mass on Christmas day. Really does seem like we have adopted the retail approach to our liturgies.
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We also used a version of the Roman Martyrology (I know – Prime was suppressed by VII along with this) in darkness with little light until the Gloria…..folks would all have a lighted candle.
The reading of the Martyrology at/before Midnight Mass was in the old Sacramentary Supplement and it is included in the new Missal in an appendix.
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It seems that true Midnight Masses are becoming rarer and rarer, partly out of concern for safety, especially in the city. And in reality, the Vigil Mass (whose readings are hardly if ever done) has become the Midnight Mass.
Re: Lessons & Carols being Anglican – I’ve always wondered if there is a link between L&C and the old office of Matins with its 9 psalms, 9 readings and 9 responsories. From what I’ve read, the original L&C was celebrated late in the evening – another similarity with the “night office” of Matins.
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This is the website for the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols
http://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/events/chapel-services/nine-lessons.htmlIt is broadcast live at 3pm Greenwich time, or 10am EST on Christmas eve.
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Byzantine Divine Office and Advent
This Evening’s Vesper Antiphons at the evening psalm for the Prefeast (i.e the days of preparation) of Christ’s Nativity
Prepare yourself, O Bethlehem. Open yourself now, O Eden.
The most pure Mary is coming to give birth. Let the heavens be glad. Let all men dance with joy.Life is in the manger. Riches are in the cavern. He is coming for the sake of His great mercy to receive the poverty of Adam without change or confusion to His divinity.
Adorn yourself, O Bethlehem for Eden is opened. Prepare yourself O Ephatha, for Adam is renewed and Eve with him. For the curse is broken. Salvation blossoms forth in the midst of the earth, and the souls of the righteous are made beautiful.
Let us offer in place of the gift of myrrh the gift of song, having received salvation and incorruption.
For behold, He who is lying in the manger commands us already to celebrate with spiritual songs and cry out without ceasing “O Lord, glory to you.”
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This evening’s Byzantine Vesper antiphons preceding the canticle of Simeon:
Christ, the Infinite Wisdom of God has built himself a home from the Virgin beyond all human understanding. And he desires to be born in a cavern and to lie in a manger of dumb beasts beyond all human comprehension.
The star declares Christ, Sun of Righteousness. The followers of the star come to the city of Bethlehem . The angels with the shepherds now proclaim the Good News. Let us hasten to go with them, O people, wise in God.
So the time of our salvation is drawing near. Prepare yourself O Bethlehem. The Virgin is drawing near to give birth. O Bethlehem, Land of Judah adorn yourself and rejoice for from you arises our Lord.
Hearken, O mountains and hills and all surrounding regions of Judea. For Christ is coming that he will save the man which he has made, as the Lover of Mankind.
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The Orthodox pastor’s homily on the Vesper antiphon
Let us offer in place of the gift of myrrh the gift of song, having received salvation and incorruption.
You hear a lot today about the commercialization of Christmas. That people spend too much time shopping about gifts. Some of the evangelicals are even not giving gifts because of this.
What is the Orthodox view?
It is about the gifts. No not about the wide screen television. But it is about the gifts.
What do we bring to the altar every Sunday. The gifts. The bread and wine. They are our gifts. But they are also us. Of course we are gifted because God has first gifted us. But they are our gifts. We take time to bake the bread. We prepare our gifts with care.
And we are gifts not only to be given to God but to one another. And so we can go to the antiphon and substitute for the gift of myrrh all of the virtues: patience, kindness, humility, etc.
So it is good this season to take time and carefully consider and give our lives as gifts to one another.
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In my [family] domestic Church, we build Christmas very slowly. The Advent Wreath stays on the family table until the late afternoon of Dec. 24th. We place a wreath outside our apartment door on the Third[Gaudete] Sunday of Advent, and it remains there until the Feast of the Epiphany. We get our tree and put it up on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, then depending on the yearly cycle, this year a full week, we slowly decorate the tree and the lights go on at Christmas Eve[ning]. The Advent candles are replaced with four large glass votive white candles, with a stand at the middle that holds an open white candle. This provides a lot of illumination throughout the Christmas Season.
On Christmas morning, before gifts are exchanged, we pray Morning Prayer, next we gaze and meditate before the Creche in silence for several more minutes, then we conclude with a carol.
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