The nativity scene at our altar in the city cloister Berlin.
Dear fellow pilgrims,
With this picture from our altar at the city cloister of Berlin we greet you one last time on this 12 Days of Christmas journey.
And what a journey it was! We have been actually more busy than we usually are around Christmas time back in snowed-in Minnesota. More family visits, more events to do and attend at our Berlin monastery :-)
How has the journey been for you?
We have heard from many of you and we always love to learn how you are doing. As the 12 Days has run its course, some are with us every day, unwrapping their daily gifts. Others walk in and out and come back later. And as you might have noticed, our last posts needed more time to arrive in your inbox, too.
For myself I feel I have not arrived yet. I think I will use this (rainy and wet Berlin) Epiphany weekend to hunker down and to read what we have written. If you want to meet me in spirit you might decide for the same. (You can find a review of the journey at the bottom of this post.)
Thus I am glad the liturgy has given us 12 days for Christmas. And we haven’t even arrived at the Orthodox Christmas yet (Jan 15)! So dear friend, there is always time to arrive at the manger. Religious forms are helpful but it is we who give them life. And as we translate Christmas into a personal journey of the Divine, birthing dates become background noise and the journey welcomes us with its own pace and time.
So don’t give up yet, your epiphany is still waiting for you :-)
If you feel there are some loose ends you would like to bring together, do not hesitate to contact me personally. I do have some spots in the new year to work with you one to one. And if you are looking for a sense of community you can join us at The Weary Pilgrim, our FB Online Community, where we share each other’s stories and some more updates from Berlin.
And having said this I will refrain from making more words. Instead I will pass the baton to Chuck to send you on your way with a beautiful piece of music:
A Farewell
As a farewell greeting on this Epiphany, we offer you the gift of a beautiful choral piece composed by Robert Scholz and performed by the combined choirs at the St. Olaf Christmas Festival 2012.
Simeon’s proclamation beautifully sung by the St Olaf choirs
It is the “Nunc Dimmitis,” the proclamation made by Simeon when he saw the child Jesus publicly presented at the temple 40 days after Mary gave birth to him. Simeon had been promised that he would not die until he has seen the Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he came to the temple and seeing the baby Jesus, took him up in his arms, and said.
Lord, let now your servant depart in peace,
According to your word;
For my eyes have seen Your salvation
Which you have prepared before the face of all peoples,
A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of your people Israel.
On Epiphany we traditionally remember the three Kings or Magi who brought Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh as gift to the child. Their coming from “the East” (likely Persia) is traditionally seen as a foreshadowing of the international reach of the Divine revelation. But the Nunc Dimmitis is another place where inter-religious themes emerge: “before the face of all peoples.”
The gift of God-with-us is for all of us. Salvation before all peoples, a star for wise women and men of many nations, peace to people of good will. All of us, where we are.
May Christmas find us all where we are,
Chuck, Almut, and little one.