Sunday, January 03, 2010
Sunday Reflection: Season of Contentment
I love the few Sundays after Christmas Day-- the period in which Christmas is still celebrated in the church after the birth of Christ itself is commemorated. There is a sense of quiet contentment, which was deeply present at my own church this morning. We remembered the coming of the Wise Men, which was a confirmation of the miracle of Christmas.
It is interesting to compare the emotional seasons of Christmas with those of Easter:
Christmas:
1) Anticipation (Advent)
2) Joy (the birth of Christ)
3) Contentment (the remainder of the Christmas season).
Easter:
1) Anticipation (Lent)
2) Despair (Good Friday)
3) Joy (Easter Sunday)
Christianity is an emotional faith, and the seasons of our emotions are driven by empathy. Empathy for Christ at times, or for others in the narrative, or empathy for those around us as we traverse the season. To everything there is a season, and this is a season of contentment, an emotion that runs very deep. Contentment is not a sudden realization; rather, it is an abiding knowledge that things will be ok, that there is balance in the world, that we are loved.
I hope that this spirit of the season is with you today, too.
It is interesting to compare the emotional seasons of Christmas with those of Easter:
Christmas:
1) Anticipation (Advent)
2) Joy (the birth of Christ)
3) Contentment (the remainder of the Christmas season).
Easter:
1) Anticipation (Lent)
2) Despair (Good Friday)
3) Joy (Easter Sunday)
Christianity is an emotional faith, and the seasons of our emotions are driven by empathy. Empathy for Christ at times, or for others in the narrative, or empathy for those around us as we traverse the season. To everything there is a season, and this is a season of contentment, an emotion that runs very deep. Contentment is not a sudden realization; rather, it is an abiding knowledge that things will be ok, that there is balance in the world, that we are loved.
I hope that this spirit of the season is with you today, too.
