2021 Advent booklet

Advent 2021 The New York Avenue Presbyterian Church Washington, D.C. www.nyapc.org

Sunday, November 28, 2021 Jeremiah 33:14-16 Psalm 25:1-10 Luke 21:25-36 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 “Then Jesus told them a parable: ‘Look at the fig tree and all the trees; as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.’ – Luke 21:29-33 As I read and re-read the parable of the fig tree in the passage from Luke 21, I’m staring at a potted fiddle leaf fig tree in my home office. My husband Matt lovingly tends to it and is proud of how it’s thrived for several years. I get compliments on it from colleagues who spy it in my Zoom background. Matt and I try to encourage our son to be careful when he’s playing near it, because it’s fragile and we don’t want to break its delicate limbs. But as I stare at this fig tree, I’m mindful that unlike the scripture, it provides no sign of a changing season. We keep it indoors year-round and it doesn’t produce buds when summer is near or drop its leaves as the temperature changes. We guard it, we protect it, we insulate it… and while it provides beauty, it’s of very little use in discerning what changes are on the horizon. I think our society is particularly hungry to mark seasons in the time of COVID-19. That’s the best explanation I can come up with for the proliferation of Halloween decorations across yards and patios and stoops all across the D.C. area last month. There’s so much that feels unchanged and unchanging as we live in this suspended pandemic reality and I think we are desperate for the markers of changing seasons and the passing of time. And I wonder: What are the “things taking place” that will let us know that the “kingdom of God is near”? The parable in Luke 21: 29-33 really doesn’t quite fit the bill of typical parables in the Gospels. Rev. Karl Jacobson of the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Minneapolis writes: “This ‘parable’ is really more of an observation and a warning. It heralds the coming of the Son of Man, calling the listener to have eyes to see the signs, and the good sense to be ready. Jesus tells us that there are signs that indicate the arrival, the advent, the presence, and the power of the Kingdom of God.” And while my potted fig tree may not be doing much to herald the coming of Jesus, it makes me think: Are there other signs afoot of the coming of the Son of Man that I’m too harried to notice? Am I paying attention to the wrong things? Perhaps not paying attention at all? The Scripture passage drips with drama – “roaring of the sea and the waves,” “the powers of the heavens will be shaken” – and I’m left pondering whether these signs and sounds were unmistakable for all who experienced them. Or was there a way of really seeing the sea, the waves, the heavens that somehow unlocked this understanding that the kingdom of God was near? Can we focus our attention for the signs if we try hard enough? How do we ask God to help us learn how to wait with hopeful expectation? Perhaps the passage in 1 Thessalonians offers some insight, in reminding us to “pray earnestly.” In reading further in the Luke passage, we’re told to “be on guard so… that day does not catch you unexpectedly.” And while I don’t know exactly how best to be on guard and I fall short of earnestness on a regular basis, this Advent season, I’m hoping for each of us that we have a sense of constancy in our prayers and an openness to the signs of God’s coming. Prayer: Holy One, please be with us as we watch and wait. Open our eyes and ears to the signs of your Kingdom and strengthen us in prayer as we move through this Advent season. Amen. Kristin Ford

WHAT IS A LIFE OF PREPARATION? Psalm 90 Monday, Nov. 29, 2021 Numbers 17:1-11 2 Peter 3:1-18 I always think of Advent as a rather joyful period. I know it is supposed to be a period of remembering our sinful life and preparing for the appearance of God on earth to bring salvation to all. But we now rejoice that Christ has come, and salvation is available to all who believe. But the passages for today are hard to interpret as joyful. Psalm 90 reminds us that the span of our life is but toil and trouble; it is soon gone and we fly away. Numbers 17 (about which the Abington Bible Commentary does not even say a word) is about the murmurings of the people who begin to doubt that Moses knows what he is doing as he leads them through the wilderness. The 2nd Peter passage is written against the “scoffers” who point out that ever since the first followers of Christ died, and despite all their teachings, things have remained the same. They ask, “Where is his second coming?” The writer of 2nd Peter answers that they mistakenly judge God by their standards, not God’s. They consider “time” as something they know about, not something that God invented. And to God “one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” In the meantime, God is being very patient with all of us, not wishing that any should perish. But we must recognize that time does have an end. The earth will be destroyed with fire. And therefore we all should be living “lives of holiness and godliness”, and wait for “new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells”. And as William Cullen Bryant wrote: So live, that when thy summons comes to join The innumerable caravan, which moves To that mysterious realm, where each shall take His chamber in the silent halls of death, Thou go not, like the quarry slave at night, Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave, Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams. from “Thanatopsis” Phil Hanna

Psalm 90, 2 Samuel 7: 18-29, Revelation 22: 12-16 November 30, 2021 While not a fan of stylized Hallmark Christmas movies, I must admit a marked preference for softer Advent seasons. I favor the deep crimson, muted yellow and vibrant shades of orange as the autumn leaves change color and fall to the ground. I look forward to sipping steaming mugs of hot cocoa with marshmallows melting at the ready in November and December. Yet the Biblical passages assigned to guide my Advent meditation, clashed with my expectations for a kinder, gentler Advent. Psalm 90 reads like the verses in the hymn “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” A Mighty Fortress is our God, A bulwark never failing, Our helper, he amidst the flood of mortal ills prevailing, For still our ancient foe, doth seek to do us woe, His craft and power are great and armed with cruel hate, On earth is not his equal. God’s eternal reign contrasts sharply with the brief lives of mere mortals. The psalmist caps the human life span at age 70 or 80, evoking images of ashes to ashes, dust to dust. A thousand years are like a momentary flash in God’s sight. Transitory human lives are likened to the grass which is refreshed in the morning and withers at night. Human sins attributed to Satan in the “A Mighty Fortress” verses cited above are more than enough to provoke God’s righteous anger and wrath. Such sins of commission and omission remain easily recognizable today. They continue to try God’s patience. Here are but a few. During this second year of the Covid-19 global pandemic, we still see a reluctance by rich nations to share life-saving vaccines with poorer ones. The World Health Organization (WHO) continues to decry the life-threatening gap between widespread access to Covid-19 vaccines in developed countries compared to a frightening dearth in low-income countries. Moreover, a recent survey revealed that of the 1.8 billion vaccine doses pledged by wealthy doses for poorer nations, only fourteen percent have arrived. From a more personal perspective, most NYAPC members over the age of sixty-five have already received a third Covid-19 vaccine booster. Compare that to our Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) partners in Njoro, Kenya, where Senior Pastor Tony Matiko, OVC Chair Francis Muchemi and several other adults have received a first shot. It is my understanding that to date, OVC students have not received a single vaccine shot. The United States continues to lead the world in shocking rates of gun violence and mass shootings. This continues apace while U.S. courts of various jurisdictions strike down gun safety laws and regulations. At present, American middle, and high school students are more likely to die from gun violence than any other cause of death. African American children and youth across the country continue to die from targeted shootings as well as from stray bullets during drive-by shootings at a rate more than ten times higher than their white or Asian-American peers. Not immune from the spate of gun related deaths in the District of Columbia, NYAPC experienced profound grief in July 2021 when a beloved graduate of our Community Club, Jovan Hill Jr. was shot dead in broad daylight near a courtyard within a stone’s throw from his home. One of his peers also died at the crime scene while a third received hospital treatment and recovered from his wounds. Among others, NYAPC members and Community Club tutors attended a vigil in honor of Jovan in the same courtyard, close where he died. Only twenty-two years of age, Jovan had graduated from high school, worked at PEPCO, and founded a clothing company, Loner Valley, with the logo of a broken heart. Immensely popular with his peers and Community Club volunteers alike, Jovan is greatly missed by his extended family and all his friends. Hate crimes targeting people of color have surged in recent years. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), there were 838 hate groups in 2020. Focusing on white supremacy, general hate

