
Worship
7:30am | Morning Prayer |
8:00am | Eucharist |
8:30am | Doors open for sightseeing |
12:30pm | Eucharist |
4:00pm | Last entry for sightseeing |
5:00pm | Choral Evensong |
The First Sunday of Christmas: Wings and Tings by Kareem Parkins Brown
First Sunday of Christmas - 30 December | |
Wings and Tings by Kareem Parkins Brown |
The angel clears its throat,
Shepherds must be the first ones to visit |
Reflection
How do we react to the unexpected? Do we freeze on the spot, look away, fall down, gasp for breath, stand with mouths agape or do we follow where
it leads? Do we plead “no, no, not me, please not me, I am not clever enough, I am not powerful enough, I am not good enough.” Does it feel
like sand in the eyes? Or do we step forward and say “let’s do this.”
It was to the shepherds that the angels first appeared, not the rulers, not the priests, not the intellectuals, not the celebrities, but the people
who lived in dirt. And once the initial shock was over the shepherds did not stand together and question and lament, “why, why, why?” but knew they
had to be the first there, the first to follow the star, to be the ones who make way for the fishermen, be the first to this baby who will change
the world.
Jehovah’s do-over.
And for their trust, for their faith, Mary shares her stories of angels. She opens her heart and gives them shelter.
This Advent season we can reflect on the times we have shied away from a new opportunity, a new experience, a new beginning. Been too fearful or
doubtful to take a chance, to have a go, to trust that perhaps we are part of a much bigger, more beautiful plan. Felt too unworthy to believe we
had been chosen for something special. Can we learn to recognize that what has presented itself, to our human eyes like a tree on fire, might be a
change in the meaning of royalty, a chance, through us, for something wonderful to happen? Can we, this Advent, allow ourselves to be like the
prophet Isaiah, who foretold this birth, and declare boldly, “Here I am Lord, send me.”
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