Some things become so familiar that you do not see them for what they are anymore. Christmas is one of those things. It is everywhere in the world with Christians and lots of non-Christians putting up lights in the darkness, singing along with carols on the radio, gathering around trees in their homes, and exchanging gifts with their loved ones. That this is the case is a testimony to the powerful allure that this uniquely Christian holy day has for the human heart, but it is an allure that is easy to take for granted and leave unexamined because it has seemingly always been there. There are not enough remarks about what is distinctive or even strange about what we are celebrating at Christmas.

John the Baptist tends to appear in our readings when something important is about to happen. In the desert wilderness, wearing only a makeshift garment of camel’s hair, and eating nothing but bugs and honey, the great prophet John the Baptist called everyone to repent of their past and begin anew. Notice that he did not go up to Jerusalem to where the people were. He called them to come to him. They were to leave their homes and ordinary lives and journey to where John was in the desert and be baptized in the Jordan River. It is as if that traveling, that change in physical geography, would symbolize the spiritual change that was to happen within. The outward journey was the inward journey–down to the prophet, down to confession and repentance, forgiveness and renewal. But there were lots of people up in Jerusalem who didn’t come….

Advent is the name of the days where we prepare our hearts, households, and churches for the celebration of our Lord’s human birth at Christmas. Advent is also when we start the next church year, not the secular calendar that begins in January, but the sacred calendar that forms a grand circle that annually begins in Advent leads to Christmas, and then moves on to Epiphany, Lent, Easter, and Pentecost marking movements of the heart and mind through time. We’ve all done this before. In fact, we do it every year. We know what is going to happen next. Is there anything new to learn? Looking at that circle, I can see asking why do this at all?

We hear another one of Jesus’ parables today. We are told that the kingdom of God is like ten bridesmaids, half of them are wise and half of them are foolish. So the challenge to readers is to determine what it is that makes the wise bridesmaids wise so that we can be like them. The parable is set at the groom’s house. The maidens wait for the groom’s return from the bride’s house where he has gone to gather his bride and bring her to his home. They went out a short way to escort the new couple in a festive torchlit procession back to their new home. The delay was likely about negotiating the details of the marriage contract and it could take a while. They have torches (or lamps) because they expected that it would stretch past sundown (but not until midnight). So they all get drowsy and fall asleep waiting. So far, the wise and the foolish are the same….

As a kid I loved to read stories where the young protagonists, whether in Narnia or someplace closer to home, found their own strength and defeated the powers of evil. If they could do it, maybe I could too. As I’ve grown older, having experienced failure and weakness, I’ve become less optimistic about my capacity to do heroic deeds, and I wonder, is heroism the best model for our aspirations? Are we called to be heroes for the Kingdom of Heaven?