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Dec. 12 - Isaiah 11:1-10
Relief &
Development
Sunday
"Christ-centred, Bible-believing,
Fellowship-friendly, Growth-geared"
(...tn. Lit* )Valer
Christian Telitaship
10:30 a.m. - Contemporary Worship
& Sunday School
at Blyth Public School,
corner of King & Mill
Pastor: Ernest Dow - 523-4848
www.getlivingwater.org
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Come celebrate
the advent of Jesus Christ
with Brussels Mennonite Fellowship
250 Princess Street, Brussels
Sunday, December 12 9:30 am
Celebrating the Lord's Supper
Sunday School 11:00 a.m.
Noon Potluck Fellowship Meal
Pastor Brent Kipfer 887-6388
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Sunday, December 12
Morning Worship Service - 10 a.m.
Evening Worship Service - 7:30 p.m.
BLYTH CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH
Pastor John Kuperus
Hwy. 4, Blyth 523-9233
Wheelchair accessible
THE ANGLICAN CHURCH OF CANADA
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SUNDAY, DECEMBER 12
Trinity, Blyth
9:30 a.m.
St. John's, Brussels
11:15 a.m.
The Rev. Tom Wilson, B.A., MDiv. 887-9273
.1111/M1M11.
HURON CHAPEL EVANGELICAL 'h1,1
MISSIONARY CHURCH
Auburn - 526-1131
cam", aye fOftwas-) PASTOR DAVE WOOD - 523-4941
SING A SON
Saturday & Sunday 7:30 p.m.
Sunday 9:30 a.m.
10:30 a.m.
Wednesday 6:30 p.m.
7:15 - 8:30 p.m.
7:15 p.m.
"A Simple Christmas Story"
An evening of music & drama
- Family Bible Hour
Morning Worship Service'',
- Crusaders for grades JK-6
- Youth
Adult Bible Study
MELVILLE
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
BRUSSELS
December 12
11:00 a.m. - Sunday School Presentation
7:30 p.m. - Community Choral Concert
9:30 a.m. - Sunday Belgrave Service
Wheelchair accessible
Nursery care available
Rev. Cathrine Campbell - 887-9831
Celebrating 150 years of Christian Witness and Service!
BLYTH UNITED CHURCH
Corner of Dinsley & Mill Street
Sunday, December 12
Worship Service & Sunday School
11:00 a.m.
Confirmation and Communion
Candlelight Service - 7 pm
/WI Wel.cooce
Minister: Rev. Dr. Eugen Bannerman
Office: 523-4224
Blyth United Church is a welcoming community of faith.
We celebrate God's presence through worship and study, and through
responding to the needs and gifts of each other.
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Sunday 9:15 a.m. - Prayer Meeting
9:45 a.m. - Sunday School
11:00 a.m. - Worship Service
Phone 523-4875 308 Blyth Rd. E. — Pastor Les Cook 523-4590
THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2004. PAGE 15.
From the Minister's Study
What Christmas and Advent are all about
By the Rev. Tom Wilson
The Anglican Parish of
Blyth and Brussels
Nov. 28 was the beginning of the
New Year, at least it was within
many Christian Churches that follow
the liturgical seasons.
But, unlike our everyday world,
the new year of the church season
which is called Advent, generally
doesn't come in with parties,
noisemakers and merriment. Rather
it begins in a more contemplative
mood.
Now this isn't a quiet, pensive
contemplation, but rather the mood
is one of anticipation. Anticipation at
the coming again of Jesus the Christ.
For Mary, with the father of her
child being not an ordinary man, but
God Almighty, must have been
wondering, what will my baby be
like, and all sorts of questions that an
expectant mother might have.
To add to the matter, at this time of
the year, Mary and her new husband,
Joseph would have been traveling
towards Joseph's hometown. Now
this journey wasn't just a "hop in the
car, and drive for an hour or so" type
of journey. No, it was an arduous
long journey with Joseph leading a
donkey along dirt tracks, with Mary
clinging to its back over what is
rough terrain even today. It would
have taken them about three weeks
to make the journey'on foot from the
Galilee area of 1st century Palestine
,to Bethlehem in the southern portion
of the country.
In our modern world, Advent, is
also a time of anticipation,
especially for the children in the
developed world.
