Last Sunday on Songs of Praise I was told that the chaplain
of the House of Commons, the Rev’d Rose Hudson Wilkin,
was talking about the significance of the pink candle on the
Advent ring. Her understanding was that it was for the
Virgin Mary and to be lit on the 4th Sunday of Advent. This
is a commonly held view, but the liturgical commission, many
churches throughout Europe and in particular St. Faith's
Church would disagree. The pink candle is for the 3rd
Sunday or “Gaudete” Sunday when we rejoice that
festival of Christmas is nearly upon us. For those of us
that don’t know Latin; Gaudete means rejoice. This
Sunday is the one in which pink vestments are worn as
a mark of the churches rejoicing about the immanent coming
of Jesus at Christmas. Just 8 sleeps to Christmas day
when we celebrate God being with us in the child Jesus. The
Advent ring is a wonderful church tradition but
inevitably the confusion about its meaning and the way it is
done provokes lots of discussion and debate which takes us
away from the point of Advent.
Johns Gospel is clearly written against a background of
confusion and debate, it is thought to have been written by
a very elderly St. John to the church in Ephesus, Ephesus
was very multi cultural, in terms of Jews Greeks Romans and
others. This was the last word by those who had seen
Jesus to the remaining church. John writes his Gospel
so that his readers will know Jesus to the Saviour. Amongst
the Jews there were those who thought that Moses and the law
were God last word to humanity, John proclaims that Jesus is
the fulfilment of everything they have been looking
for. There were some who had followed John the Baptist
and become disciples of the prophet and in Johns the
Baptists own words St. John tells his readers John is but a
stage on the way too.
Greek ikons of John the Baptist give us a picture of someone
who had more unkempt dark curly hair than the actor Brian
Blessed, and eyes that remind you of someone from an X-en
film. They are bright red concentric circles, that on
one level burn into the hearts of sinful humanity, nothing
is hidden from God's judgement that he proclaims to his
listeners. Judgement requires changed lives to greet
the coming of the messiah. Are we ready to admit what we
keep hidden in the dark recesses of our hearts and receive
God's forgiveness?
On another level the eyes on the ikon draw us deeper into
the mystery of Jesus the word made flesh, for St. John the
only truth that counts is believing in Jesus. Moses and the
man called John are but signposts on the way. Jesus stands
above the confusion and debate of life calling us into his
light. John the Baptist refuses to adopt the stereo types of
the priests and Pharisees who would like him to be a long
dead prophet or even the expected Messiah, he does not deny
either he confesses saying I know what I have come to do,
follow Jesus. In him is everything you have ever wanted
follow Jesus. Confessing is speaking from the heart
what you know to be true. Does our confession of Jesus
come from our hearts, with conviction. Are we prepared
to take the invitation of John the Baptist and be drawn into
the life of the Son of God? John the Baptist doesn’t
encourage us to be bystanders or passers by. St. John
doesn’t either, he wants committed confessors not fence
sitters.
The place I grew up in had a triangular village green. Three
roads met on a corner and there was a sign post that pointed
three ways. Cottenham, Willingham and Oakington. Once
too often the local young people swung on the arm that
pointed to Willingham and it broke off. Eventually the
council came and fixed it, but for a while as we played
football on the green motorists would slow down looking
confused. Which way was Willingham? And for a while we
became living sign posts. It would have been tempting
to lie and send motorists the wrong way, but thankfully for
them we weren’t like that. The one place a sign post
never points to is itself, and John the Baptist was a true
sign post.
In a world of darkness, debate and confusion we like John
the Baptist are sign posts called to clearly confess the one
we follow. Pink candles and vestments may be
interesting to discuss, but in their small way they shed a
light and speak of a truth that leads us and those we sign
the way for, to true rejoicing.