and neo-Nazism, these groups are in states from Maine to Washington state. Using social media and other online resources, these groups spread propaganda aimed at convincing white youth that there are ongoing efforts to replace them and their families systematically with immigrants of color. Last month, the SPLC’s staff director testified before the U.S. House Armed Services Committee that white supremacy and extremism represents a significant danger to those serving in our armed forces. According to a recent survey of white supremacist groups, close to one-third of their respective members have considerable military experience. The fragility of humankind explored in Psalm 90 corresponds to the current fragility of American democracy. A number of political scientists have compared the degree of political polarization in our country to that exhibited in the 1860’s, just prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. As I was drafting this piece, a chilling, front-page New York Times (NYT) article caught my eye. [“Menace Grows Commonplace among GOP: Threats are Embraced as Divide Widens.” November 13, 2021] The article described a young man who spoke during a conservative political rally in Western Idaho. He pointedly asked: “When do we get to use the guns?” According to the reporters present, as the rally goers applauded, the man added: “How many elections are we going to let them steal before we start killing these people?’ An elected Idaho State Representative interviewed by the NYT said the young man posed a “fair question.” The young man quoted in this article was clearly referencing former President Trump’s blatant lie that the 2020 election was fraudulent and stolen from him, and that Biden supporters are to blame. Alas, there are too many sins to recount in this abbreviated piece. I cannot move on, however, until I write about extreme climate change. The effects of burning fossil fuels since the industrial revolution have wreaked incredible damage to God’s good creation. From melting glaciers to rising sea levels and rampant deforestation, we see widespread evidence of human-triggered global warming. Satellites detect dangerous holes in the upper atmosphere’s protective ozone layer. The international climate summit (COP 26) attended by government leaders in Glasgow, Scotland just ended with what advocates and scientific experts have termed mixed results. Reports are that India weakened critical language on the cessation of burning coal in the last-minute. Ironically, at the same time Indian authorities were deliberating placing New Delhi under lockdown due to severe smog and hazardous air pollution linked to coal. The reliance on coal. The effects of extreme climate change in this country now loom large, from the increasing severity and number of forest fires on the West coast to the intensity of hurricanes on the East coast. As Dr. Katharine Hayhoe reminded us during a McClendon Scholar Webinar last month, the planet will survive this climate change. The earth’s flora and fauna, including humankind, may not. If there was ever a time for God’s righteous wrath, it is now. Yet returning to Psalm 90, the author turns midway to beseech God for compassion and divine intervention. The psalmist issues an audacious plea: “Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us and as many times as we have seen evil.” Moreover, the psalmist urges the Lord, our God to shower us with steadfast love. Such love will bring joy and mindfulness of our mortality, that we may structure our social justice work accordingly. The psalm ends with a repeated request that God “prosper the work of our hands.’ This refrain calls to mind the question Reverend Dr. Bill Lamar posed to the Reverend Dr. William Barber during a recent McClendon Scholar Webinar. He asked about Dr. Barber’s health and his expectations for longevity in reviving the Poor People’s Campaign established by the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King in 1968 and calling for a national moral reckoning. Dr. Barber stresses that the gargantuan wealth gap between billionaires and the poor in America is the result of government policies and actions condemned as sinful in the Bible. He went on to urge us to

build a coalition that includes vulnerable American Indians from reservations in the Dakotas, family members of coal miners suffering from Black lung disease in West Virginia, impoverished African Americans from the Mississippi Delta, exploited farm workers harvesting vital crops on the West Coast, and others. This coalition can press Congress to protect voting rights, guarantee life-affirming wages and workplace safety, ensure access to high quality childcare, universal preschool, a climate-change resistant infrastructure, affordable housing, universal health care, among other policies in the “Build Back Better” omnibus legislation now under consideration. In closing, Dr. Barber said that without specialized training, most people can only survive six minutes without taking a breath. Regardless of the number of years he has left to live, Dr. Barber says he wants the Lord to know that every six minutes until his death, he has remained firmly engaged in the campaign’s efforts to forge a social justice transformation. The text in 2 Samuel 7:18-29 is comprised of King David’s heartfelt prayer to God. Remembering his humble beginnings as a shepherd boy, David expresses deep gratitude to the Lord for making him King of Israel and ensuring the strength of the nation. Noteworthy for his sincere humility in this prayer, David asks God for permission to build a temple of cedar for Ark of the Covenant. Although God refuses his request, saying that one of David’s sons would build it instead, the Lord assures King David that one of his descendants would always rule in Israel. David accepts this response and continues to praise the Lord. This prayer of thanksgiving is a model for us all to use to express gratitude for God’s grace. Turning to Revelation 22: 12-16, the text highlights the fulfillment of Biblical prophecies. Jesus, the Alpha and Omega – the first and the last—and the beginning and the end— sends an angel to alert Christian Churches. Those who have followed God’s commandments are blessed. They will have access to the tree of life and may enter the holy city by its gates. The depraved who murder, rely on falsehoods, and commit other sins will remain outside the city gates. Jesus, the root, and descendant of King David will return as the bright morning star. Come Lord Jesus. “Bring A Torch, Jeanette Isabella,” a traditional French Christmas Carol, provides a fitting end to these Advent musings. Marsha E. Renwanz Bring a torch, Jeanette Isabella, Bring a torch, to the cradle run, Christ is born and Mary is calling, Ah, ah, beautiful is the mother, Ah, ah, beautiful is the son.

Lamp of the Body Wednesday, December 2 Psalm 90; Isaiah 1:24-31; Luke 11:29-36. In the shadow of these three dark passages and predictions of national disasters, there is only a bit of light at the end of one passage. Isaiah quotes the Lord “I will thoroughly purge away your dross (sinfulness)…The mighty man will become tinder/ and his work a spark;/ Both will burn together,/ with no one to quench the fire (1:25-31)” in the land. Psalm 90 adds “our return to dust…we are dry, withered and consumed by Your anger (90: 3-6).” And in Luke Jesus says to the gawking crowds following him, just to see more miraculous signs, “this is a wicked generation” who refuses to repent. Then he offers a ray of hope in the “lamp of the body.” Jesus observes that, “No one lights a lamp and puts it in a cellar, but on the lampstand so that those who enter may see the light. Your eye is the lamp of your body (and soul). If your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light (Luke 11:33-36).” Clearly this light is to be shared with others. Modern readers should know that “in that time (Roman Empire) the eyes were considered to function by allowing the body’s (soul’s) own light to go outside (NIB note to Luke 11:34-36).” Eyes were seen as beacons of the soul. And Jesus’ spiritual question is to ask whether our lives/souls are full of darkness or light. The Gnostic Gospels can add one fascinating interpretation of this “darkness or light” question. [We are reading Elaine Pagels’ Why Religion? in the Thursday morning Book Discussion group. And she is a renowned translator/editor and interpreter of some of the Gnostic Gospels.] For the Gnostics this internal darkness is ignorance of one’s self, a self-confusion, a spiritual drunkenness even. In contrast true light comes from inside and is self-knowledge, an experience of self as a true image of God; as Luke says later, “the Kingdom of God is within you (Luke 17:21).” The Gnostic advice is that we need to “light the lamp within ourselves” and we will be able to share it in the world. So when Jesus suggests lighting this lamp and putting it where it can be seen, this is not just household advice, but is a spiritual instruction to first know yourself, find the divine light that’s inside you (and everyone) and then share that light in the world. And to share it humbly, as you are the vehicle, the transmitter, of this light of God’s Kingdom. Prayer: Oh Lord, open our eyes to Your light that is all around us and inside of us. Tom Dunlap

