December 10, 2023
In this bulletin article, I would like to share one of my favorite songs, appropriately an Advent hymn, seeing that Advent is my favorite season. A song is obviously better heard than read, but the lyrics are beautiful. I hope you’ll read through them slowly, and once you’ve done that, perhaps you can look up the song and listen to it the way the artist intended. One line that sticks out to me in a particular way is: What Eden destroyed in us, Love has restored. What a great line! Every time I hear it, I am reminded of the devastation that original sin has caused. Every hurt, sorrow, embarrassment, discomfort, and trial – all of it is the result of original sin, the corruption that took place in the Garden of Eden. The beauty is that it does not stop there with us lost and confused – instead of leaving us on our own, Love itself entered into the world. Advent is a season of mystery and anticipation for the fulfillment of the promise that Christ will return. What might that look like? What might that feel like? I leave you with the lyrics of this beautiful song with the hope that it will engage your prayer life as much as it has mine.
In the still of the night
‘neath the shadow and sky
Oh, we had lost our way
But love made a path
Through the dust and the ash
And all that the dark concealed
He brought to light
Refrain: Oh, come, come, in adoration
Come to the place
where the heavens meet earth
And sing, sing, O sweet incarnation
Come and behold him,
the Way and the Word
Now the dark is not dark
There’s a lamp for our hearts
And a balm for the wounds we bear
We have been healed
Our redemption, revealed
What Eden destroyed in us
Love has restored
Refrain
Your way is peace
Your word is life
O Lamb of God
Our salvation and light
Come to the place
where the heavens meet earth
And sing, sing, O sweet incarnation
Come and behold him,
the Way and the Word
Refrain
Two Parishes, One Heart,
Fr. Adam