December 18

 

Consider the spirit of preparation inherent in the Christmas season with a reading from the Song of Songs and a reflection from Burt Welsh ’26, a student in SCU’s Graduate Program in Pastoral Ministries.

 

Reading 1 Sg 2:8-14 

Hark! my lover–here he comes 

springing across the mountains, 

leaping across the hills. 

My lover is like a gazelle 

or a young stag. 

 

Here he stands behind our wall, 

gazing through the windows, 

peering through the lattices. 

 

My lover speaks; he says to me, 

"Arise, my beloved, my dove, my beautiful one, 

and come! 

 

For see, the winter is past, 

the rains are over and gone. 

The flowers appear on the earth, 

the time of pruning the vines has come, 

and the song of the dove is heard in our land. 

The fig tree puts forth its figs, 

and the vines, in bloom, give forth fragrance. 

Arise, my beloved, my beautiful one, 

and come! 

 

"O my dove in the clefts of the rock, 

in the secret recesses of the cliff, 

Let me see you, 

let me hear your voice, 

For your voice is sweet, 

and you are lovely."

 

Our two kids' families visited a couple of weeks ago and Gloria and I spent several days redoing the bedrooms to make room for them and the grandkids. Even though I was usually trying to remember where I put my tools while I was taking apart furniture and putting it back together, I found a few old forgotten photos and I automatically remembered all those years. I think that’s a lot like Advent is. Sure, we’re concentrating on our Savior’s return during Advent, but we can benefit if we recognize the grace of our Savior’s last visit remembered. 

Everyone has already heard John the Baptist say “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” But today we hear “Hark, my Saviour–here he comes. springing across the mountains, leaping across the hills.” 

We may prepare a little or a lot, but he will return either way. What if he finds us remembering him as “he stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, peering through the lattices” watching us setting our tables and greeting our friends. 

Waiting for our loved one’s return leads us to remember them. Remembering our loved ones leads us to love them all over again. Sometimes we find something “lost in the clefts of the rock, in the secret recesses of the cliff.” 

If we choose, our Savior can also find things in us that were “lost in the clefts of the rock, in the secret recesses of the cliff.” We can pray “Arise, my beloved, my beautiful one, and come!” And we can feel the grace of our Savior saying “Let me see you, let me hear your voice, For your voice is sweet, and you are lovely."