O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Advent (from the Latin, adventus, meaning “coming”) has arrived, not only marking the beginning of the Church year, but as the ancient hymn, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”, reminds us, we are now in the midst of quietly preparing ourselves for the arrival of Christmas and the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus.
The Prophet Isaiah’s own belief that God would send his anointed son, gives us much to reflect upon during this time of hope and anticipation. He tells us,“have courage, fear not, behold your God” (Isaiah 35: 4) and as we read on, we hear of John the Baptist crying, “prepare the way of the Lord” (Isaiah 40:3 andthe Gospel of St. Mark 1:3). Mary is also there, preparing for the birth of the longed-for Saviour, “the maiden is with child and will soon give birth to a son” (Isaiah 7:14).
Against this backdrop, it is fitting that we begin our Advent reflections with a study of the beautiful Advent Collect, by none other than our highly regarded contributor, Christopher Jobson. In another post, we consider how we might prepare ourselves during Advent against the growing frenzy and razzamatazz of Christmas preparations. Meanwhile, in his hauntingly evocative poem Christmas (The Bells of Waiting Advent Ring) John Betjeman reminds us that despite the excitement and good intentions of Christmas, nothing can compare with the gift of the “single Truth” that God lives with us.
One of the markers of our worship at this time, is of course, Christmas Carols – can there be anything better than the uplifting “O Come All Ye Faithful”, contrasted by the calm, deeply moving “In the Bleak Midwinter”? We have articles on both and have included links in each post for you to sing along with, or simply enjoy listening to.
Of course, new characters have crept into this wonderful, joyous season. We’ve all heard of St. Nicholas, but who was he really? Christopher Jobson tells all!
Our coverage of Advent and Christmas wouldn’t be complete without a more scientific (or is it?) consideration of the Star itself! Maybe we will never know, after all, everything is in the gift of the Creator, something we should simply accept. Our Astronomical reflections give different perspectives!
On Christmas Day, we will take a step back in time as we recall the beautiful, heart-rending Christmas message Rev’d Lundin Brown (1st Priest, Colemere Church) urging us to keep the Holy Baby at the heart of our celebrations.
As always, there is much, much more, but we hope you enjoy our Advent and Christmas offerings, including the spectacular photographs, artwork, and musical content.
With a great deal of activity in the Benefice, we hope to have offerings from our Churches sharing their reflections and celebrations.
Finally, we would like to take this opportunity to welcome Rev’d Gareth Ingham, our new Priest-in-Charge to the Benefice. As we embark on this new chapter in our Church life, we hope that he and his family enjoy their new life and ministry here with us.
Wishing you all a very thoughtful Advent and Happy Christmas,
The Team,
Meres and Meadows Messenger
Feature Image: Midnight Mass at Cockshutt Church, Christmas Day, 2022 (c) Meres and Meadows