The Glorious Impossible

Advent is our journey from darkness to light as we anticipate the ‘glorious impossible’ of God taking on human form — God becoming one of us.

The light comes, slowly, through our remembering the familiar symbols: candles of hope, peach, joy and love. But what of some of the other symbols, like holly, ivy, the poinsettia, and crèche? These appear all around us through Advent, but their meaning and origin have been obscured by tinsel and Santa Claus.

This Advent, we explore these ancient stories, symbols, and traditions — may they deepen our steps toward the birthplace of an infant; Emmanuel, God with us.