an Advent Hymn

I ran across this beautiful video of O Come, O Come Emmanuel, today. The vocalist appeared to be a traveler that had stumbled into a sacred space. Deciding to be vulnerable, she shared her gift at that moment. It seemed a perfect trinity of her delicate voice, the vast stone architecture of the church that builders were inspired to construct, and the divine energy of the space. There is a lot of symbolism I could explore here. However, I was touched so deeply by the lyrics that I know so well, I felt compelled to look further into their meaning. It seemed like a message sent in code that had significant meaning for me and what I am currently going through.

This has always been my favorite Advent hymn. Its minor key reflects the solemn yearning I carry inside when the days get dark. While at the same time, it exudes how beautiful, deep, and comforting that darkness can be. Though I always felt this melody passionately, it seemed like a cry from a far away place, long ago, that we were reenacting for traditional reasons. I did not connect with the words until they took on a new meaning today.

I have experienced many different types of churches and thought in my adult life.  My Episcopal church sings this all through the season of Advent. My Religious Science self was trained to excavate the meaning behind each word and phrase and then apply it to my life now. On my journey, I had learned that Emmanuel means 'God with us' and Israel combines two Hebrew words that mean 'wrestle with God'.  So I began to look deeper and meditate on it while singing in the shower. These words came so quickly and spoke to me so deeply.  These are words that I understand in the context of my life experiences, and in a language compiled and developed in that context. Others may have their own interpretations and that is ok.  I felt compelled to share these words that came to me as a traveler, stumbling into a vulnerable and sacred space today.

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel
shall come to thee, oh Israel.

O come, thou Wisdom from on high,
who orderest all things mightily;
to us the path of knowledge show,
and teach us in her ways to go.

-This is a call to bring God into us, to pay the price, do whatever necessary to free us from the struggles we find ourselves bound to, or chose to not let go of. The most difficult is when we struggle against God and his will for our lives.  God grieves as we become separate from Him and the true self we were created to be.  While we are wrapped up in the man made obstacles on the physical and emotional realms, we do not let God in and therefore are not in unison with our Creator. But when we truly recognize the Son as the God Bearer in our lives we can reunite and that will bring the Wisdom of God, Divine Order, Guidance, and Truth. We we let go and allow the conflicts to fall away, things can fall into place with God's help, the path can become clear and we can be more Holy. Rejoice- we can allow joy in and look forward because the God who is in us, is willing to come into the middle of our struggles.-


Then I stepped back, to summarize it.  It seemed to be the same words I've heard before - Let go and let God, Be Still and Know - so elementary, anyone remotely spiritual already knows this.  But this was the moment I didn't just get it on a surface level, I understood the mechanics behind it.

Not only was it a profound unraveling behind the words I already "knew", but it was the unlocking of a code in an ancient prayer of a song that had been tugging on me.  It is more relevant and speaking very loudly to what I am going through at this current moment. As I sing it now, the words are less distant.  Instead of being removed in time and space it has taken a step inside the heart of things as a mantra and recipe of how to let go and simply be at peace.

Here is the entire song by another beautiful voice, Enya 
Merry Christmas and may your season be filled with Peace.