Volume 5, Issue 16 Advent 2011A.D. O Come Let us Adore Him Christ the Lord December 12th: Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe - Celebration, in Rog- ers, AR and Wichita, KS: Invitation prepared by Fr. Julio Jimenez. Editorial HERMANO GUADALUPANO La Iglesia San José de Glastonbury begin another year of our wait and watch for the Second Com- Te invita a acompañarnos para celebrar a We ing of our Lord. The Holy Season of Advent is upon us. We prepare for the celebration of His historic coming in humility and await His glorious Second Coming to judge the living and the dead. Gospels tell us that we ought to be found faithful upon the arrival of our Master as stewards still found serving, for we know not at what hour the Son of Man will come. With so much forboding about the end of the world and calami- ties that are happening, almost indicative of Biblical prophecies, we are not to panic but remain faithful in the Lord. This issue of Koinonia is a celebration of His great coming highlighted in the article by Canon Partick Comerford of Christ Church Dublin, the very place where C.S. Louis worshipped and Fr. Mark Rowe’s article on the greatest goft of all - Christmas. This year we also mark the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible. Our thanks to Christianity Today for letting us reprint the article “A World Without King James Version” by Mark Knoll. la Santa Virgen de Guadalupe Our deep appreciation and welcome to Canon Owen Loftus who El día Sábado 10 de Diciembre a las 6:00 de la tarde, had run the Epiphany Anglican Seminary in the days of his beloinging celebraremos y cantaremos Las Mañanitas a to UECNA and has now joined HCCAR. We welcome him cordially and La Santa Virgen de Guadalupe - Emperatriz de América; A continuación tendremos la Adoración al Santísimo Sacramento appreciate that he will be assisting with the Holy Trinity Anglican Semi- y concluiremos con la Santa Misa. El Obispo de la Diócesis de La Santísima Trinidad y Los Grandes nary. Llanos de La Santa Iglesia Católica del Rito Anglicano, celebrará la Santa Misa. We also welcome Fr. Barry Sanders of South Carolina who will Ven y celebremos juntos a be inaugurating St. Alban’s Anglican Mission this Advent. Let us pray for La Santa Virgen de Guadalupe ¿Dónde? En la Iglesia San José de Glastonbury (1309 W. Lydia St., Wichita) this mission as well. ¿Cuándo? El Sábado 10 de Diciembre, a las 6:00 de la tarde. Si deseas traer flores como ofrenda para La Virgen, favor de traerlas en un florerito plástico. Para más información llamar a Padre Julio al God, the immortal, invisible, the all knowing and all powerful Teléfono: (316) 250-9820. took the visable form of a human babe for us and endured like us in all things but sin. Christmas is a continuing belief in the eternal mercy of God, who gave us JESUS - one who will save His people from sin. As we SOUL CARE! prepare and await His second coming let us continue to worship the Lord PHONE-LINE PRAYER and live a faithful life. In the meantime let us remember that He is Em- manuel - God with us through every situation of our lives and above all CALL EVERYDAY! the He loves us. When two or three are gathered to- Koinonia wishes all of its readers the blessing of the Nativity and we look forward to your faith and exemplary Christian life in the gether in His name, our petitions years to come, as long as the Lord lets us live on this earth. are granted. Ask your Rector for the phone number and password. Whenever you get time, Blessings + Leo join the prayer conference in the rhythm of daily morn- SUBSCRIBE TO KOINONIA ing and evening prayer. We have dedicated clergy and REMEMBER KOINONIA THIS postulants who have been faithfully hosting the prayer CHRISTMAS. call every day at 7:00 am and 7:00 pm central time. We appreciate the readership and faith sharing stories in this magazine. May the Good Lord continue to bless and keep us. THINK OF THE HOLY TRINITY ANGLICAN SEMINARY THIS CHRISTMAS. WE NEED PRIESTS AND DEACONS WHO In the Koinonia masthead, the circle with the cross in the center symbolizes the pat- ARE MEN OF GOD, EMPOWERED BY GOD’S en and the diverse elements which form a whole. The Mosaic represents the great cloud of witnesses and the church tradition. The red in the letters represents the WORD AND WITH ZEAL FOR HIS KING- blood of Christ with the font comprised of individual pieces of letters that are not joined until the blood unifies them. Koinonia is the official publication of the Angli- DOM. A GOOD FORMATION ENSURES can Province of the Holy Catholic Church-Anglican Rite (HCCAR) aka Anglican GOOD MINISTRY. A MONTHLY DONATION Rite Catholic