Dear New Day,
It is my prayer that you find yourselves warm and safe on this day and during this holiday season. For so many of us, the holidays are different. We have chosen to follow the guidelines of scientists and medical experts by staying home and having dinners by Zoom and candlelight. Wherever you find yourself physically or emotionally in this season, know that you are not alone. Below you will find several opportunities to connect with the New Day family over the holidays, from trivia nights to growth groups. We hope that these offerings give you a sense of hope in community, which we all need in this time.
It is the season of Advent! For those of us who identify as Christians, we believe that Advent invites us to hopefully wait for Christ, Christ’s birth and most importantly, His second coming. We wait in the hope that we will have room to receive Christ for who Christ is: a Savior that found himself on the margins of Roman society. Each day, I invite you to ask yourself “How can I make room for Christ in this season?” More specifically, we should be asking ourselves “What vulnerable group of people do I need to make room for in this Season? What practical and tangible ways can I be in solidarity with those who come in the likeness of Christ?”
Surely, in the time of COVID-19, the masses are hungry and facing food insecurity. Surely, in the time of COVID-19, the masses are foregoing medical treatment because they have no health insurance. Surely, in the time of COVID-19, evictions are taking place and the masses are facing housing insecurity. We are invited to be in deep community with one another, to check in on those among us who suffer, to think less about whose “out there” and think about who is among us and needs radical care and solidarity. Surely, we can see how they come in the likeness of Christ and find some room for them.
If this is your first time commemorating Advent, you are not alone! (It is only my second year formally commemorating Advent). The traditions of Advent are many centuries years old and invite us to have a green wreath with 5 candles in the center. Each Sunday, we will keep candles from previous Sunday’s lit and light the additional candle for that Sunday, and there’s a special candle lit on Christmas day. The colors along with the themes they represent are as follows:
1st Sunday of Advent, November 29: Purple, Hope
2nd Sunday of Advent, December 6th: Purple, Faith
3rd Sunday of Advent, December 13th: Pink, Joy
4th Sunday of Advent, December 20th: Purple, Peace
Christmas Day: White, symbolizing the life of Christ
All are invited to participate in this ritual in your homes, with your loved ones. Join us this Sunday and we’ll share some special Advent resources like Starry Black Night: A Womanist Advent Devotional. Come, and let’s explore more opportunities to enrich our faith together in this season!
Take care,
Pastor Tabatha