Malachi 3:1-12 December 2, 2021 Luke 1: 68-79 Philippians 1: 12-18a Our Choice What seems to be a theme or a thread running through the three readings for today—or maybe two themes—is, first, that God is there for us, no matter how many times we have ignored, turned our backs, or chosen not to praise and give our lives to God. We are busy with daily tasks and to-do lists. We don’t have time to think about God, to be consciously present in God’s world, to listen for guidance and direction. “I am the Lord, unchanging; and you, too, have not ceased to be sons of Jacob. From the days of your forefathers you have been wayward and have not kept my laws. If you will return to me, I will return to you, says the Lord of Hosts”. (Malachi vs. 6-7. Italics mine) God is a constant, a presence, if only we will return. It is never too late. But there also seems to be a caveat, a rule of the road. Justice in our actions plays into this choice—and what are we doing about it? There are the laborers, the widows, the orphans, the aliens (Malachi v.5) – how can we play a role of justice toward those downtrodden or oppressed? Well, there are the “tithes and contributions” (Malachi v.9) that have not been forthcoming to the Lord’s house. “Bring the tithes into the treasury, all of them; let there be food in my house.” How appropriate to read these words during the season of our pledge and capital campaigns! Clearly that is an avenue toward justice, toward making the world right with God. The second theme tied to God’s constancy is our decision to take the challenge and “stand firm,” “to worship him with a holy worship, with uprightness of heart, in his presence, our whole life long.” (Luke) This can be a tough row to hoe…always consciously putting God in the center of our lives and our actions. This God-centered life is not necessarily a straight line, and certainly has ups and downs, times that are closer to God, times that are more distant. But no matter our circumstance, or the challenges we face, we can choose to turn to God, to make the choice of putting our lives on a straighter path toward God. Country music singer, Kenney Chesney, sings about being baptized in water, sinking in the East Texas mud with the preacher speaking “about the cleansing blood.” “Then it was down with the old man, up with the new, raised to walk in the ways of light and truth. I didn’t see no angels, just a few saints on the shore, but I felt like a newborn baby cradled up in the arms of the Lord….and my sins which were many were washed away and gone…seemed like such a small price to pay for the blessed peace of mind that came to me that day.” So it seems that we can be sure that God’s presence is a constant if we choose to turn to God and make our lives God-centered, pursuing justice, and, as Paul said in Philippians, “to speak the word of God fearlessly and with extraordinary courage.” Prayer: Gracious God, lead us to you knowing that you will be there for us if we choose to bring you into our lives. Marilyn J. Seiber

Waiting and Watching for Light in the Darkness Malachi 3:13-18; Luke 1:68-79; Philippians 1: 18b-26 Friday December 3, 2021 In the last book of the Old Testament, we read the words of the prophet Malachi to Israel, approximately 400 years before the birth of Christ. Their exile over, some returned to Jerusalem with gladness but settled into ways of living that did not honor God. Some grumbled against God. Comparing their situation to that of others they judged to be less faithful, they complained that they did not seem rewarded by God for faithfulness. Malachi reminded them that in the end, God will judge the righteous and the unrighteous. Their call was to do their best to live trusting and obeying God until God’s appointed time. Malachi prophesied that God would send another messenger to follow him. Thus challenged, the people entered a long period of uncertain waiting. More than 400 years later, the elderly, childless couple Elizabeth and Zechariah entered their own period of uncertain waiting after receiving word from an angel that they would bear a son named John who would be a messenger of God and prepare the people for the Lord. Elizabeth laughed. Zechariah doubted, and was struck dumb, not speaking again until after John was born. Some interpret Zechariah’s silence as a punishment by God. Nigerian American author Enuma Okoro, former Director of the Center for Theological Writing at Duke University Divinity School, suggests instead in her book Silence and Other Surprising Invitations of Advent that Zechariah’s silence was a blessing. It gave Zechariah and Elizabeth important time together while going about their daily lives and responsibilities to wrestle and abide with all their uncertainty, doubts, impatience, hope, expectations, and faith in God. Okoro, a self-identified introvert, acknowledges the difficulty of this kind of journey, as well as its blessings and rewards. Being individually reverently silent, still, attentive, and patient can be necessary and deeply productive in our lives, and for our faith. Okoro also suggests that Advent and other challenging or dark times, presents us with opportunity to remember we are all members of the body of Christ. Individually or collectively when we face times of challenge, we can rely on people and communities of faith to offer and receive compassionate listening, encouragement, and intercession that kindle hope even when we feel hopeless. Shortly after John the Baptist began his ministry, Jesus began his. Jesus’ ministry inaugurated several successive periods of challenge to live faithfully while waiting—for Jesus’ ministry to flourish, for his resurrection, for his return, for God’s final judgment and for fulfillment of God’s promises. We who live on in the flesh live in this time. Episcopal priest Fleming Rutledge, in her book Advent: The Once and Future Coming of Jesus Christ, reminds us that Advent is an invitation to a time of waiting not only to celebrate the birth of Christ, but also to contemplate the importance of living in wait and preparation for his second coming and the final fulfillment of God’s promises. Even in dark times, we have the blessing of God’s light—seen or obscured, bright or faint—but always there, to illuminate our life’s path, and that of others. Last month, the forces of God’s creation produced a bright full moon, and an hours-long, near complete lunar eclipse that temporarily shaded, then uncovered the moon’s light again. Many waited, watched, marveled, and celebrated. The moon’s light was there all along. Yet ironically, when I was out paddling in a boat on the water under the full moon searching for bioluminescent creatures, the brightness of the full moon made it more difficult to see the much closer and smaller glimmers of light they produce that are being revealed to us. Perhaps the magnificence of God’s illumination may blind us to more humanly digestible glimpses of light revealed in the creation and creatures around us. In times of perceived darkness, we can remember God’s promises, and what we see is only partial and transient, ‘til we see, with God’s mercy and blessing, forever and face to face. Even in the midst of uncertainty, doubt or darkness, let us individually and together wait, seek, trust, walk in, and share the light we can see. Reading or singing Hymn 749 may be a prayer that rings in your heart today: “Come live in the light”! Karen Mills

Malachi 4:1-6 Succession December 4, 2021 Luke 1:68-79 Luke 9:1-6 The lectionary readings from the Prophecy of Malachi and the Gospel of St. Luke for this seventh day of Advent represent a break in the prophetic record between the Old and New Testaments of more than four hundred years and multiple human generations. Yet, these verses emphasize the prophetic succession from Moses and Elijah to John the Baptizer and Jesus himself. And they hold the possibility that God might also empower us to work toward hope, justice, and peace. Scholar and Bible interpreter Walter Brueggemann notes in a February 2021 blog post for CHURCH ANEW, a ministry of St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Minnesota, that wherever scripture references Elijah, “history is open to new possibility”. Indeed, these final verses of the Old Testament point the way to what God will do next: Lo, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents,so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse. (Malachi 4:5-6) Elijah does not die, and God holds this prophet in reserve for further work in the world. “Where Elijah is expected,” Brueggemann asserts, “history is not closed off in despair because he will bring newness.” At the close of the Old Testament, there is an openness to the radical newness that the Bible’s next chapters bring. In verses proceeding and following the Gospel readings for today, Luke stresses the prophetic continuum, linking both John the Baptizer’s “spirit and power” and Jesus’s transfiguration to Elijah. In the song that is Luke 1:68-79, the evangelist praises God for raising a mighty savior for us in the house of his servant David, and says of Jesus, you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins. Jesus requires our return to adherence to God’s laws as articulated by Moses and to lives of righteousness urged by the prophets proceeding him. But he also brings salvation through the forgiveness of sins—not for one tribe, one people, but all who believe in him. And Jesus begins his work in the world as a baby— vulnerable and powerless. This is new. History, what’s possible, and what happens next depend on God in all God’s forms and on those who believe in God and act on that belief. Brueggemann concludes that this is particularly good news for it is easy enough in the face of a pandemic, racial injustice, and the climate crisis “to settle for despair or…the most compelling status quo we can imagine.” But the story of Jesus, his birth, ministry, death, and resurrection insists on new, radically different possibilities. That future remains open, says Brueggemann, “when and where and if there are human agents who carry the power to enact newness.” A prayer: Dear God, may your dawn break upon us this Advent season. Help us expect and see the possibilities Jesus promises and act anew to bring hope, justice, and peace wherever we can. Amen. ~Edith Holmes Snyder

