Advent: Bethlehem

The second is generally called the Bethlehem candle, reminding Christians that God appeared to them in a humble manner; Bethlehem was located in the territory of one of the least powerful tribes of Israel.

FAITH: i sat here thinking about this for a while. i wasn't sure what exactly the connection was between faith & Bethlehem. i even looked up the Merriam-Webster definition of "faith" to see if that could clarify the point of common ground i felt i was missing. i sat here staring at the computer screen for what felt like a very long time. one of the definitions was sitting right there. "firm belief in something for which there is no proof; complete trust". and i thought about Bethlehem & what we traditionally think about the birth of the Christ child. we know that Mary & Joseph went there to be counted. we know that it was very crowded. i imagine if it was some sort of center, a city of lineage, that it couldn't have been a small place exactly. but then i started thinking about the last line of that explanation of the Bethlehem candle. how Bethlehem was located in one of the least powerful territories of Isreal's tribes. and how the Bethlehem candle is to remind us of Christ's humble entrance into this world. these ancient people had been waiting for so long for a King, for deliverance. when i think of someone with the power to save a nation, a king, i don't think of humility. i think of granduer & opulance, armies & trumpets & authority. not a crowded dusty over-stuffed city with no room, but a dirty smelly stable as a last resort to bring a tiny helpless life into being. a baby certainly isn't going to rescue anyone & how much confidence do you have in the arrival of a king through the least powerful region of a nation. but for many many years, people believed that they would be rescued. these promises made to them were often cryptic & misleading, things that have been studied for hundreds of years that we still can't seem to wrap our minds around even *after* they have already happened. yet these people believed. they believed in something that had no proof. they had that faith in a promise even when none of the pieces seemed to make sense. humble Bethlehem as the arrival of The King who would save them--oxymoron, seemingly no possible way those two things could be related...yet they still had faith in those promises, that they could still come true in the most unexpected of places. complete trust. their faith fueled their hope that the promises would be realized. and yet i still can't find the connection that feels right...

my absolute favorite Christmas hymn is "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem" with it's peaceful sweet melody & the words the seem to capture the gentle peace i feel about Christmas. completely appropriate, i think, for the song to accompany this entry...

Oh little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep, the silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.

For Christ is born of Mary and gathered all above.
While mortals sleep, the angels keep their watch of wondering love.
Oh morning stars together proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God the King and peace to men on earth.

How silently, how silently the wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts the blessings of His Heaven.
No ear may hear His coming but in this world of sin.
Where meek souls will receive Him still, the dear Christ enters in.

Oh holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us we pray.
Cast out our sin and enter in, be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels the great glad tidings tell.
Oh come to us, abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel.

------------------------------------------

And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree
from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing
was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed,
every one into his own city.
And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the ciy of Nazareth, into
Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of
the house and lineage of David:) to be taxed with Mary his espoused
wife, bring great with child.
And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished
that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and
wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no
room for them in the inn.
Luke 2: 1-7

and there it is. that connection i couldn't find. when we become humble ourselves, when we stop trying to be the best & the shiniest & the most impressive and just open up our hearts, have faith in promises that appear to make no sense, we find the true meaning of Christmas. or rather, it finds us. quiet. serene. that inner peace. it slips in almost unnoticed except for the calm that finally fills our hearts. and then we finally have Christmas as it was meant to be felt.