Dear Friends,
Some weeks I sit down to this newsletter with a plan, some weeks with the Lectionary open, others with a song. This week, as we move through these first days of Advent, I’m somewhere in between. My brain is a bit clouded by illness, but for the last day or two, I’ve been humming “Comfort, Comfort Ye My People” as performed by The Many almost nonstop - a song that takes its inspiration from this coming Sunday’s reading from the Book of Isaiah.
Of course, it’s easy to lose sight of the non-Gospel readings during Advent. And just as we say that the Church knows we need time to get ready for Advent, Scripture recognizes how much we need to be reminded of earlier prophecy, and so it repeats parts of Isaiah in the Gospels. This is what is coming, Mark reminds us.
With this knowledge, we recall this past Sunday and the hand of the prophets, pointing us toward Bethlehem, readying us for the mystery. And these words of comfort are of particular interest given where we are on that journey. For this week we light the candle of peace, also known as the Bethlehem candle, and - at least in Godly Play - it is the week we tell the story of Mary and Joseph’s journey.
In the charming way of Godly Play, this week’s card includes a line that always makes the grownups laugh: “It’s very hard to walk a long way when you’re pregnant, so sometimes Mary rode on a donkey. But it’s also hard to ride ride a donkey when you’re pregnant, so sometimes Mary got down and walked.” Which is to say, Mary was in those late weeks of pregnancy when nothing is comfortable. And, while I’ve never been pregnant, as a person with chronic pain, I can commiserate. I can’t walk very far anymore. But even if I ride in the car, I often climb out stiff and unstable, walking a bit off-kilter because my bones have shifted. Forget a donkey. That’s not happening. My back hurts just thinking about it.
I’m going to leave off here for this week. Like Mary, getting on and off her donkey, I’m going to listen to my body. But I’ll also leave you with an interesting conversation that’s been circulating this week: did you know, Jesus wasn’t really born in a stable? As it turns out, Mary and Joseph were probably just staying in the main room of a house, rather than the guest room, because of how hospitality was extended through family connections during those times. Sort of puts a damper on all those creche scenes, but this is also a good reminder of the value of historical context, since the animals were kept and fed in that same area. So it wasn’t a stable, but y’know, standards were different then.
That being said, we’re in good company, and lovely tradition with our current manger scene, which originates with St. Francis. You can learn more about that from Holy Troublemakers & Unconventional Saints, and don’t forget to grab their sweet new holiday coloring page featuring a St. Francis quote.
Be well, take care, and I’ll see you on the next leg of our journey next week,
A. Bird