The Sounds of Advent

I guess if someone was to ask me, or any one of my four brothers, what sounds do we most associate with our childhood Christmases, then there would be no hesitation in our response. Not the crackling of the fire in the grate, newly lit by my father who, no matter how early we rose, was always downstairs ahead of us. Nor the sound of our hushed voices suddenly transformed to shouts of joy at the sight of the treasure uncovered in our front room. Nor the sound of my mother imploring us to leave our play and come to breakfast. Though these sounds are present in each remembrance, none of them dominate. The sound sure to evoke groans as well as smiles of recognition in the Jordan boys is the scratchy, skipping sound of the Jim Reeves Christmas Album.

There it was, every Christmas morning without fail, part of the soundtrack of that special morning. Sentimental? Undoubtedly. And definitely not our kind of music,nor even all that appropriate for such a day. Nevertheless this LP (a big, round, black plastic thing) seemed indestructible, played year after year from our early childhood until I left home. All this came to mind again just this week when I watched a documentary on Val Doonican...until I caught myself on. It must be something to do with getting older.

So far removed from the real sounds. Of angels singing. Of shepherds cowering in fear. Of wise men enquiring, and a king conspiring. Of the rustle of hay in the feeding trough as the baby twisted and turned. Of his contented sighs having fed at his mother’s breast.

Far removed too from the vision of Isaiah who saw this day coming. His familiar words have echoed down through centuries of Christmasses. The sign of Immanuel, God with us, the child born of a virgin who would usher in a new Kingdom.

These words and others like them were written at a time of great uncertainty and fear. Dark times indeed, far from our comfortable services of lessons and carols or children’s nativity plays or Jim Reeves songs. Isaiah preached when the nation was about to be invaded by powerful, godless enemies and from where he stood it looked like the future promised only distress and darkness and fearful gloom. Hardly the context then to introduce one of our most favoured seasonal bible passages.

"for as in the day of Midian's defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be fuel for the fire. For to us a child is born..." Isa 9:4-6

Yet there it is. The advent of this child would be accompanied by the sounds of victory after battle. The sound of a heavy yoke shattering and splintering. The sound of a blaze, as the uniforms and equipment of the enemy is consumed. And the sound of rejoicing, as the spoils of war are divided. Not the sounds commonly associated with the birth of a child.

No wonder then that when the new life appeared, as John says in chapter 1 verse 4-5, life which was to be light for everyone, the darkness never grasped its significance. It couldn't. It was all so unexpected and so confusing. The dark had its way of doing things and it simply involved more darkness.

This Christmas in Northern Ireland we've laid down some weapons, but we're still all too ready to fight with our tongues, and to bully one another in government. Nevertheless there are signs of hope. But I know that for many families in the US and Iraq, and Afghanisatan and so many places in the world, this Christmas will be dominated once again by the sounds of war. Sounds far removed from those fondly remembered Christmases past.

The hope of Christmas is that the baby’s birth promised an ultimate end to all war, and to that hope we must cling. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end, the Scriptures say. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and for ever.

The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

O Come, O come Emmanuel

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This is another of the Advent Posts for the Johannine Advent Blog project hosted by Brother Maynard. Participating bloggers are:

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