yes, christmas is coming. this morning at church the first candle of advent was lit by a beautiful young girl in gold slippers named Bella.
it is the first week of advent, which means that its getting darker, colder, and more desolate – but instead of surrendering to the sense of terror and doom induced by the darkness we begin to wait, expectently, for something that is on its way, something that is going to be delivered to us, something that will offer hope, redemption and salvation. and what have we learned from our religious teachings? that whatever form of deliverence or salvation is imminent, it is not to be found (or born) in any source or place where we might expect it. it is not going to originate in and be handed down from the higher, more exalted strataspheres of the economic, social and political structure. it is not to be delivered by wealth or riches or the knowledgeable or kings or magistrates or even the high priests and rabbis of any religious order. on the contrary, what ever it is that is going to offer a sense of salvation to our souls, is going to arrive outside the artificial constructs of civilization, close to the natural elements, amid the beasts and wildlife…that is what my christian upbringing and faith structure has prepared for me to believe. its about all i have to cling to. the hope that i will make it through this. that something will come to help me continue my journey…