Christmas Day is the number one
time fcir getting presents. It is a bit
ironic that our society has decided
that. Christmas Day is one to give
presents. Originally, the giving of
presents to children was associated
with the Feast Day of St Nicholas,
Dec. 6. In many North European
countries, this is when presents were
given. Christmas Day was more
reserved for religious observances
and gathering with family and
friends to celebrate the birth of Jesus
Christ.
This way of commemorating Jesus
birth is well illustrated in Charles
Dicken's A Christmas Carol written
in 1843. This was brought home to
me last week, when we had a public
reading of this classic in Brussels.
On Christmas Day, some of you
who are familiar with the story may
remember, Scrooge throws open his
window and asks a boy passing by to
go to the local poultry shop and get
the biggest turkey he can for
delivery to the Cratchitt family. Can
you imagine a shop being open in
our communities on Christmas Day?
Other references to Christmas
celebrations in the 19th century in A
Christmas Carol talk of Scrooge
visiting a party at his nephew's
home, etc. You will note, there is no
talk of presents being exchanged.
It is only since North Americans in
the late 19th century and early 20th
century due to experiencing a
mixture of North European cultures
and mixing in St Nicholas/Santa
Claus, have we associated Christmas
Day with the giving of presents. But
it is this giving of presents that has
now overridden the whole "reason
for the season".
We have set up our whole culture
that the giving, of these presents is
the most important thing about
Christmas. We put up our Christmas
decorations earlier and earlier each
year, and then just as the Christmas
season begins (and it runs from dusk
on Dec. 24 to dusk on Jan. 6) we
take down all the decorations on
Boxing Day! We have truly been
seduced by the marketing of the
large retail businesses in North
America.
Before I was called to be an
Anglican priest, I had a career in the
retail sector, and I can tell, you, that
almost 40 per cent of my store's
business came in the two months
before Christmas and it has not
changed today. We feel if we don't
give just the right gift, we are
somehow socially inept. I know
people who agonize all year, trying
to find just the right gift for
s,omeone, in case that person might
be offended by the wrong one.
We should give thanks for having
someone even remember us with a
gift, that we mean that much to
them.
I run across this in the church as
well. There are people, who if things
don't go exactly the way they think
they should in their lives, they get
mad at God and leave the church,
forgetting that God has given them
everything. Or they take offense at
words said in haste during a
stewardship project, and leave the
congregation without a thought tha
others are just as stressed as well.
That others are giving to God of
themselves too, the best way they
can.
We are missing what Advent and
its focus on leading to Christmas is
all about. It is about giving thanks to
God Almighty for coming amongst
us as a child born of a woman.
Giving thanks that our God cares so
much about us, that he wanted to
experience our human condition, to
be able to make human choices
using the free will that was given us.
And through God's actions in
Jesus Christ and His death and
resurrection, to give all who believe
the greatest gift of all, life eternal.
Not life in our human form, for we
are mortal and have only a fixed
time in our earthly lives, but life
eternal with God our creator, a life
with no pain, no hardships, no
worrying about giving the "proper"
Christmas gift. A life where we can
live in the reflected glory of our
Christian God, who creates, redeems
and sustains all of those who
believe.
I don't expect anyone reading this
to suddenly give up all the Christmas
practices society has adopted. But I
do ask that you take the time to
reflect, even briefly on whose
birthday we celebrate this day,
namely Jesus the Christ.
I also pray that you will/not get so
wrapped up in this orgy of gift
giving our society encourages, that
you lose "the reason for the season."
That, as you give or receive a gift,
you always remember, it is given to
you with love and care, and that it is
not the gift that really is important, it
is the thought that someone cares
enough about you to give you a gift
that matters.
May you all have a joyful
anticipating season of Advent, and a
jubilant, marvelous Christmas
Season.
BRUSSELS - ETHEL PASTORAL CHARGE
UNITED CHURCH OF CANADA
Joan Golden - Diaconal Student Minister
Church Office 887-6259 E-mail - bepc@wcl.on.ca
Sunday, December 12
I
Ethel United Church
9:30 a.m.
Worship Service & Sunday School
Celebrating Advent with the Sacrament of Communion
Brussels United Church
11.00 a.m.
Worship Service & Sunday School
Celebrating Advent with the Sacrament of Communion
Advent Waiting in Hope, Peace and Joy