Peace

First Sunday of Advent

I was glad when they said to me,

   "Let us go to the house of God!"

Our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem.

   Jerusalem—built as a city that is bound firmly together.

To it the tribes go up, the tribes of God,

   as was decreed for Israel,

to give thanks to the name of God.

For there the thrones for judgment were set up,

   the thrones of the house of David.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

   "May they prosper who love you.

"Peace be within your walls,

   and security within your towers."

For the sake of my relatives and friends

   I will say, "Peace be within you."

For the sake of the house of the Sovereign our God,

   I will seek your good.

Psalm 122

Pax, or Peace

detail from

Allegory of Good and Bad Government

LORENZETTI, Ambrogio

1338-1340

Palazzo Pubblico

Sienna, Italy

Ambrogio Lorenzetti's most revolutionary achievement - one of the most remarkable accomplishments of the Renaissance - is the fresco series that lines three walls of the room in the Palazzo Pubblico where Sienna's chief magistrates, the Nine, held their meetings.

http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/l/lorenzet/ambrogio/governme/

This depiction of Peace as the ruler of a well-governed city, where justice and fairness are the fruits of a beneficent ruler, reflect the words of Psalm 122:  "For there the thrones for judgment were set up,

   the thrones of the house of David. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: 'May they prosper who love you.  Peace be within your walls, and security within your towers.'  For the sake of my relatives and friends I will say, "Peace be within you." For the sake of the house of the Sovereign our God, I will seek your good.

http://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/diglib-fulldisplay.pl?SID=20131130659820556&code=ACT&RC=46225&Row=7

First Sunday of Advent

"The house lights go off and the footlights come on.  Even the chattiest stop chattering as they wait in darkness for the curtain to rise.  

In the orchestra pit, the violin bows are poised.  The conductor has raised his baton.  

In the silence of a midwinter dusk, there is far off in the deeps of it somewhere a sound so faint that for all you can tell it may be only the sound of the silence itself.  

You hold your breath to listen.  You walk up the steps to the front door.  The empty windows at either side of it tell you nothing, or almost nothing.  For a second you catch a whiff of some fragrance that reminds you of a place you've never been and a time you have no words for.  

You are aware of the beating of your heart … The extraordinary thing that is about to happen is matched only by the extraordinary moment just before it happens.  

Advent is the name of that moment."

~ Frederick Buechner*

Peace cannot be kept by force;

it can only be achieved by understanding.

~ Albert Einstein

Congratulations, BRYCE!!!

Bryce and his mother, Melody, at Wednesday Breakfast.

Citizen Commendation

Awarded to

Bryce Elder

14th day of November, 2013

Presented by the Jefferson County Sheriff

On June 3rd, 2013, the Bluebell Fire began ravaging the Evergreen area.

Emergency responders worked late into the night and into the following morning battling the blaze.

…

As each responder rotated from the area, they were met by Bryce and (his friend) Rhys holding a sign

that said, "Free snacks and drinks."

Best of all, were their smiles!

Ruth Salter and Sylvia Brockner.

It was fun to have Sylvia join us for breakfast!

Many, many elk came to visit on Thanksgiving morning.

This photo from my patio shows fewer than half of them.

Vicki Hall took this picture of Sue Wolff and Carolyn Alexander

as we were sitting down to our Thanksgiving dinner.

Woofie enjoyed his turkey.

So did JAK … here modeling his Thanksgiving scarf.

Todd Bastian relieved me Saturday afternoon as we rang the bell for

the Salvation Army.

May you have the gladness of Christmas which is hope;

the spirit of Christmas which is peace;

the heart of Christmas which is love.

~ Ada V-Hendricks

December 1, 2013 First Sunday of Advent

Previous OPQs may be found at:
http://www.dotjack.com/opq.htm

*  Frederick Buechner, Whistling in the Dark, pp. 2,3

Congratulations, Kei Sakamoto in Tokyo!!!

Look at #19 on this list of the World's top 30 in Junior 400 metres hurdles:

http://www.iaaf.org/records/toplists/hurdles/400-metres-hurdles/outdoor/men/junior/2013

This picture of Kei and his parents, Kiyokazu and Robin Sakamoto, is from August 1, 2013.

The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

In days to come the mountain of the Lord's house

   shall be established as the highest of the mountains,

and shall be raised above the hills;

   all the nations shall stream to it.

Many peoples shall come and say,

   "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,

      to the house of the God of Jacob;

   that he may teach us his ways

      and that we may walk in his paths."

For out of Zion shall go forth instruction,

   and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

He shall judge between the nations,

   and shall arbitrate for many peoples;

they shall beat their swords into ploughshares,

   and their spears into pruning-hooks;

nation shall not lift up sword against nation,

   neither shall they learn war any more.

O house of Jacob, come,

   let us walk in the light of the Lord!

Isaiah 2:1-5

Agnus Day, by James Wetzstein

Agnus Day appears with the permission of www.agnusday.org

Hanukkah, 2013

November 27 - December 5

Advent is a season of spiritual preparation for the celebration of the birth of Christ (Christmas) and looks forward to the future reign of Christ. Eschatological expectation rather than personal penitence is the central theme of the season. Advent is a preparation for rather than a celebration of Christmas, so Advent hymns should be sung instead of Christmas carols. The first Sunday of Advent is not the beginning of the Christmas season. The Christmas celebration begins on Christmas Eve and continues for the next "twelve days of Christmas."

Purple is normally Advent's liturgical color, associated both with the sovereignty of Christ and with penitence. Deep Blue is also sometimes used to distinguish the season from Lent. As the color of the night sky, Blue symbolizes Christ who in one ancient Advent song is called the "Dayspring" or source of day. As the color associated with Mary, Blue also reminds us that during Advent the church waits with Mary for the birth of Jesus.

http://www.ucc.org/worship/liturgies/liturgical-colors.html

Isaiah 2:1-5

Psalm 122
Romans 13:11-14  
Matthew 24:36-44