Sunday, December 5, 2021 Malachi 3:1-5 Psalm 150 Luke 3:1-6 Philippians 1:3-11 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? I love thinking about John and Jesus. I find it delightful that they were cousins, likely dear friends. I love that there are even schools of thought that considered Jesus an acolyte of John and not the other way around – the fluidity of that! John’s preaching had a kind of clarity that comes from releasing yourself from the monotony of day-to-day living. Malachi describes what happens when that type of messenger arrives: a refinement. “For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap; he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the Lord in righteousness.” Refinement in the classical sense is the removal of extraneous material. This process of removing what is not-us, yields what is the most internally consistent version of us. If we can rescue the word “purity” from our modern sexual connotations, we can see “purifying” as a process of becoming more of what we are. This may be what “judgment” is about; not so much a sorting, but utter and supreme clarity about what we have done and who we are. There is liberation in that kind of clarity. But it can be painful. Delusion is often comforting. I love a lot of things in the world, and many of them have broken in the last five years. We have all been under duress. I’ve seen things that disappoint me in so many people whom I want to trust, and in myself. As a nation and world community we lack the will to fix injustices and dire emergencies. This kind of time makes clear who we are, like a truth serum. Jesus came in that kind of time, too. Some of my favorite moments in the gospel and Acts come when people see Jesus so clearly, and jump in so fully. Zacchaeus, Simeon, the Ethiopian from Acts, Lydia. I find it interesting that often they’re described in terms of identity: the tax collector, a seller of cloth, a priest, the eunuch. I have no doubt that Jesus had a kind of magnetism, but I have a notion that part of what helped them see Jesus was a kind of self-possession that opened them to God doing God’s work. From that, they could lay down their blessings, their wealth, their mistakes. We’re not all granted that kind of alacrity, but at some points, when we’re feeling most ourselves, most of us have felt grounded enough to acknowledge the underpinnings of the faith that have made it resonate for thousands of years. That God is with us, familiar, underneath every being and sensation and electron, back to the beginning. Dear God, Help me embrace new clarity in this day and season. Make me more myself and yours. Amen. Rebecca Davis

Isaiah 40:1-10 Comfort My People Romans 8:22-25 Monday, December 6, 2021 Psalm 126 I was relieved to open today’s scripture readings and to find they all share good news. Advent readings can be a mixed bag, some with promises of hope and others with warnings of doom. Today, we are greeted with messages of comfort and joy. These are the scripture readings I’ve been waiting for, all year! There has been widespread agreement that 2020 and 2021 have been incredibly trying. A pandemic, increasing political polarization, heartbreaking social injustices leading to civil unrest, and natural disasters made worse by climate change have left us wondering, “How can things possibly get worse?” I even saw a humorous bumper sticker that said, “Giant Meteor 2020: just end it already.” But today’s readings remind us that there is hope. Isaiah begins with a divine call to “comfort my people” and “proclaim to [Jerusalem] that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for” (NIV). In these past two years, how we have longed for comfort! We hunger for a return to normalcy and for a return to community. One commentator has said that Psalm 126 was likely written upon the return of the Israelites from the Babylonian captivity. As you read this meditation, New York Avenue Presbyterian Church is beginning to bring our congregation together again, both in person and online, and to build a relationship with our new senior pastor. Will we feel as joyful and freed as the psalmist who sings of a day when “the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion”? Paul in his letter to the Roman church talks about how the “whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” Note that this isn’t just the Christian community that is in pain—it is the entire creation. It’s a cosmic experience of birthing, of bringing something new into the world. A mother in the throes of childbirth endures some of the most intense physical pain known to humankind in hopes of safely bringing a child into the world. We also have hope that the suffering and brokenness of these times ushers in a world where we better address injustices to our brothers and sisters and to the creation entrusted to us. It’s not a sure thing, but as Paul says, “Hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?” Prayer: Everloving God, give us patience to endure these anxious times, hope to see Your vision of what might lie beyond, and love to make it so. May those who have sown with tears at last reap with songs of joy. Amen. Margaret Sheppard-Kelly

Tuesday, December 7, 2021 A HARVEST OF JOY PSALM 126 The procrastinator rules! I have just received my third, maybe it’s my fourth reminder that my Advent Booklet submission is overdue. So, I am now writing this one week before Thanksgiving as I am hurriedly finding recipes and making shopping lists for the feast that I will start preparing in just a matter of days. I am sure that is why Psalm 126 immediately jumped out to me as I made my first cursory review of my liturgical assignments. “The lord has done great things for us, and we rejoiced. Restore our fortunes, O lord, Like the watercourse through the Negreb.” Thanksgiving Day is such a marvelous holiday! It is a “feast day,” not unlike those that are celebrated throughout our Christian tradition. Yet, it is celebrated as a non-religious event; a time for everyone to set aside their quarrels and quibbles and to be thankful for bounty or hope of a future bounty to come. A time to be thankful for what we have and to recognize what our brothers and sisters, who are less fortunate, lack. Therefore, Psalm 126 is a particularly fantastic representation of the feelings some of us may have felt on this Thanksgiving. “May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy. Those who go out weeping, bearing the seeds of sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheeves.” As we approach the end of another year of a stubbornly unending pandemic, the phrase “shall come home with shouts of joy” reminds me of plaudits of thanksgiving that were offered to the first responders by a grateful populace during those dark days. Still, there are so many, many of God’s children who work in the trenches of humanity that go unrecognized but deserve to hear those “shouts of joy.” As we transition from a holiday of thanksgiving, soon to reflect upon the miracle of the manger and later the harsh realities of the cross, may we not forget those who weep, fear, struggle, or are sick or tired. May we remember our brothers and sisters who have dedicated their lives bearing the seeds of hope, peace, joy, and love. May we consistently offer them “shouts of joy.” Prayer: Gracious and abounding God, may we always be thankful for your works, your love, and for a baby in the manger. May we always recognize that while we may often fail, sometimes we do try and even thrive at bearing your seeds to sow. Please always strengthen us to this endeavor, so we may bring about a harvest of joy. Amen. Matthew Weitz

Wednesday, December 8 Psalm 126; Isaiah 35:3 – 7; Luke 7:18 – 30 When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.” The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. Restore our fortunes, LORD, like streams in the Negev. Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them. -- Psalm 126 My fifth-grade teacher once told our class that she looked up the word “grace” in the dictionary when she was young and decided that word would guide how she lived her life. I admired many things about my fifth-grade teacher, but one of the things I admired most was how well she truly integrated “grace” into everything she did. I’ve often thought about what word I would like to guide my daily life, and “joy” is always near the top of the list. Joy may mean many different things to different people. Sometimes, joy can seem similar to the concept of happiness. I personally think of happiness as a response to something circumstantial, like a when my favorite tea is on sale at the store or when I put on socks fresh out of the dryer. Joy, on the other hand, endures longer and can be cultivated despite any circumstances. As we look to the week ahead and think about joy, we remember the joy that Jesus brought to the world with his birth. Although we celebrate that joy this week especially, it’s a joy that can endure throughout the year and guide the way we live our lives, even in difficult moments. Even when happiness may seem out of reach, joy is always an option. - Abby Rosenson

