‘It’s not even Advent but the Christmas season is upon us.’ So writes an English journalist in The Tablet, the Catholic magazine. Proof of this was the restaurant opposite her office setting up Christmas decorations around Hallowe’en. Well I can beat that. A local garden centre was fairly heaving with Santas and reindeer around the middle of September. It’s true. It’s getting earlier every year. The afore mentioned journalist says it’s all down to ‘commercial interests’ and not many of us would disagree. But interestingly she is not content just to have a moan. She poses a question: ‘ . . . given the despoliation of Advent by commercial interests, what can a parish church do?‘ And not content with just posing the question she tells us what her local parish church did. An evening of Advent silence was held which she describes as ‘intensely contemplative shared silence in a darkened church.‘ This she puts forward as an ‘antidote’.
It was in this spirit that we started Advent services in St Paul’s. Every Saturday morning at 9. 30 am throughout Advent a half-hour service is held in which some of the traditional themes of Advent are explored. It is often forgotten that at its heart Advent is a time for self-examination and a renewal of our aspiration to walk closer with Christ in our daily lives. More opportunities for worship are therefore important when we can focus on the Word, pray together and express our faith in praise. In the busyness and bluster that are often the characteristics of the Season this is our antidote.
I won’t be involved this year. At this point I’m not sure at what stage I will be at in my treatment. But it’s good to know that the services will be continuing and my prayer is that the Christ who was, who is and who is to come will be real to all who attend.
