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Reflection:

The wondrously odd phenomenon of being a parent is witnessing the particular incarnation of each child. 

Even with the same parents every kid comes out differently. And the peculiar paradox of parenting is forming the parts you know and the parts you don’t know. You intentionally form in the child manners, responsibilities, social ethics, and good taste in music so they don’t grow up to be complete turds in society. 

But then there is this mysterious aspect of parenting, which is to pay attention to how they have uniquely come into the world and help foster their predisposition to its fullest fruition in greater society. This is the hidden part of the child you must pay attention to in parenting. And this is the same part in ourselves that we must bring to our Advent meditation. 

Who we are is deeper than where we find ourselves in this moment. And Jesus illuminates that deeper identity. 

John writes that the Word (the Christ!) gave life to everything and everyone. And then this Word’s life (Jesus) brought light to everyone. Another way to say it is there is a Giver of this life. And then the Giver of this life joins that life, and His life brings light to all life. Don’t get lost in all the metaphor! Put simply, the function of light is to help us see more clearly. Jesus’ life helps us see our own lives more clearly. 

First, His being human affirms our being human. It affirms that we are not supposed to be anywhere else but here. Second, He affirms that we, in some mysterious way, are an amalgamation of something seen and unseen. 

Our invitation to Advent starts here, now - and thank God, because being here now feels really complicated. And hard. And sad at times. With a lot of loss.

But what gives me hope in this Advent season is the reminder that everything can be taken away except that hidden part of me. Whether I lose my savings, my house, my title, or my very livelihood, what is un-takeable is the part of me that Jesus illuminates. The deeper self that was woven into this world but is anchored in a much larger hidden world. In the gift of my life is a doorway to a much larger reality. And Jesus is the Light that shows me the way. 

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* this meditation is an excerpt from the book Honest Advent.