Isaiah 12:2-6 Thursday, December 9, 2021 Amos 6:1-8 2 Corinthians 8:1-15 After reading the passages for today, I found myself remembering a time when I was a child and a new family moved into the house next door. The family had a girl about my age and I was eager to have a new playmate. I was shy though and didn’t want to go knock on her door. I remember climbing through the limbs of our avocado tree that afternoon and trying to work up the courage I needed by singing a song I learned at church to myself over and over. The joy of the Lord is my strength. (x4) God gives me living water and I thirst no more. (x3) The joy of the Lord is my strength. I don’t know why I first thought those words would be helpful to me, but I still find myself singing them when I need strength to do something I find difficult or to make a challenging decision. I’ve got them written on a slip of paper in my nightstand ready for reading on hard mornings. I sing them to my children sometimes as I put them to bed after a tough day. Joy is a central part of the Advent season, but it’s more than just the happiness we experience as we sing carols or look forward to exchanging gifts. We are a people in need of grace and part of the joy of Christmas is the knowledge that Christ’s coming brings the promise of salvation and restoration to our broken world. Today’s readings from Isaiah and Second Corinthians remind us of the power of this joy even in trying times. Isaiah addresses a people in exile. He assures the Hebrews that God’s promised Messiah will come, painting a picture of the joy with which they will “draw water from the wells of salvation” and “make known God’s deeds among the nations” on the day of his arrival. In Second Corinthians, Paul writes of the abundant joy of those worshiping in the early churches of Macedonia. It is from this joy, despite facing “severe affliction” and poverty, that they are able to give generously to support those working to share the Gospel. In each situation, joy in the Messiah’s coming, either anticipated or remembered, brings strength not just to endure but to spread the good news of God’s gift of grace in Christ. It can be easy to feel joy during the Christmas season. When we’re faced with hardship, however, joy may seem a strange emotion to call upon. Yet, as Christians who believe in God’s grace and desire for a world made whole, joy is exactly what we need. We can take courage in joy as we celebrate the promise of Christ’s birth and wait with anticipation for the joy we will feel when he comes again. May the joy of Christ’s coming be strength for us in this season and in all seasons. Alison Nowak

GOD LOVES A CHEERFUL GIVER Isaiah 12: 2-6 Friday, December 10, 2021 Amos 8: 4-12 II Corinthians 9: 1-15 There are many reasons we give: out of duty; for the self-satisfying, pleasant feeling; for prestige or pride; or under love’s compulsion. Some reasons are better than others. “God loves a cheerful giver.” (II Corinthians 9: 7b) St. Paul tells the Corinthians–and us–that we will abound in every good work, and be enriched in every way. He adds: because of our service, others will praise God, and their prayers will be for us. Their hearts will go out to us. (My goodness! What blessings and promises!) So what do we do? I work at food banks, sponsored by churches in the neighborhood. My neighbors and I make sandwiches, and load bags with beans, rice, and vegetables. I feel that it is a duty to serve those who are food insecure. But it is also self-satisfying, because I see my Latino neighbors and their children that I teach at the neighborhood school. It is pleasant. I hope that it is motivated by love’s compulsion, and not for prestige or pride. I only mention it so that others will consider giving in this way. Have you ever been gleaning? The original tithing, farmers are supposed to leave one- tenth of their yield for the poor. You can glean with others at farms in our area. I joined a church group once to gather apples that had fallen from the trees but were still edible. We brought them to a food pantry. The Holy Scriptures are rich with planting metaphors. Shall we sow our seeds generously or sparingly? Answer: we reap what we sow. If we sow richly, we will be rich in love, friends, and rich towards God. If we sow sparingly… Prayer: Loving God, help us to help others. Use our hands to further your kingdom. Help us be cheerful givers. Ella Cleveland

Isaiah 12:2-6 Saturday, December 11 Amos 9:8-15 Luke 1:57-67 New Songs The prophets in the Hebrew Scriptures don’t shrink from bad news. They see clearly, not in a fortune- telling sense, but by naming exactly what is wrong and where that will lead. And yet, some of the most transcendent passages in scripture come from the prophets – beautiful songs of hope and promise, like today’s Amos and Isaiah passages. It’s as if these songs can only be sung once reality is clearly seen. In Luke, Zechariah has his own journey from pain and lament to hope and joy, from naming what’s wrong to singing about what’s right. Zechariah seems to get a raw deal here in Luke. His story parallels Mary’s. Before Gabriel appears to Mary, the angel appears to Zechariah, foretelling the birth of a son. And both Zechariah and Mary ask questions. Zechariah asks: “How will I know that this is so? For I am an old man, and my wife is getting on in years.” And Mary: “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” Gabriel gives Mary an explanation. But he makes Zechariah mute. Was it his tone? Did Zechariah sound cynical, while Mary’s voice expressed wonder? In today’s passage, Zechariah gets his speech back, after writing “His name is John” – affirming what Gabriel said many months ago. And then he begins to speak, praising God. After this, he sings his own song, another parallel to Mary. It makes me wonder about his journey. Does Gabriel’s seeming punishment become a gift? Maybe months of not speaking give Zechariah time to listen, to hear anew. To hear a new song. His old song seemed to tell it like it is: Elizabeth and I are old. It’s too late. Maybe it’s that sentiment – “it’s too late” – that angers Gabriel. The prophets tell it like it is, and then offer passages full of possibility. It is never too late. And after nine months, Zechariah learns a new song. I don’t think Zechariah lives happily ever after. I doubt John the Baptist was an easy child, and then he leaves to preach in the wilderness and is killed. Zechariah will have to learn other new songs. But in this moment, in today’s passage, he rejoices. I wonder: Where does cynicism cloud my outlook and limit my seeing of God’s possibilities? What can I rejoice in today? What new song can I sing? Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; Let this be known in all the earth. Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion, For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel – Isaiah 12: 4-6 – - Meg Hanna House

Sing to the Lord, Who Has Done Be Glad in the Lord Glorious Things! Always! Isaiah 12:2-6, Psalm 19 Sunday Luke 3: 7-18, Philippians 4:4-7 December 12, 2021 John the Baptist proclaims the good news to the people. What is that good news? Today, Isaiah first answers the question: You will say on that day: “I thank you, Lord. Though you were angry with me, your anger turned away and you comforted me. God is indeed my salvation; I will trust and won’t be afraid. Yah, the Lord, is my strength and shield; he has become my salvation.” So does the psalmist: The Lord’s Instruction is perfect, reviving one’s very being. The Lord’s laws are faithful, making naïve people wise. The Lord’s regulations are right, gladdening the heart. The Lord’s commands are pure, giving light to the eyes. Honoring the Lord is correct, lasting forever. The Lord’s judgments are true. All of these are righteous! They are more desirable than gold – than tons of pure gold! - and they are sweeter than honey – even dripping off the honeycomb! No doubt about it: your servant is enlightened by them; there is great reward in keeping them. And so do Paul and Timothy: Be glad in the Lord always! Again I say, be glad! Let your gentleness show in your treatment of all people. The Lord is near. Don’t be anxious about anything; rather bring up all your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks. Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus. Can we take these messages seriously, even literally? If – or since - they are actually trustworthy, don’t they constitute the really good news we so desperately need to hear and act on today? Isn’t believing them – and being willing to act accordingly – what faith is all about? Theologian Jürgen Moltmann teaches us that “If faith … depends on hope for its life, then the sin of unbelief is manifestly grounded in hopelessness. … The other side of … pride is hopelessness, resignation, inertia and melancholy. … Temptation then consists not so much in the titanic desire to be as God, but in weakness, timidity, weariness, not wanting to be what God requires of us.” (Theology of Hope, page 22.) Wow! Isn’t repentance (to which John the Baptist calls us) – and being forgiven for the sin of despair – then being energized by the power of the Holy Spirit to be what God requires of us, really good news? I believe so! Do you? I hope so too! Prayer: Oh God of hope, fill each of us – and all of us – with all joy and peace, in faith, so that each of us - and all of us - overflow with hope, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen. - John H. Quinn, Jr.

