The Advent of love

Recently I found myself listening to old Christmas carols, many of which speak of the coming of our Lord, and as I did so all the cliché sayings came to mind and I found myself asking, “What is the reason for the season, Lord?  Why is Christmas so important?”

As a child I had often wondered why Christmas was so widely celebrated and why the festivities surrounding it seemed so much more important than one of our other significant faith days: Easter. I often found myself wrestling with the idea that Christmas is important because it leads us towards Easter. Easter has always been my favourite holiday, and yet I wondered if really the heart of Christmas could only found in its ties to the death of our Saviour and redemption of all humankind. Or is there something more here, something unique to its meaning and significance that makes it the most widely celebrated holiday in both Christian and secular spheres?

Sometimes we have missed the mark. The anti-consumerists have often told us this. It’s about being with family and friends. It’s about spreading joy. It’s about peace.  And oh, it is so much about all those things, but I fear even the anti-consumerists have become too cynical and still missed the point. All of those things seem secondary when we consider the real reason for Christmas; the reason that we prepare for a single day with 4 weeks of anticipation.

Advent is this season of anticipation; our time of waiting. In Latin, the word is Adventus means “arrival” or “coming,” and it is in this word that we find the true meaning of Christmas.

Christmas is more than just the insinuator of Easter; it is more than just the first step towards the cross. Christmas in itself is about an arrival; an arrival of the greatest love our world has ever known. Christmas is about God humbling Himself to become as one of us; weak, feeble, vulnerable, physical... human. The God who is love came to earth. Christmas is about God incarnate. It is about love incarnate. Christmas is the beautiful story of a God who persistently pursues the ones He loves.

Sitting in the reading room at my college a few weeks ago I spoke this revelation aloud to a friend and though it sounded oh so cliché, talking about “what Christmas is all about,” I remember my heart feeling different. Because we all know that God loves us and draws us into a relationship with Him, but do we ever associate this with Christmas? Love as the true meaning of Christmas? Isn’t that better suited to St. Valentine’s Day? Joy, peace, harking heralds and decking halls – isn’t that more what Christmas is all about? But no, God shows us that it is absolutely all about love. By sending His Son He shows us that He will stop at nothing and spare no embarrassment to demonstrate His love for us. This is what makes Christmas such a joyous, peaceful and magical time. Tales of love always encompass these things.

That Jesus was called “Immanuel, God with us,” is no small thing. That God would make His home on earth as a tiny baby child is no negligible event. That love became incarnate is a big deal, the biggest deal. It is huge. It is enormous.  It is possibly the most important thing. Isn’t that why we celebrate Christmas with such cheery grandeur? Yes, it leads us to Easter; of course it is a season of joy, of peace and of generosity, but most of all it is a season of love. We spend time with our families and give gifts and eat coma-inducing meals. But those who have no families, or who have experienced deep hurts at the hands of loved ones; those who are poor and oppressed and starving, even they can experience the true meaning of Christmas. If Christmas is a season about the arrival of love then it can still be celebrated amidst sorrow, amidst pain, amidst poverty and loss because love transcends all of these. Love is what brings true joy and true peace and what moves us towards generosity. That is why we give gifts. Yes, perhaps the cynics are right and we have lost a bit of the essence of that. But it is my belief that it is not the gifts themselves that are the problem, rather it is the how and the why where we get a little lost.

And so maybe this Christmas, instead of getting caught up in the usual holiday trimmings or getting hung up on taking a stand against our cultures consumerism, let’s take a stand for love. May we aspire to become love incarnate to those around us. May we forgive old offenses and pursue our enemies with humble grace. May we offer hope for healing and unconditional thanksgiving. May we not be cynical or bitter because generosity, the pursuit of love, joy, peace, thanksgiving and providence: these are the reasons for the season. May we remember the story of Jesus birth and what it means, and may we remember that God pursued us while we were yet still His enemies and then be determined to do the same.

This Christmas, may we pursue the love of all humankind. ‘Tis the Season