It’s a dark time of year. We’re approaching the winter solstice, the day with the shortest daylight and the longest period of dark. In addition to the usual seasonal darkness, this year we’re dealing with the darkness of the pandemic and the darkness of the political division in our country. But the light does shine in the darkness, and that is a message of Christmas.
During the season of Advent, a time when we prepare for Christmas, my guiding theme this year is “watch for the light.” It’s the title of a book of daily meditations I’m reading through this year. Watching for, celebrating, giving thanks for the light that shines in the darkness is my Advent work. Sharing the light I find in these dark times is my Advent call.
Three years ago, my daughter Kerry and her family spent the year of her husband’s sabbatical in Dresden, Germany. She was delighted to discover their varied Advent observances, and she particularly liked the Dresden stars. "Just about every porch in the city had one of these stars shining throughout the seasons of Advent and Christmas," she told us. "It was amazing to see them all as I rode by on the tram or walked the dogs around our neighborhood."
There’s an interesting story behind these stars. They all began in the sixteenth century with some Moravian monks’ geometry lesson. They gave their students paper and instructed them to fold it into a multidimensional star. There were a lot of stars, so the monks asked the children to put candles in them and hang them on their Christmas trees. The stars have moved to a safer version; they’re now made of plastic and have an electric bulb. Assembling them still offers quite a challenging lesson in geometry!
I’m grateful Kerry brought back one of the Dresden stars for me to hang on my front porch from the beginning of Advent until Epiphany. It’s a visible reminder that the light of Christ does shine in the darkness, and even the darkness of this year cannot overcome that powerful light.
Where do you see God’s light shining in the darkness this year? How does that light dwell within you? With whom—and how—will you share that light?
Advent Blessings,
–The Rev. Jackie Thomson
