[Pearls Ep 151: Carrying Christmas into the week.]
This week’s series of reflections for Pearls of the Interior life has been in the context of Christmas Carols. We looked at how O Little Town of Bethlehem exemplifies what makes all Christmas Carols great – each in their own way are elegant reminders that God, the Creator of the Universe (and Creator of each of us) loves us to the point of becoming man, so that He could not only redeem us, but abide with us in our soul.
And we looked at the reminder from the 12 Days of Christmas that we have 12 days to reflect on Christmas and receive the grace of this season – God’s specific Christmas gift for each of us.
But for many, especially those bearing heavy burdens, it can be difficult to experience Christmas as a time of joy and grace.
With that in mind, we close out this series with “Silent Night”:
Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright….
Round yon’ virgin, mother and child. Holy infant so tender and mild.
Sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.
There are some interesting nuances to be found in the literal translation of the original German lyrics:
Silent night, holy night, everyone sleeps;
alone watches only the close, most holy couple, blessed boy in curly hair,
sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.
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Everyone was sleeping, and the Christ child silently arrived.
But when trials of life weigh on us they take a toll on our peace – and often our sleep.
It’s no surprise that overcoming adversity is a major focus of modern life. As one example, Victor Frankl’s “Man’s Search for Meaning” has enjoyed a renewed popularity. As a refresher, Frankl, a Jewish psychiatrist, spent several years in concentration camps and work camps. He observed that those who were able to maintain hope in the hellish conditions were those who managed to find meaning in life. He developed an entire psychological framework around this – logotherapy – founded upon the theory that man must have meaning in life, and meaning is found in three areas – work, love and suffering.
Frankl even observed the religious fervor of the prisoners sent to their death with “the Schema and the Our Father on their lips” – but, for reasons unknown, he retained a very humanist perspective – we must find the meaning within ourselves. Frankl’s term for this is “will to meaning” – which is to say, we must will ourselves to find meaning in our life. Were it that simple we would all sign up for logotherapy and live happily ever after.
Frankl was correct that we overcome trials by finding meaning, but he misidentified the source. Psalm 33 is one of many scripture passages that get to the heart of the matter – “Our soul waits for the LORD, who is our help and our shield, For in Him our hearts rejoice; in His holy name we trust.”
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The Holy Family weren’t protected from adversity the night of Jesus’ birth. Far from it. But it was a night of silence – a night of peaceful sleep.
Christmas is a fitting time to pray for peace in our lives even amid the trials. That isn’t a quaint, pious turn of phrase. It is quite real. Christmas is a time of gifts, and we should literally pray for that gift of grace – “Lord, show me how to experience peace in the midst of this trial.”
We don’t suggest this lightly. We’ve experienced heart-rending anxiety in trials, and we’ve experienced a “peace that defies understanding” – we can tell you what (Who…) made the difference.
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Christmas is a season that God has specifically given us to trust in His ability to bring light to areas of darkness in our life – “For you, Lord, give light to my lamp; my God brightens my darkness.” (Ps 18:28)
It may not happen immediately, but it will happen. The shepherds encountered Christ straight away, it took longer for the Wise Men, longer still for the disciples. But Christ is always faithful.
Perhaps, when we listen to Silent Night and hear those words, “sleep in heavenly peace” – we can hear them not only as a description of the Christ child, but as His promise for what we will find in Him.
Christmas blessings –
Steve and Karen Smith
Interior Life