A word from our Minister - Rev Iris Musgrove            

Hope, peace, joy and love
this Advent season

I don’t know whether you have noticed but as soon as Remembrance Sunday /11th November is over (whichever is the latest) the switch on of the city’s Christmas lights happens. This year the city centre date is 14th November, with other areas following soon after. 

When I worked behind the scenes for Post Office Counters we put the first order for Christmas stamps in during June. The Charity Catalogues start to arrive in August, and the shops and advertising soon follow, reaching their peak in early November. Yet the Church tries not to hold their public services for Christmas until mid December, some not until Christmas Eve. Why is there such a difference? 

For a start, the story told within the Church Lectionary, which we are encouraged to follow, comes to its climax in late November with the celebration of ‘Christ the King’.  It is only after we have completed that story that we turn our minds to thinking about why it became necessary for God to send his son to save us from the mess that human beings made of his world. This period is called Advent, and we often remind ourselves of it by the use of an advent ring, four coloured candles surrounding one white candle. So let us think about each week.

Week 1   We recognise that at some point each of us will face God’s judgement, and we need to ask ourselves if we are ready. If we are afraid of this we need to remember that we have a God who is merciful, but we are expected to recognise our problems and ask for help. This year this theme is summed up in the word HOPE. 

Week 2   We remember the call of the prophets in the Old Testament for the people to work for justice and peace, and how there would be a special person, a Messiah, who would bring this about. This year the theme is summed up in the word PEACE. 

Week 3  We are reminded about John the Baptist and how he had the task to prepare people to receive the Good News (Gospel). For those then and now who hear and understand the message and are prepared to receive it joy comes. This is the reason that the theme is summed up in the word JOY. 

Week 4   We are reminded us of the willingness of a young girl to accept God’s will and care for and love the child Jesus. That theme is summed up in the word LOVE. 

May this time of Advent be one when we do not get so involved with the practical preparations and parties that we have no time to think about the reason for the season summed up in the birth of a child to bring us God’s love and salvation.                       

Iris