Church. It is published quarterly at St. James Anglican Church, 8107 S. Holmes Road, Kansas City, MO 64131. Phone: 816.361.7242 Fax: 816.361.2144. OF $25 WILL GO A LONG WAY TO HELP Editors: The Rt. Rev. Leo Michael & Holly Michael, Koinonia header: Phil GROW OUR SEMINARY. CONTACT YOUR Gilbreath; email: [email protected] or visit us on the web at: www.holycatholicanglican.org cover picture: Embossed Nativitiy Scene on the RECTOR FOR DETAILS ON HOW YOU CAN reredos of Waltham Abbey Church, London. Photo by Holly Michael. HELP THIS MINISTRY. Koinonia p.2 Advent: A TIME of PREPARATION for the COMING of CHRIST By Canon Patric Comerford So, we change our liturgical colour in Advent to purple to signify that we are preparing for the coming of Christ as the King of Kings, the ruler of all, in all his royal, imperial, majesty, splen- It is very difficult to dour and glory. prepare for Christmas when Although comparisons are often made with Lent, Advent Santa has already arrived is a time of preparation rather than a time of penitence, Lent too in every shopping cen- is a time of preparation for the completion of Christ’s majestic tre here in Ireland, when task, seen in his passion, death, burial and Resurrection. It was a the Christmas lights are time too, in the Early Church, of preparation for baptism, which already strung across the required penitence and repentance and μετάνοια (metánoia), con- Main Street in every city, version, turning round to face Christ. town and village, and many Today’s office parties, Christmas lunches, early Santas, of our parish choirs are al- hastily-planned carol services, and bringing the last posting day ready singing Christmas Carols. Indeed, it is hard to distinguish forward to the week before Advent, make it difficult to sustain this between Advent and Lent when you find Cadbury’s crème eggs sense of being alert and watchful. Yet, can you remember with glee are already on sale. and warmth the child-like waiting and watching you experienced But even in the Church, we often manage to confuse Ad- during the build-up for Christmas? In the cold and dark of winter, vent and Lent, probably because they are both seasons of prepara- can you remember that warm glow you felt as you anticipated such tion when we change the liturgical colour from Green to Purple or a wonderful festival? Violet. The word Advent, from the Latin word adventus, means Popular observances “coming.” That Latin word is simply a translation of the Greek Christmas celebrations were suppressed from 1620 on word παρουσία (parousía), used for the Second Coming of Christ. in many New England colonies by the Puritans, who argued that This season is a reminder of the original waiting for the Christmas celebrations had no Scriptural mandate. Those who coming of the Messiah. But more especially it is a reminder of our tried to “to make merry” and play games at Christmas-time were waiting for Christ at his the Second Coming. This season, which reprimanded and offenders were fined. begins this year on 27 November, the First Sunday of Advent, is In England, laws suppressing Christmas were enforced the season when the Church marks a time of expectant waiting and under Cromwell, with Parliament passing laws in 1644 and 1647 preparation for the coming of Christ, not just as a cuddly child in abolishing the observance of Christmas, Easter and Whitsun. All the Christmas crib, but his coming in glory and as king. shops and markets were to stay open throughout 25 December, and Throughout the four weeks of Advent, the readings, col- no church services were to be held on that day. Mince pies, holly lects, post-communion prayers and the other seasonal liturgical and other popular customs were victims of the Puritan attempt to provisions try to focus us on Christ’s incarnation, but more par- eradicate last remnants of merry-making over the Christmas pe- ticularly (if less successfully) on Christ’s coming judgment and riod. reign. But despite the threat of fines and punishment, many con- Because of that, the “Four Last Things” – Death, Judg- tinued to celebrate Christmas in secret and to go to church. It is ment, Heaven and Hell – have been traditional themes for Advent said that some of our popular Christmas songs developed from this meditation. The characteristic emphasis in Advent, therefore, is time as a form of secretly teaching the stories surrounding Christ- expectation, rather than penitence. mas, including: On the first day of Christmas. Purple is not a penitential colour ... it is a rich, royal im- These laws were repealed in England at the restoration perial colour, originally derived from a very rare source.