All Saints Episcopal Church, Hilton Head Island, SC
November 20, 2004
For many the celebration of Christmas is a time to gather family together in the spirit of hope and faith. For many, it is an emotional high - certainly a different experience than Easter. Nothing, it seems, compares to that deep satisfaction of exchanging gifts, students "coming home," sharing old family stories that produce smiles and laughter and maybe even tears. Consciously and unconsciously the reality of the Incarnation reinforces hope and faith, that even in a chaotic world God is there, in the midst of us, with an enduring reality of personal love and acceptance. Nothing separates us from the love of God. That message has its birth at Christmas.
As we approach the Nativity of our Lord, as we embrace the familiar story of the manger and the Christ Child, we also remember family and close friends who have died and are absent from this important celebration. At the very moment when family is outwardly and visibly so important, I believe we need to honor our loved ones in the spirit of joy and remembrance, to connect in a positive life-affirming way those we love but see no longer. I invite you, in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, to join with members of the parish as we light a tall, beautiful tree adorned with hundreds of white lights honoring our loved ones.
Our Christmas celebrations are combined with thanksgiving as we remember those who can no longer share Christmas with us. Though we are separated by death, we celebrate the fact that we remain united in Christ with those we love. We will gather at 5 p.m. Sunday, December 19, Advent IV, in the church for a quiet service of prayers, songs of faith and hope, and contemplative silence. From this posture of faith we will see light passed from one to another with the lighting of candles and will witness the lighting of the Christmas tree and the naming of those we love.
You are encouraged to offer to the parish office by December 13 names of loved
ones that may be included in this special observance for Christmas.
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