Numbers 16:1-19 Monday, December 13, 2021 Isaiah 11:1-9 Hebrews 13:7-17 Today is our granddaughter Charlotte’s eighth birthday. At her age, birthdays are joyous events. This is a time when it is a special joy to be a grandparent and witness joyful eyes, big smiles, high energy, and the essential optimism that comes with youth. But as I watch I realize that she is not so far off from adolescence and adulthood when life will become more complicated. And thus we face the questions older generations always face – what sort of world are we leaving for her? What can we do to make the world she inherits a better place, at least in the long term? Don’t we have an obligation to do everything we can possibly do to make things better? Unfortunately, making things better in the long term often means making sacrifices in the short term. I am not good at that. Give me something good that I can enjoy in the short-term and I’ll worry about tomorrow some other time. I’ll deal with today’s problems and put off those that don’t seem to be at my doorstep. I think I am fairly common in that respect. This attitude also applies to much bigger issues. A prime example is climate change. Experts tell us that the climate is changing and that eventually those changes will become catastrophic. The poorest people on earth will have the greatest suffering but everyone and every living thing will be impacted. We can see increasing evidence of climate change today with rising temperatures, incredible forest fires, destructive storms, etc. etc. And yet, it seems that many people, including national leaders, don’t fully recognize the urgency of this crisis. As Katharine Hayhoe put it in her brilliant book, it’s not about saving the planet, it’s all about saving us. It’s a planet-wide problem and one would think that it would indeed provoke planet-wide action. But leadership is hesitant. People are wary of change especially if there is an economic cost. Leaders don’t like asking people to do unpopular things. They might be unhappy enough to rebel and seek new leaders. We can see in today’s readings that this is not a new problem. In Numbers there is a rebellion against the leadership of Moses and Aaron. Where is this land of milk and honey that we were promised? We’re out here in the wilderness and we don’t like it. We expected immediate results. Egypt actually looks better in hindsight, “Was it not enough to take us from a land where milk and honey flow to die in this wilderness, without seeking to lord it over us now?” We need new leadership. In Isaiah we hear an exasperated God say, “Israel knows nothing, my people understand nothing.” It’s easy to be discouraged. But this is Advent and we await the most encouraging event in human history, the birth of a savior. Paul reminds us of God’s ancient promise that God will never desert us. Jesus is the embodiment of that promise. So in this season of Advent let us rely on that promise and raise our voices to give leaders the support they need to do the right thing. It seems to me that Charlotte and all the children of the world deserve nothing less. Steve Dewhurst

The Further Adventures of the Giving Tree Isaiah 11: 1-9 December 14, 2021 “A shoot will spring from the stock of Jesse, a new shoot will grow from his roots. On him will rest the spirit of Yahweh, the spirit of wisdom and insight, the spirit of counsel and power, the spirit of knowledge and fear of Yahweh.” Isaiah 11: 1-2 Do you remember “The Giving Tree”, the children’s book by Shel Silverstein? I recall the first time I heard the story, told lovingly by Wes Baker at a New York Avenue church retreat. The book recounts the relationship between a boy and the tree. At each age of the boy’s life, the tree responds to the boy’s needs and wants by giving of itself, because the tree loves the boy. The tree is first a plaything, something to be climbed and swung from. Later the older boy needs money, so the tree drops all its apples to be sold in the city. Still later the grown boy wants a house to raise a family, so the tree offers the boy its branches. Eventually, the boy/man desires a boat, and the tree allows the boy to cut it down its trunk for the hull. All that’s left is a stump – and finally the old, old boy returns, and the tree says to the boy, “Boy, I have nothing to give you”, and the old man replies that no longer can he climb or swing and has everything he needs but a place to rest; he sits on the stump and makes the tree very, very happy. As I thought about this passage from Isaiah that Christians claim as messianic prophesy, Silverstein’s book sprang to mind. For from the stump of Jesse springs a shoot. This stump is alive! What has already given life is giving life again! And at the root of that life is love, a divine love that extends not just to humankind but to all of nature. “No hurt, no harm will be done on all my holy mountain, for the country will be full of knowledge of Yahweh as the waters cover the sea.” And might we add, “The tree will be very, very happy!” HYMN 138, Verse 1: Who would think that what was needed to transform and save the earth/ might not be a plan or army, proud in purpose, proved in worth?/ Who would think, despite derision, that a child should lead the way?/ God surprises earth with heaven/ coming here on Christmas Day. Paul B. Dornan

Christmas Lists and Christmas Gifts Isaiah 11:1-9 Wednesday, December 15th, 2021 Micah 4:8-13 Luke 7:31-35 Around this time of year — mid-December — when I was growing up, I would be making and finalizing my annual Christmas list to Santa. When I was very young, the list would be written after I had spent hours leafing through the Sears and JC Penney catalogs as well as the Sunday morning newspaper adverts. As I jotted down what I wanted for Christmas, I would imagine myself unwrapping presents under the tree, the presents on the list. In my mind, these presents were what I really wanted, what I really needed, and what I really deserved. I hope my disappointment wasn’t that obvious when I opened a gift and it wasn’t what I had expected it to be. And, yet, as I think back on those days, it’s not the gifts that I had written on the list that I vividly recall; but rather, it’s the unexpected presents and the memories of events and relationships — among family, friends, and strangers — that I hold most dear to me. Our scripture readings today are in many ways about Christmas lists and Christmas gifts. They remind us that, more often than not, our desires and expectations — those things we put on our Christmas lists — are different from those on God’s. And more often than not, we think we know what we want, what we need, and what we deserve — when, in fact, that may not be the case. In the gospel of Luke, Jesus compares the people of his generation to demanding and taunting children. We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep. They look at John, the Baptizer, who neither eats bread nor drinks wine, and say, “He has a demon.” They look at Jesus, who eats with not only the rich but also the poor, who heals not only the powerful but also the meek, and who engages not only the friend but also the stranger, and say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and of sinners.” Have you, have I, has the Church, at times, found ourselves acting like the people to whom Jesus is referring? Have our desires, demands, and determinations strayed from God’s? During this season of Advent, we find ourselves remembering and reflecting; remembering and reflecting upon Jesus, Immanuel — God in our midst, the prince of peace, and the light to the world. And during this season, we find ourselves awaiting and anticipating; awaiting and anticipating a triumphal return and new creation where wolves will lie down beside lambs, swords will be turned into ploughshares, justice will roll down like rivers, and the first will be last and the last will be first. But Advent is also a time for repentance and reorientation. Like the liturgical season of Lent, it offers us the space and the time to review and revise; to review and revise those ideas, values, and wants that may be in tension with God’s. Advent is when we can not only make our Christmas lists but check them twice, ensuring that they conform to God’s. And Advent is a season to wholeheartedly accept the gifts of God given to the people of God — and, in doing so, to respond using these gifts that God has graciously bestowed. In that response, we live out our lives as faithful followers of the Way; followers of the one whose very presence was a present; followers who are called to help usher in God’s beloved kingdom at this time and place. Gracious God, Compassionate Christ, Sustaining Spirit … on this day, may we continue to be a Christmas list and a Christmas gift people. May our Christmas lists correspond and conform to your Christmas gifts. May we recall and remember your remarkable gift to us, to the world, and to all of creation; the gift of Jesus, the one we call the Christ. And may the gifts that we receive be used to further your will, on earth as it is in heaven. May it be so. May it be so. - Mark A. Zaineddin

Friday, December 17, 2021 Psalm 80:1-7 “Saving Us” “Restore us, O God, let your face shine, that we may be saved.” Psalm 80:3 and 7 Psalm 80 is a group lament, a cry for help. The psalm is a corporate prayer appealing to God to resume the favor bestowed on Israel in the past. It is a calling to restore all that was lost because of God’s anger (v. 4). This psalm could be our cry for help today. God is angry at the racial injustice, the gun violence, and vicious war and power struggles among the children of God which, all together, leaves the scourges of hunger and poverty in its wake. God is angry at our greedy lifestyles that have ravished our planet Earth. God is angry about our divisions and our cynical, apathetic attitudes to do anything about all this. The word “saved” in the psalm captured my thought. I grew up in a Southern Baptist church. In high school I was always being asked “Are you saved?” I learned through a long theological journey from what I was “being saved” – my separation from God, my sin of self-centeredness (in a nutshell). Our hope for restoration, for salvation is in the One we wait for in this season. I ask you - Who can look in a baby’s face and not see goodness, beauty, love, openness, a beckoning for us to hold that baby and mirror the same? The incarnation is our hope! God revealed Godself in the baby – the human being – Jesus to restore us to our true humanity, our divinity – if you will. It is the “Joy to the world”! It is the inner call of our heart “let every heat prepare Him room.” *** Dr. Katharine Hayhoe who spoke in October in the Scholar-in-Residence lecture on climate change is not only a climate scientist, but also a self-proclaimed evangelical of the Christian faith. Dr. Hayhoe has written the book “Saving Us.” In that book she says, our job is not to worry about saving the planet – that is God’s job! Our job is to be about Saving Us – each other - in our care, love, and compassion for the earth that scripture says (in Genesis) we have been given responsibility “dominion” over every living thing on the planet … God knows our “bread of tears” (as the Psalmist says, v. 5) and God hears our cry “Restore us…, let your face shine that we may be saved.” Look – Listen – for the hope, healing, and restoration in Jesus this Advent – “that we may be saved!” PRAYER: O God who forever surprises us with restoration possibilities and with hope for new beginnings, in this Advent season “descend to us we pray; cast out our sin and enter in – be born in us today.” (O Little Town of Bethlehem, verse 3) Amen Beth Braxton

