Weekly Clergy Letter from Mother Anne Turner

Dear Friends in Christ,
It is often said that Christmas is a season for children. I believe this statement is true—but not necessarily in the way we think.
December is, indeed, a time of great excitement for children. Parents take them on special outings. Their homes and classrooms look different than usual. They may get brought to parties or performances. They are the subject of elaborate schemes involving ostensible elven magic. There is candy everywhere.
But none of this is what makes Christmas special for children. What matters is not the things they receive in this time. What matters is what children offer to this world.
Advent is a time when their ideas and their wonderings are in the foreground. Advent is a time when children and their questions have a particular authority.When else do we listen to children so keenly? In December, we slow down to think about just how we can explain suffering, redemption, generosity, and sacrifice. We notice what things make sense to a six year-old and what explanations just won’t fly. And we are taught again what wonder means—taught by children, who are natural masters at it.
This Sunday at 5:00, our children and youth will present the Christmas pageant. I believe that pageants are so popular not only because of their cuteness but also because of their authority. Young people present the Christmas story as teachers—as fellow Christians with something to show the rest of us about how to be immersed in story.
I encourage you to come enjoy the pageant, even if you don’t have a sheep or an angel in it. Come be taught by the youngest teachers among us. In the ongoing work of being present this Advent, let these children show you what it means to be fully in the moment, fully alive, fully open to the incarnation with a joyful heart.
Yours in Christ,

Anne+