Advent's Coming

So it's time to get ready!

One of the things I love most, and I hope you'll excuse the pun, is the expectancy that is Advent and the journey we make towards Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus, the Christ, looking to something in the past as if it were not and getting the physical and spiritual houses cleaned in readiness.

People often ask me why I look to something that was as if it is to come and wonder whether we're playing at nativity but this, much like the Jewish observance of Passover is not playing games but engaging in an active remembrance of the act. It's what we call 'anamnesis' - something I explain by relating the tale of one of our children who remembers one of the family events as if they were there because the way the story was repeatedly told and the way that it became part of their shared memory and reality.

What is also important is that we remember that although the act may be past and reside in the 'then' the outworking and reality of it is to be found in the 'now' and the 'now that is to come' (the other 'then) and in the 'then' that is eternity!

In so many of the houses around me, as Christmas begins to appear on the horizon (or is it 'Argostide' I wonder) the homes will be cleared of clutter (with it hidden in that one 'do not enter' room) as we make them ready for those special guests.

We too, as Christians, need to clear the rooms in our spiritual house in readiness for the coming of the baby to be born in Bethlehem and, unlike our physical homes, there's no room we can clear it into - everything has to be dealt with - this is why Advent is a penitential (that's purple for some of us!) season for like Lent, it it a time of 'cleaning house' in preparation for the birth and the resurrection respectively.

So here's a nod to those who run their church Advent courses to make sure they're ready and good to go and a reminder for those who(should) attend them to put the dates in your diary as soon as possible.

After all, there's only 71 Days to Christmas ;-)

Anamnesis - Remembrance

I love anamnesis ('remembrance'), it's a word for me that's up there with metanoia ('a change of knowing' generally used with God choosing not to remember our sins) when it comes to important words.

Remembrance is not a passive thing and although some would say that the element of anamnesis in the Eucharist results in our having something that is merely a memorial. This is to diminish what anamnesis is.

The best example I can give of anamnesis perhaps comes from the Seder (Passover) meal where the youngest child (traditionally youngest boy) present asks, "Why is this night different from all other nights?" The child will then ask the 'four questions' regarding eating only unleavened bread, bitter herbs, dipping and reclining. What takes places is an active remembrance, the actions signifying and recalling parts of the story. It's not play acting and it is not something that becomes a parody - it is an active reliving and remembering in one act in the same that that family stories become part of the reality of all the members, even though they were not even born during the original event!

Our son once recounted a story about a childhood episode with my sister. He told the story and remembered how funny it was when it first happened but, of course, he was born some thirty years after the event he so vividly remembered as being part of his experience. the reason for this? Anamnesis. The story had been told and had become part of his experience and reality. This is what the Seder meal is and this is what we find occurring at the Eucharist.

The Eucharist is the place where we share with the oppressed captives in Egypt that last meal before the Angel of Death 'passes over'. It is also the place where we share that third cup (of blessing) in the Passover meal with Christ and His disciples. Not only that but it is the place where we share together that celebration where we break bread and celebrate the wedding feast of the Lamb, His coming again. Lastly all the timelines come together in the present as we share with those with whom we live, love and worship.

Anamnesis is an especially important part of the Eucharistic consideration and raises the valid and, in the setting we are considering, valuable question, "Can this act of anamnesis be stretched to cover the memories that have gone such that they too are remembered?" My limited theological self slowly came to the conclusion that indeed it could and so the scene regarding my initial questions began to take shape.

I have to say that had I had these words from Christine Bryden, my initial journey would have been easier (thanks tootalburd):

"Christine Bryden, an Australian Anglican who has Alzheimer’s disease, speaking at a conference said: ‘Where does this journey begin and at what stage can you deny me my self-hood and my spirituality? . . As I lose an identity in the world around me, which is so anxious to define me by what I do and say, rather than who I am, I can seek an identity by simply being me, a person created in the image of God. My spiritual self is reflected in the divine and given meaning as a transcendent being. . . As I travel towards the dissolution of my self, my personality, my very “essence”, my relationship with God needs increasing support from you, my other in the body of Christ, don't abandon me at any stage, for the Holy Spirit connects us, it links our souls, our spirits—not our minds or brains. I need you to minister to me, to sing with me, pray with me, to be my memory for me’.

Later, she continued, ‘I will need you to be the Christ-light for me, to affirm my identity and walk alongside me. I may not be able to affirm you, to remember who you are or whether you visited me. But you have brought Christ to me. If I enjoy your visit, why must I remember it? Why must I remember who you are? Is this just to satisfy your own need for identity? So please allow Christ to work through you. Let me live in the present. If I forget a pleasant memory, it does not mean it was not important for me. .’"
     
Still, they confirm my first stop on the journey as being in the right direction.