Friday, December 17, 2021 Psalm 80: 1-7; Isaiah 42: 10-18 Hebrews 10: 32-39 What Have You Done for Me Lately? The thread of content running through these texts appears to me to be a lament regarding current tribulations and a plea for God to, again, restore health, wealth and position and what God requires to do it. Psalm 80: 4 “O Lord God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?” Isaiah 42: 10 “Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the end of the earth…” Hebrews 10: 35-36 Do not, therefore, abandon that confidence of yours; it brings a great reward. For you need endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.” When I confront (or avoid) the unremitting daily reports of crime, injustice, civil unrest, the politicization of health and science, the tragedy of nations being destroyed by nature and our impact upon it, the fear leading to hate and alienation of people and my own tendency to wall myself away from all of it; I feel like an Old Testament figure lamenting how God has forsaken us. Where is the deliverance given to Israel time and again? Where can I go to secure the confidence and endurance to live a Christian life in the midst of this downward spiral? Recently, I have found myself thinking a lot about the contributions to my life made by a personal NYA saint of mine, Rev. Jack McClendon. To find some comfort and direction, I turned to a collection of his prayers compiled by Paul Dornan. Please join with me in one of Jack’s prayers: Gracious God, we need you every hour. Sometimes we need you more than at other times, and we acknowledge our need. At other times we may need you, but we depend upon our own resources and neglect your assistance. Yes, Lord, we vacillate in our need of you. When things are going right, we never call on your name, and, when things become unmanageable, we throw ourselves on your mercy. Teach us that your presence never leaves us, and only as we speak our need do we discover your presence. In this hour, come to us; be a fire that lights our way and rekindles our slumbering spirits. …We confess that, when life gets tough and rough and situations become unmanageable, we resort to simple solutions and workable formulas from our history. It is easier to stage events, manage disturbances and face conflicts with steps that are familiar. Instead of being open to new ways of coping, we fit and tailor the new onto the garments of the past. Show us a more enlightened way to meet challenges and conflict. We do not always have to be right, say or do the right or expected thing. May we live graciously, fearlessly, welcoming the strange and novel without always having neat answers or workable solutions. Amen May it be so. Spencer Gibbins

Psalm 80:1-7 Saturday, December 18, 2021 Isaiah 66:7-11 Luke 13:31-35 At the time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, “Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you.” He replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will drive out demons and heal people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal.’ In any case, I must keep going today and tomorrow and the next day – for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem! [Luke 13:31-33] I was baptized, at age 14, at the Hyde Park Union Church in Chicago. Actually, it was the Hyde Park Baptist Church when I was baptized, affiliating with the Disciples of Christ a few years later. It was an American Baptist church – not to be confused with the Southern Baptist denomination – so I didn’t grow up with altar calls or a lot of talk about being saved. Somehow, though, in my early twenties, I began to wrestle with the idea of turning my life over to God. At the time, I was associating with a group of very nice, very good, somewhat more conservative Christians whom I admired a great deal. They accepted me as one of them and that was fine, but still the question nagged: not so much “Am I saved?”, but “Don’t you want to turn your life over to God?” It was sort of a terrifying idea, turning my life over to God. What if God were to direct me to a life of poverty? Send me far away from home? Ask me to do something really, really hard? Finally, though, in a Christian coffee house on M Street in Georgetown, late one Friday night, I did. I’ve tried to live at God’s direction ever since, mostly in the prosaic ways we all do, sometimes successfully, oftentimes not. I think of this now, as I contemplate Jesus’ words in this passage from Luke. Jesus was God’s son, but he could have said no to God’s direction. We see his obedience in the wilderness and again at Gethsemane and all those times in between – turning aside to heal; teaching multitudes when, really, he just wanted to be alone for a while; facing criticism and enduring rejection. In fact, he embraced his God-driven life. And life burst forth from him. Jesus knew what he was facing, but he was not going to be dissuaded from doing what he was born to do, called to do. We have seen this sort of obedience, this sort of determination in other spiritual giants; Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and John Lewis come to mind. And we can be sure that this same obedience and determination are present in the lives of countless others in our world today, people working to lift others up, to undo unjust systems, to advocate for the poor and the marginalized. We New York Avenue-ers, too, on our better days. God is calling us. We can answer, “Yes.” And we can pray with Shane Claiborne, a founding member of The Simple Way in Philadelphia: “Lord, turn our praises into hands that clothe the naked, arms that comfort the afflicted, tables that host the stranger and shoulders that support the weary so that your name may be praised by those who live and die with their backs against the wall.” Amen Miriam Dewhurst

December 19, 2021 Luke 1:39-55 Mary, the Radical He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. (Lune 1:52-53) Upon entering Manila’s Ellinwood-Malate Church several years ago, one of the ushers confessed to me that he left the Roman Catholic church because they worshipped Mary or as many Filipino Roman Catholics call her today, Mama Mary. I shrugged off his words of welcome and entered the church to worship in the comfort of the Reformation tradition. Although the veneration of Mary as the Theotokos (Mother of God) is deeply rooted in the early Christian church, there is a diversity of opinion among Reformed churches about her importance in the Christian faith. Martin Luther writes that we have “an obligation to honor Mary. But be careful to give her honor that is fitting.” But re-reading Luke 1:39-55 – also known as the Magnificat or the Canticle of Mary -- gave me a different view of the simplistic Mama Mary or the Marian worship that permeates Filipino Roman Catholicism today. Mary is, after all, a radical and even a revolutionary as revealed by her song. There are four parts to her song: she rejoices that she is given the privilege of giving birth to the Messiah. She glorifies God. She looks forward to God transforming the world through the Messiah. And finally, Mary exalts God because He has been faithful to his promise to Abraham. Here’s a young, vulnerable, pregnant Jewish woman who tells her cousin, Elizabeth (who was pregnant with John the Baptist), that the child she bears will do great things. Jesus will bring down the powerful and lift the downtrodden. He will feed the hungry and send away the rich. What could be more radical than that? And when Jesus began his ministry, he did just that – and more. Little else is known about this woman from Nazareth who marred a carpenter and gave birth to Jesus. According to Roman Catholic teachings, God raised Mary's body into heaven when she died (i.e. Assumption of Mary). Lord, we pray for the power to be gentle; the strength to be forgiving; the patience to be understanding; and the endurance to accept the consequences of holding to what we believe to be right. Help us to devote our whole life and thought and energy to the task of making peace, praying always for the inspiration and the power to fulfill the destiny for which we and all people were created. Amen. From “Prayers for World Peace” (1978) – Adlai Amor

Monday, Dec. 20 Psalm 113 Genesis 25 v.19-28 Colossians I v. 15-20 I enjoy watching tennis. Which player will win? Who will be number one? As I write this, we have been going through elections in Virginia. We followed the results with interest. Who would become the next governor? It's all about winning. Humans long to be important, to be recognized. They seek position or wealth or reputation. Psalm 113 addresses the issue of what is truly important: Who is like unto the Lord our God who dwelleth on high, Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth; He raiseth the poor out of the dust and lifleth the needy out of the dunghill. The most Christian people may go unnoticed, quietly, unobtrusively in the background, doing God’s work. They may remember to write notes to the bereaved. They may see someone is lonely and offer a hug. They may arrange flowers or offer a ride. They are missionaries who leave comfortable homes to live in areas of poverty. They are the Gunga Dins of the world. May we remember what is truly important. Let us listen to the quiet whisper of God 's will. Helen Williams

