Reflections
As I drove down to Water Valley on Wednesday I noticed a sizable mechanized vehicle parked in the middle of a rather large, well mowed tract of land as if it had been left for the winter. I’m sure it has probably been moved by now, but it did remind me of our Northern European ancestors who were unable to work the fields during this time of year and developed a lovely custom that we continue to this day. They would take a wheel off of a cart or wagon to acknowledge the end of the agricultural season and decorate it with greenery as a house decoration to remind them of the life that continued even in the dead of the winter. These days we attach those “wheels” to our doors and windows!
Similarly, in pre-Christian Northern Europe, the continual loss of light each year in
December was a matter of grave concern to our Celtic forebears. Fires were built to stave off the coming of the darkness, and a great festival of elaborate ritual and ceremony was established (The Winter Solstice) to plead for the return of the light. The early Christian community placed Christmas Day in the midst of that festival in December ( Jesus was probably born in the Spring) as a vehicle for evangelism: “If you are worried about the darkness,” they would say to their neighbors, “ let me tell you about the One who is born as ‘the Light of the World’”.
In Advent we dare to confess that darkness, as both a seasonal disorder, and as an emotional, physical and spiritual condition year round, is real to us in ways we are reluctant to admit. AND, we light candles(fire) as icons for hope, as we proclaim,
“What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all
people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”
(John 1: 3-5)
O Come. O Come, Immanuel.
Other Matters of Importance
Call for Pledge Cards!
The Budget Committee is looking to complete its work on Nativity’s 2024 budget by Tuesday. If you have not turned in your financial pledge card for 2024 please do so ASAP! It will help our financial planning enormously.
Stocking Stuffers Needed After Church
Laura Pitre is coordinating an effort to take Christmas gifts to residents of the Yalobusha County Jail in the coming days. There is a need to help stuff Christmas stockings after church this Sunday. It should not take much time. There is also a need for volunteers- adults and children- to write a Christmas note to an inmate or two. If you are willing to help with this very quickly organized project, please see Laura at church. She will be making additional announcements about other aspects of this project during our worship service.
Nativity Social Events of the Season
December 13: 5:00pm Pre-Christmas dinner at the home of Liz and Tommy Reynolds (1720 North Main) RSVP will be helpful.
December 24: 7:00pm (Immediately following the Christmas Eve worship service) Food and drink at the home of Margaret-Love Denman (212 Wood Street).
Bible Study to Take Recess
This Sunday, December 10, will be the last Sunday Bible Study this calendar year. We will resume again Sunday, January 7 at 9:30am in the Salt and Light Building.
Each Sunday’s lesson is self-contained and can be enjoyed even if you cannot come to the class on a regular basis. Think about joining the class when you can! Bring your Bible and enjoy the journey through the Gospel of John, one of our great scriptural treasures.
Mission Committee Meets Tuesday
The monthly meeting of the Nativity Mission Committee will be held in the Salt and Light Building on Tuesday, December 12 at 6:00pm. All are welcome.
Festival of Lessons and Carols- Next Sunday, December 17
Our annual Lessons and Carols service will be held next Sunday. Special music and extended scripture endings will make for a beautiful liturgy for the season. Thanks to Brenda Prager for her extensive planning and preparation for this annual event.
See you Sunday!
Blessings and Peace,
Duncan
(601)2601937
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