Those Little Advent Candles

There is not one of us, I imagine, that is not profoundly moved and deeply sorrowful over the murders of the children and teachers in Newtown, Connecticut. And for that tragedy to happen at this time of year — Christmas and Hanukah — makes it even harder to comprehend and to understand.

Rachel Held Evans began her blog post on Sunday (Dec. 16) this way:

"Those little Advent candles sure have a lot of darkness to overcome this year… Their stubborn flames represent the divine promise that even the smallest light can chase away the shadows lurking in this world, that even in the darkest places, God can’t be kept out."

She is right. We need to keep those little Advent candles and those little Hanukah candles burning well past their seasons. There is "a lot of darkness to overcome this year."

Shining the light of Advent and Christmas into dark places is what Christians should be doing, especially now. Christmas is not about us, it is about God and God’s actions. Advent and Christmas prepare us to face the real challenges that lie before us. They center our lives on what God is doing for his children.

The coming of Jesus is the end of the rule of the powerful, an end to the damning Law of value and worth that we impose on each other. Jesus is a threat to the way things are now and stands as a beacon to the way things will be.

The beacon of good news that shines from Advent to Christmas and into Epiphany is that God is with us, God is for us. It is the good news that makes us brave and gives us the confidence to say, "God bless the little children and the poor. God bless the weak and the outsider. God bless the lonely, the sick, and the disturbed. God comfort those who mourn."

It will take a long time for the wounds of Newtown, Red Lake, Columbine, and the wounds of poverty, war, and hatred to heal. It will take a long time for the soul of this country, and of we its people, to repent of our lust for money and our trust in violence and power.

Yet for me, the center of this season and my faith is this: the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth (John 1). And I have faith, as Rachel Held Evans said, "that even the smallest light can chase away the shadows lurking in this world, that even in the darkest places, God can’t be kept out."