ADVENT 2012 -- 1

+ Huffingpost offers "Fox News War on Advent" by Diana Butler-Bass.

STILL WAITING BUT GOD IS HERE AND I AM SEEKING AWARENESS

God is with us. Right here. Right now.

Light overcomes darkness at all times, at this time, all the time.

It doesn't always seem that way. We live life sometimes as if we are separated from God and from each other. Christmas changes that. We become aware of our unity with our creator and all creation.

This awareness is a gift from God. Sometimes it comes as a result of our spiritual practice. But there is no guarantee that any particular method will bring about this awareness. So, there are times when the only thing left to do is wait for God to give us this awareness. It comes in the fulness of time and we have no control over that.

Some people believe that the fullness of time has something to do with the calendar, the clock. On such and such a day Christ will come again. We have waited a long time for that to happen. It was supposed to happen this year according to some of the faithful. I see the fullness of time in a different way. Christ comes, awareness comes, unity comes, whenever the gift of love is given and received. This happens at all times, all the time, at this time. May we experience this amazing love today, tomorrow and all days.

love, john + www.abundancetrek.com + If there is anything I have learned about men and women, it is that there is a deeper spirit of altruism than is ever evident. Just as the rivers we see are minor compared to the underground streams, so, too, the idealism that is visible is minor compared to what people carry in their hearts unreleased or scarcely released. -- Dr. Albert Schweitzer (thanks to www.peterrussell.com - a quote of the moment)

TIS THE SEASON TO BE JOYFUL

Spirituality and Practice offers a variety of resources on the spiritual practice of Joy.  Here is an excerpt from Clowning in Rome: Reflections on Solitude, Celibacy, Prayer, and Contemplation by Henri J. M. Nouwen:

Our difficult and very urgent task is to accept the truth that nature is not primarily a property to be possessed, but a gift to be received with admiration and gratitude. Only when we make a deep bow to the rivers, oceans, hills, and mountains that offer us a home, only then can they become transparent and reveal to us their real meaning.

A friend once gave me a beautiful photograph of a water lily. I asked him how he had been able to take such a splendid picture. With a smile he said, "Well, I had to be very patient and very attentive. It was only after a few hours of compliments that the lily was willing to let me take her picture." < http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/excerpts.php?id=13524

SPREADING THE JOY OF CHRISTMAS AT A SCOTTISH PUB

Ecumenical News International offers "You might meet Jesus in a pub, says Scottish minister" by Trevor Grundy. Excerpt: "(Rev. Bryan Kerr) told The Scotsman newspaper on 22 December that the church had looked at new ways of getting the Christian message out beyond the confines of the church. In addition to the carol service, the pub's management will be serving a special beer brewed for those bursting with goodwill and festive song - Greyfriars Kirk Christmas Ale."

SUPPORTING THE PALESTINIANS -- 7

3rd Annual Bethlehem Prayer Service

Christ is Born, Glorify Him!

Saturday, December 19, 2009
9:30 AM Gathering, 10:00 AM Service (All times are Eastern Standard Time.)

A joint simulcast service with the people of Bethlehem at the Bethlehem Chapel of the Washington National Cathedral, 3101 Wisconsin Ave., NW, Washington, DC

Are you in the DC area? Then you are invited to join worshipers in the Bethlehem Chapel.

If you are elsewhere, we encourage to you gather with others in your own community to watch the service by internet as it is broadcast live at http://www.nationalcathedral.org/.

In Bethlehem, behind the wall that separates neighbor from neighbor, patient from hospital, student from school and farmer from land, Palestinian Christians continue to bear witness to their faith this Christmas, as they have done for generations. Once again, let us join our voices with theirs in seeking and offering hope for a better future.

Prayers, readings, and hymns alternate between Washington, DC and Palestine via the internet, bringing together people of different lands, languages, and ethnic backgrounds in celebration of the birth of the Prince of Peace.

Participants in Washington include the Most Reverend Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop and Primate, The Episcopal Church; the Rt. Rev. John Bryson Chane, Episcopal bishop of Washington; the Rt. Rev. Richard H. Graham, bishop of the ELCA Metropolitan Washington, D.C., Synod; the Very Rev. Samuel T. Lloyd III, dean of the Cathedral, and the Rev. Canon Stephen Huber, Cathedral vicar.

In Bethlehem, participants include the Rt. Rev. Suheil Dawani, bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem; the Rt. Rev. Munib Younan, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, and the Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb from Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem.

Sponsored by:
Ad Hoc Committee for Bethlehem, Bright Stars of Bethlehem, Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation, Sharing Jerusalem, Washington National Cathedral and the Washington Interfaith Alliance for Middle East Peace

For updated information about the service, go to Bright Stars Bethlehem.