A Is for Advent

In the church, the new year doesn't begin on January 1. It begins four Sundays before Christmas. The church has a calendar and seasons all its own, and the year for the church begins in preparation for the coming of Jesus the Christ -- his coming to us as a baby so long ago, and his coming to us again at the end of time. So we call the season "Advent," from two Latin words meaning "to come to."

And so I begin this blog about a pastor's life at the beginning of a new church year. It seemed appropriate.

Oh, did I mention? Not only does the church year begin at a different time from the rest of the world, we actually name our years A, B, and C. No, I'm not kidding. This Sunday, November 28, is the First Sunday of Advent in Year A.

This system of A, B, and C refers to a series of readings from the Bible, called lectionary readings, that are used in the church throughout the year. Each Sunday there are four particular passages that may be read in worship, preached on, used in singing, etc. One passage is usually from the Old Testament (there are exceptions, but I won't confuse you even further at this point), one from the Psalms or other "literary" type Old Testament writings, one from the New Testament letters, and one from a Gospel. That's where A, B, and C come in. In Year A we have readings from Matthew, Year B from Mark, Year C from Luke. And good old John, well, we read John at different times throughout the year, all three years. The preacher can preach a sermon on one, two, or even all four passages for that given Sunday. Or the preacher can decide the Spirit of the Lord is calling her to preach a sermon series on something else and not use any of them. Now I know you're confused.

The idea behind the lectionary readings is to make sure the congregation gets to hear selections from throughout the Bible all year long. The lectionary doesn't cover every passage in the Bible, which is why (in my humble opinion) it's a good idea to use other passages from time to time. And sometimes "stuff" happens in the world (think 9/11) and some other passage seems more appropriate to the situation.

Maybe you are in a church that doesn't use the lectionary, or maybe you never heard of Advent. Not all Christian churches follow the church seasons. Some years ago I was a member of a church that never observed Ash Wednesday, the first day of the Lenten season, forty days before Easter. This used to drive me nuts, because I grew up in a part of the world where even the non-Christians know what Ash Wednesday is, and I was quite upset that my church paid no attention to the day at all. Eventually the church did develop a service of asking forgiveness from sins, which soothed me a little bit.

So, this Sunday as you are driving back from Thanksgiving vacation or stuck in a crowded airport or a Wal-Mart parking lot somewhere, remember: it's Happy New Year A in the church. We're off and running on a whole new thing.

Pastor Kathy