Psalm 113 Tuesday, December 21, 2021 Genesis 30:1-24 Romans 8:18-30 The complicated polygamy and slavery of Genesis 30 makes it hard to see other messages. At the core, the struggle of Rachel and Leah (and their possibly half-sisters Bilhah and Zilpah) over who bears Jacob’s 12 prophesied sons is a struggle of pain, jealousy, and greed: one-upmanship, emotional blackmail, posturing, stingy negotiation, sibling rivalry, and a lot of other unpleasant vices. There’s plenty familiar in it. Certainly, when things are going well for ourselves, as they were for Leah, we may harden our hearts to others with less fortune. We may come up with complicated reasons why we can’t be kinder to someone hurting. It’s easy to imagine Leah justifying her childbearing luck that is tearing her sister apart - “Well, Jacob loves her better, so at least I get to have sons. Fair’s fair.” We don’t accept our own gifts and we come up with tortured workarounds like Rachel pretending someone else’s sons were her own (Bilhah still ended up being seen as the matriarch of the Dan and Naphtali tribes). We gloat when we’ve ended up on top, like Rachel saying, “I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won.” We get into tit-for-tat competitions, wanting to win against an opponent more than we want to be kind or build a better world, like Leah “raising her score” by copying Rachel’s handmaiden loophole. This bitter story ends, though, with a cooling of tone. God listens to Rachel, understands, and “takes away her disgrace.” An opening comes for Rachel’s soul. She is given the space she needs to begin to repair her depressed, tormented ways. Suddenly, her sisters aren’t part of it - suddenly, the conversation is between Rachel and God. No more nasty gloating. By making it between her and God, she breaks out of the cycle. Prayer: Dear God, we get so tied up in competition and jealousy, forgetting that you are the true judge of how we’re doing. In big ways and small, in families and at work, we hold on to grudges and we revel in our status. Please, offer us ways to escape our ugly cycles. Help us to recognize openings when they come, and get us out into new paths of kindness and mutual help. Help us to live by YOUR standards, not chasing those set by the media or the people around us. Remind us that “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Guide us with the loving example of your son Jesus Christ. Amen. John Yoder

Advent 2021, Wednesday, December 22 Luke 1:46-55 Micah 4:1-5 Ephesians 2:11-22 In these times of pandemic and polarization it can be hard to open our hearts to the advent of the Christ Spirit. Our world is in a time of the clashing of self-righteous and hateful opposites masquerading as truth. Obviously, we can't all be right. I ask myself how I can discern the correct path to the loving enlightenment and unity of a true Christian. The ceaseless prayer of emulating God's Divine Love is the path, I feel sure, but from where will the will and the strength for it come? The challenge of it is very difficult. Love people whose positionality is so clearly misguided? How can I? Luke ascribes to Mary these words of clarity on the source of universally loving being, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant...the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” I try very hard to not make the mistake of imagining myself as the source of love. Rather I strive to reflect the divine love of God. Discerning and emulating that love is the way to harmony among opposing positions I believe. Micah writes on this subject, “'Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.' For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between many peoples, and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more; but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees, and no one shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken. For all the peoples walk, each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever. This applies to nations within nations too. I pray for God's instruction and powerful aid in this. I can't achieve it without it. I know this from experience. In Ephesians we read these powerful words, “Now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.” In the Divine Peace and Love of the Christ. Nathan Moon

Wednesday December 23, 2021 Micah 4:6-8 Luke 1:46b-55 2 Peter 1:16-21 Mary’s Song When I was growing up in Indianapolis in the late 1960s and early 1970s, my Presbyterian family lived in a neighborhood of mostly Catholic families on the northside of town. We lived just one block from the Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, which included an elementary school and a convent. It was not unusual to see nuns in full habit taking evening strolls down the sidewalk in front of our house. Most of my neighborhood friends were Catholic, and we often played pickup baseball games on the church playground. At the outskirts of left center field there was a garden surrounded by a wrought iron fence. In the middle of the garden there was a statue of Mary. If a baseball was hit into the garden on the fly, that was a home run. However, if the ball bounced into the garden, that was a ground rule double. On certain summer nights, the ball field and the garden were declared off limits. Families from around the neighborhood would gather around the statue of Mary. I sometimes watched from a distance and heard people recite certain words and phrases that I couldn’t understand. I didn’t think too much about what was going on; I mostly wondered impatiently when we could resume our game. In Roman Catholicism, Mary is central to many devotions, feasts and practices throughout the year. Pope John Paul II said in his encyclical Redemptoris mater, “At the center of this mystery, in the midst of this wonderment of faith, stands Mary. As the loving Mother of the Redeemer, she was the first to experience it: 'To the wonderment of nature you bore your Creator’!” As part of the Reformed tradition, we don’t put Mary at the center of our faith the way our Catholic friends do. But contemplating Mary’s Song from Luke, I see her song of praise as much more than a prelude to the Christmas story. Mary’s Song shows the deepness of Mary’s faith. In verses 46-47 she sings, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” Mary’s Song speaks of God looking on a humble servant with favor. In verses 48-49, she sings “he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant,” and “the Mighty One has done great things for me.” Mary’s Song praises the way God upends worldly hierarchy. In verses 52-53, she sings “He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.” Finally, Mary’s Song shows the wondrous things that God has done for her, for the people of Israel, and, indeed, for all who believe. Mary’s recognition of God’s greatness tells us that while Mary may be nervous about her situation, she knows that God is in control and will not abandon her. Mary’s Song made me think that Mary is a prophet in her own right, and her Song touches on themes that form the core of our Reformed Christian faith. Trusting God always. Standing humbly and hopefully with those whom the world has beaten down. Praising God through good times and bad. Advent is a fitting and proper time to think about Mary. But Mary’s Song is worth revisiting throughout the year, even for those Christians who aren’t Catholic. Adam Bain

Isn't there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about? Isaiah 9:2-7 December 24 Psalm 96 Thursday Luke 2:1-20 Christmas Eve At our home each Christmas Eve, Charlie Brown goes out to look for a tree for his school’s Christmas pageant. Avoiding the big tin, tinsel-strewn trees, he chooses a small, bedraggled tree for all the right reasons: This little green one here seems to need a home…I think it needs me. But, back at school he is mocked and humiliated for bringing back this particular tree. In frustration and distress, he asks aloud: Isn't there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about? Linus, as the prophet in the Peanuts comic, steps forward, his blanket slung over one shoulder, and makes clear what Christmas is all about, quoting a passage in Luke from the King James Bible: And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. Watching Charlie Brown’s Christmas Tree is a tradition in our family because the ending reminds us of the hope that the birth of Jesus brought to our world. Hope in difficult times. That’s it. A message of hope shining through the fog and distress of bleak times that a child has been born. As Linus notes: That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown. Merry Christmas! Paul and Gwenn Gebhard

Saturday, December 25, 2021 Scripture: • Isaiah 52:7-10 • Psalm 148 • Luke 2:8-20 • Titus 3:4-7 Isaiah 52:7 7How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!” Luke 2:8-11 8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. Reflection: We live in a life that we regard—and often make—complicated and fast-paced, which can overwhelm us. The news of the day—from global pandemic to local crises—easily clouds the Good News. Reading these passages immediately calmed my mind and eased my heart. The imagery of the shepherds running with those ‘beautiful feet’ to see the good news—and bring the good news: ‘Your God reigns!’ Yes, he does. May your feet (and hands and voice and heart) take this same good news to someone who needs to hear it today. Prayer: Lord, We thank you today for the birth of your son. Thank you for loving us so much that you sent this precious gift into the world. Forgive us when we let the matters of this world occlude what really matters. And on this day of all days, may we revel with you in joy and love for the world and each other. Amen Laura Asiala