“In days to come the mountain of God’s house will be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills and all the nations shall stream to it.”
~Isaiah 2:2

Most people are still putting away any Halloween stuff they still have lying around and are, at most, thinking about the upcoming Thanksgiving holidays. As someone who walks in the church world, I am knee deep in thinking about Advent and Christmas. It is not only the department stores that are in this game! In order to be fully prepared for the coming season, much planning,thinking,scheming began weeks ago. That may be surprising for some people but it is the truth.

Our church theme for Advent is ‘In Days to Come……Great Joy’, a theme that arose out of a group of people gathered in a room, reading the Hebrew and Christian texts for the four Sundays of November 28-December 19. After the scripture was read, lively conversation followed. It was a joy for me to watch and listen to the interplay. These are not what I would call unfamiliar texts to anyone sitting around the table. But, in many ways, people listened as if they were hearing them for the first time. We all came from different parts of church work….those responsible for communications, youth and children’s ministries, music, worship……all engaged in listening for the few words or one phrase that we could live with and, hopefully, live into for the beginning days of winter, for this upcoming reflective season. People will be invited to write meditations on this theme. We will weave it into all our liturgy. We will try to wear it like a Christmas dress or a warm, winter coat.

And so now I find myself walking around thinking about what this string of six words really means. ‘In days to come’. Is this day, the one I am walking around in right now, included? Or is it a phrase that simply points people to some time yet-to-be, in some distant future? The phrase seems to imply that there is not sufficient joy right now. Or does it?

‘In Days to Come……Great Joy’. Not a little bit of happiness. Not a gentle smile or a warm, fuzzy feeling. But Great Joy. What does Great Joy look like? What does it feel like? Will I know it when I see it, when I experience it? What does Great Joy look like to you? When have you had it last?

The beauty and sunshine of the lingering autumn is still glowing brilliantly.When will it end? I watched a squirrel yesterday in the oak tree outside my office window. It carried an apple as big as its head in its tiny hands. I watched as it stopped,nibbling wildly at the ruby red fruit protruding from its miniature brown hands. Around and around the apple turned. Something must have moved below on the ground and the squirrel clamped its jaws down tightly on the apple while managing to run higher and higher into the now naked limbs of the stately tree. Before winter finally gets its grip on us, this squirrel was storing up calories for the frigid days ahead. Perhaps it was also storing up joy, great joy, in the sweetness of the apple and its brilliant red shine against the dying of color.

Thanksgiving will soon be upon us and just days after that, Advent. The season of waiting, of anticipation, of expecting God to be born in our midst will creep in and move us with a swift whoosh toward the celebration of Christmas. But in those days……in these days…..we still can watch for the great joy that is ours. If we are awake. If we are open to the juicy, red apples that fall our way everyday.

The ending of the month of October and the start of November provides us with an interesting time. In church circles, this is the time of the celebration of All Souls’ and All Saints’ days, those days when we honor those who have passed on into eternity, the time when we speak of the veil between this world and the next as being very thin. On these days we remember that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses…..those who have informed and shaped out lives, those who have given birth to us, accompanied us on life’s path, mentored us.

But these celebrations are not what I refer to today. I am thinking about how, nearly every other year, we have a convergence of Halloween, the World Series and a political election. This year the intersection of these events has been quite interesting to me.   As Halloween has taken on nearly the magnitude of Christmas in the amount of dollars spent for decorations and costumes, it is difficult to ignore its cultural presence. Make no mistake, I would never want to ignore it.  People,children and adults alike, dress up to be someone or something other than who they truly are. I don’t know about others but I found this distraction welcome in the barrage of negative and vitriolic political ads tossed my way with mind-bending speed. Carving pumpkins, decorating our house for the two and half hours of trick-or-treating, amassing large amounts of chocolate seemed a gift in the midst of it all.

Given the fact that the Twins did not make it to the World Series, I was not glued to the television as I might have been. But I found myself switching channels to check in every now and then, watching what seemed like a motley crew that made up the San Francisco Giants. I found myself rooting for them and their opportunity to win a prize that had not been theirs in decades. Those underdogs get my heart, and my allegiance, every time. Between baseball,miniature chocolate bars and the promise of being enchanted by small goblins, I found myself soothed. No matter what the political meanness might dish up, in the end, we would survive.

I did, however, entertain a fantasy. What if, instead of hurling truths and untruths toward one another, the candidates were made to play a game, like baseball, for instance? What if, to win the election, they actually had to decide who might be the best pitcher, cool and calm under pressure? Who might be most likely to knock the ball over the wall? Slide on their stomach to catch a wildly flying pop up? In other words, what if they, without partisanship, all decided to act as if they were all on the same team working for the good of everyone? What if they finished their big win by giving credit to all the players who made their job look easy, who supported them with loud cheers as they rounded the bases for a home run? What if they remembered that not one individual could make the game happen but that it took everyone, everyone, everyone to do what needs to be done? What if, at the end of it all, they could all run together into an enormous heap and do one of those big group hugs of jubilation, their faces full of all the childhood dreams come true in a single moment?

It is a fantasy, I know. But every now and then I just have to don my Pollyanna costume and dream big. Dream big and reach into the left over candy for another tiny Snickers.

Yesterday at church, I was asking all the children what they planned to be for Halloween. I love watching their faces as they admit to what may be a deep desire for hidden powers……Batman….Wonder Woman…..Power Ranger. Some also choose a costume that, on someone else, might actually frighten them as, perhaps a way to gain courage. Halloween is day when kids rule. I have to confess an unusual love for this day. To see the children come to our door dressed in all manner of ways, holding out their bag saying “Trick or Treat” brings me such joy.

Last night one little princess, when given the opportunity to choose candy from the bowl rather than having me put it her bag, spent an unusually long time perusing the bowl. She looked at all the candy….large chocolate bars, bags of M&M’s, colorful lollipops,  bright red jawbreakers, bubble gum…..only to reach her little fingers in and choose one tiny Tootsie Roll. Her disposition fit her lovely costume and I got a glimpse into the sweetness of her gracious personality. It simultaneously brought laughter and tears to my eyes.

However, yesterday at church I greeted a mom and dad and their twin two year old boys with the question: “What are you going to be for Halloween?”. The parents answered: “monkeys.” The two boys,moved about the space in constant motion, gave me a grin. “Of course, they are.” I thought. At that moment I was sure that there are times of nearly every day when these two loving parents feel as if they are surrounded by a barrel of monkeys!

But the moment provided a perfect time for me to tell how, while at the Iona Abbey, I became aware of a very interesting architectural sight. In the chancel area, just opposite the communion altar, there is a beautiful cathedral window. Carved into the stone on one side of the window is the image of a cat. On the other side is the image of a monkey. The story goes that the images of these animals were carved there as a reminder. The monkey represents the active and busy side of life while the cat reminds us of the stillness of prayer and contemplation. As people of faith, we need both. The balance of active service and silence and contemplation can be an ever moving target for which many people long.

This reminder of the balance between monkey and cat is not only for our spiritual health but also for our physical and mental health. We hold the monkey and the cat in each hand. One feeds the depth of wisdom of the other.

It is an important reminder for our faith walk…….and for weary, busy parents.

Grant us, Lord, that balance
of action and stillness,
of work and play
that fits the wholeness you intend for us.
Help us to see that all is prayer;
all things part of life with You.
~Chris Polhill