We light candles for the four weeks leading to Christmas and reflect on the coming of Christ. It is significant that the church has always used that language–the coming of Christ–because it speaks to a deep truth. Christ IS coming. Christ IS ALWAYS coming, always entering a troubled world, a wounded heart. And so we light the first candle, the candle of HOPE, and dare to express our longing for peace, for healing and the well-being of all creation.
Second Sunday in Advent (December 8, 2024)
This Sunday we light the second candle, the candle of PEACE. We light it knowing full well that peace is elusive, and in some parts of the world, it is almost completely absent. Yet in this season of Advent, we trust that God is never absent from us. God is always preparing something new. And even where there is war and discord, whether between countries, within families, or within our own hearts, God is present, gently leading us to new possibilities.
Third Sunday in Advent (December 15, 2024)
We have lit the first two candles, one for HOPE and one for PEACE. Today we light the third candle, the candle of JOY. This should be the easy one, because JOY is all around us–in the children, the lights, the music, the gathering together. But how often do we let our preparations–or our memories–push JOY to the side? JOY is like an underground spring that wells up within us, but JOY is also a choice, an attitude. Like a muscle, it needs to be exercised. So today we open ourselves to JOY, trusting that God has already planted it in us…all we need to do is give it care and offer to share.
Fourth Sunday in Advent (December 22, 2024)
The first three candles we lit were for hope, peace, and joy. Today we light the fourth candle–the candle of LOVE. With this flame we signify the love of God that surrounds and fills us at all time, but that we recognize ina special way in the Christmas story. There is no greater power than LOVE. It is stronger than rulers and empires, stronger than grief or despair, stronger than even death. We love, because God LOVES us.
Christmas Eve
Hope, peace, joy, and love. Four candles, four promises continually offered to us by God, and all of them manifest in this one we light tonight: The Christ Candle. In Christ we find the hope of transformation, the peace that follows justice, the joy of self-fulfillment in community, and the love that encompasses us in all our diversity, empowering us to make our own unique contributions to this world. In Christ we find light and life, and the courage to be like him, answering his call and following in his footsteps.
Located along the Strait of Juan de Fuca on the Olympic Peninsula. ST. LUKE’S EPISCOPAL Church – Sequim, Washington is an inclusive, progressive Christian community dedicated to spiritual growth, healing, and compassion through our worship, hospitality and ministry to the larger community.
