SERMON: 1. Sunday in advent
It is the First Sunday in Advent. We have lit the first candle. And this Sunday marks the beginning of Advent, the beginning of a new Church year, the beginning of a season of waiting. Today marks the beginning of something new, and yet something expected.
In this season of waiting, of longing, of looking for hope, for joy:
We are seeking light
In our own lives. We are seeking light
In our neighborhoods. We are seeking light
In our families. We are seeking light
In our work. We are seeking light
In Grace. We are seeking light
In our nation. We are seeking light
In our world. We are seeking light
In this Season of Advent, we silently pray:
May we have eyes to see and ears to hear and may we have hearts that are ready to believe.
This year more than ever seems to have been a wakeup call for us. This year of 2020 with the ongoing Pandemic, with over 260.000 Americans lost, with isolation, anxiety, closed schools, disrupted work lives, restrictions, political turmoil, racial unrest and fear, - this advent truly comes like a renewed call for us to be ready, be alert, be awake and be present, “ for you do not know when the time will come…”
It is the first Sunday of Advent, and it is the first Sunday of a New Church year too: a turn of the year as we sang with Grundtvig’s hymn.
Vær Velkommen, herrens år og velkommen herhid!
Welcome, turn of the Christian Year, blessed greetings today.
Year of Grace with Gods peace and good will,
You bring us your joy on each Sunday, still.
We greet you, New Year, you are welcome here!
We greet this Sunday, the last of November, the first of Advent and the first of the new church year – and we get a wakeup call: Be alert, be awake, be prepared for you do not know when or how the time will come, as the Gospel according to Mark says.
We often talk about wake-up calls.
Something dramatic happens that reminds us of the fragility of life.
This past year of 2020 truly has been one long wake-up call for not just us but the entire world. When a small airborne virus knows of no boundaries, we need to make changes to protect and be ready.
2020 truly has been a wake-up call, and we have almost felt that in these days amidst all the suffering, the sun has been darkened, the moon will not give its light and the powers in the heavens have been shaken, like the apocalyptic words of todays Gospel sounds.
We have been shaken and are still shaken. Our normal ways and way of living has been shaken and are still shaken.
This Advent Season sure feels different.
The year behind us has made the word unprecedented a mere cliché. In our advent path of patiently waiting, faithfully longing and expectantly watching, we learn again and again that we must expect the unexpected.
So, stay alert.
The very apocalyptic words of Jesus today tell us about how our world can shift and change. Sometimes we forget that life as we know it and life as we live, can shift and change without any warning. Nature catastrophes, wars, terror, and pandemics can shake our world and have done so through generations.
This year might have left us shattered and shaken. But it has not left us broken.
Our plans and intentions may have changed.
Our tables for recent Thanksgiving and coming Advent and Christmas may have changed.
Our social commitments and seasonal activities may have been altered and changed, but not canceled.
We may fell that we are surrounded by shattered pieces of our expectations and plans, but let this first Sunday of Advent be a reminder to us to know, that we are still at the table, we are still in the world, we are still connected in relations, we are still called to be alert, awake and prepared for what ever life throws at us.
In a season like Advent and Christmas that specifically marks how all things are possible with God, - so much feels impossible for us. We have been waiting this year for relief, for cure and for normalcy. And yet we are still here… with an even more urgent call to be awake and alert. To be mindful and kind, to be considerate and caring, to be protecting the weakest among us.
Advent is a spiritual wake-up call and more than ever this years Advent seems to be a powerful spiritual wakeup call for us. How will life be in …. 2021? How will normalcy be?
I usually wake up at 6:30 am every morning. But I also have my iPhone alarm just in case set and then 5 min. later my Fitbit Watch alarm. They are reliable and effective, but what about the other kinds of alarm clocks in life?
There are the ones that get us up (or do not) in the mornings. And then there are the ones that happen during our lives. Wake up calls that tells us that we have been missing out on important matters or have been making wrong priorities.
It would be nice with a real loud alarm going off when something crucial and important happens in our lives, so we are not missing out. Something that would buzz, beep, vibrate, chime or play “Wake me up before you go go…” so we would be 100% attentive to the important things in life when it happens!
I do think that this year’s Pandemic, Political Turmoil, Racial and social unrest, truly has been a loud alarm that we all could feel and hear.
Be prepared and do not miss out!
Do not miss the opportunity to love today and tell the ones you love that you do love.
Do not skip the chance to be reconciled.
Do not skip the chance to live mindfully in this wonderful world and to make changes accordingly.
Do not miss the opportunity to change your way of living.
Do not skip the opportunity to express your gratitude to God.
Or as the bishop of Ribe, Elof Westergaard wrote on November 24:
“I have been giving lectures at a Highschool/hojskole. The students and I talked about the time of corona, how we each had experienced it through the last months.
A Swedish student told us about the time when Sweden went on lockdown in the Spring. It had hit her very had, that she suddenly was not able to travel to other countries. Suddenly she understood the conditions of refugees as unwanted and locked out. When I later drove back to Ribe, it dawned to me how accustomed we Danes are that the world lays open in front of us. Through decades we have been able to travel and visit almost every corner of the earth. Most of us love to travel and feel that we through our traveling and visiting learn something valuable about other countries and customs. That is not possible now. Hopefully we will be taught and reminded to look at the birds in the bushes and the beauty in the barren trees; be happy for the warm coffee in our cups and the clouds in the sky. All the essential. But maybe we even more as the Swedish student will expand our empathy for and understanding of the conditions of life for others. “
These Advent days, I pray for ears to hear, eyes to see and hearts to believe: – to sense the presence and nearness of God in every moment, in every word, and in every person. And to let that awareness move us into action and preparation.
Let Advent begin. Amen.