Something Beautiful

I've thought a lot about peace this week, and all week I've tried to come up with the words to say what I feel in my soul. I am weary. My heart mourns because there is so much dissension and violence in our world. There is so little peace.  The hosts of heaven announced the arrival of the Messiah with shouts of Glory to God in the Highest and Peace on Earth. I think sometimes we forget that people during this time frame had a very different version of peace than we think of today. The shepherds who heard this announcement would have been well aware of the Pax Romana: the Peace of Rome.  You see, Rome had a great and terrible weapon to enforce their peace. You threaten the peace; you die. And not just any death, but a public, humiliating, and excruciatingly painful death. The Peace of Rome came at a great price to any who would stand in their way.  So I wonder if any of the shepherds had questions or doubts as they left their sheep and rushed off to find this new king. Or

Confession: I'm actually not a huge fan of Christmas. I know, I know. I'm a grinch. Okay, that's actually kind of true. I really was the Grinch last year for our Advent series at church. But aside from that, I have just never really LOVED Christmas. I don't have tons of family traditions that I look forward to every year. It's an incredibly busy season for us, and all I ever want to do is curl up in my living room and be still.  So when I started observing Advent, my soul started to settle a little around this time of the year.  'Tis the season. . .of Advent: the beginning of the new year in the Church, the season of longing, anticipation, waiting. Advent is the last four weeks leading up to physically the darkest day of the year. Then just after the darkest day the Light of the World takes on flesh and dwells among us. This past Sunday was the beginning of Advent, the Sunday of Hope, but today has really been the first day I have had time or energy to th