Day Eleven:
Are you ready for Christmas?
One of the most common questions we are asked this time of year – and I must admit one that I dread the most – is ‘Are you ready for Christmas?’ The answer in my case is of course not. I am never ready for Christmas early; it is not in my nature. It is why I dislike the question so much; I always end up feeling guiltily inadequate. Guilt aside, however, it is a great question – though not for the reasons that the questioner often thinks. The problem with being ‘ready’ for Christmas is that in our modern culture this often means a whirlwind of activity: shopping bought, cards sent, presents wrapped, cooking accomplished. The irony is that the better we are at being ‘ready for Christmas’, the more likely we are to miss the presence of God in our midst.
This is a colourfully illuminated set of agreements known as an indenture quadripartite (four-part), of which several copies were made. They formed part of a larger collection, including a series of four indentures bipartite (two-part) and an indenture septipartite (seven-part). As a whole, these indentures record arrangements made between Henry VII and the abbot (John Islip) and monks of Westminster Abbey on 16 July 1504. Primarily, they concern the King’s new burial chapel in the Abbey, the founding and maintenance of an almshouse, and rituals to be performed on behalf of the King and his family.
The theme of Advent is, of course, all about the importance of being ready. The gospel reading from Luke 3.1-6 reminds us powerfully of this theme. John the Baptist went out into the wilderness to ready the people of his day for the coming of Jesus. This was an important symbolic act. The wilderness was where the people of God first entered the land under Joshua after their freedom from Egypt. The wilderness was where the prophet Isaiah declared that the exiles needed to prepare for God’s return. Going out to the wilderness was a statement: a statement which indicated that they were preparing themselves to welcome God. Going out to the wilderness removed them from the distractions of everyday living so that they could recognise God when he appeared.
This is significant. It is all too easy to overlook God’s presence in our lives. We do it all the time. It is part of the nature of God that he is most likely to appear in an unanticipated guise, doing something his people do not expect, in a manner that is unforeseen. This was especially true of Jesus in the gospels. Who could have guessed that God would come to his people as a baby, born in poverty? The fortunate few received tidings of his birth in the dramatic revelation of angels or the appearance of an unknown star, but the rest were left to work it out for themselves. Simeon and Anna in the temple stand for us as exemplars of people who were ready and able to recognise that salvation had indeed come in the most unexpected form of all – that of a tiny baby.
The question that challenges us this Advent is how we find our own equivalent of the wilderness. This may involve going somewhere or it may simply involve an inner attitude of readiness, but whatever form it takes we, like John the Baptist, need to prepare the way, to be ready for God when he breaks into our lives afresh in an unexpected guise and in unforeseen ways.
May each of us be able to answer that dreaded question – ‘are you ready for Christmas?’ – with a joyful and heartfelt ‘yes’ whatever the state of our to-do list.
Dr. Paula Gooder is a British theologian and Anglican lay reader, who specialises in the New Testament.
She is Canon Chancellor of St Paul's Cathedral.
This is significant. It is all too easy to overlook God’s presence in our lives. We do it all the time. It is part of the nature of God that he is most likely to appear in an unanticipated guise, doing something his people do not expect, in a manner that is unforeseen. This was especially true of Jesus in the gospels. Who could have guessed that God would come to his people as a baby, born in poverty? The fortunate few received tidings of his birth in the dramatic revelation of angels or the appearance of an unknown star, but the rest were left to work it out for themselves. Simeon and Anna in the temple stand for us as exemplars of people who were ready and able to recognise that salvation had indeed come in the most unexpected form of all – that of a tiny baby.
The question that challenges us this Advent is how we find our own equivalent of the wilderness. This may involve going somewhere or it may simply involve an inner attitude of readiness, but whatever form it takes we, like John the Baptist, need to prepare the way, to be ready for God when he breaks into our lives afresh in an unexpected guise and in unforeseen ways.
May each of us be able to answer that dreaded question – ‘are you ready for Christmas?’ – with a joyful and heartfelt ‘yes’ whatever the state of our to-do list.
Dr. Paula Gooder is a British theologian and Anglican lay reader, who specialises in the New Testament.
She is Canon Chancellor of St Paul's Cathedral.