The Episcopal New Yorker | Not By Books Alone

Waiting in Joyful Hope 2005-06: Daily Reflections for Advent and Christmas
By Katherine L. Howard
107 pages
Waiting for the Wonder: Voices of Advent
By Katerina Katsarka Whitley
102 pages
Run, Shepherds, Run: Poems for Advent and Christmas
By L. William Countryman
100 pages

The season of Advent, like so many things Christian, began as a Christian version of a major event everyone in the ancient world knew very well: the “Advent,” from the Latin adventus, “arrival,” of a king, general, governor, or Emperor. This visiting dignitary was welcomed with a festive parade, food and drink, songs, poetry, games; in turn, he was expected to share his wealth and power: by gifting the city in some way and by gifting the poor by tossing them coins. These “advents” were joyful occasions which involved plenty of thoughtful preparation.

Christians translated this into their Calendar. Advent became a season for preparing for God’s arrival–in its multiple manifestations. It not only prepares us for the Nativity season; it also recalls the various ways Yahweh visited the people in the days of Torah and Prophet; it urges us to ready our households for the Second Advent of Christ; and it reminds us to be ready at all times for our Lord’s personal, private, and unscheduled visits. It is deeply serious, as getting ready for a big event always should be, and yet always joyful, as anticipation of a visit from a friend or loved one always is.

Morehouse Publishing has, most appropriately, offered three books that can help any Christian keep Advent. The first, Katerina Katsarka Whitley’s Waiting for the Wonder: Voices of Advent, is an imaginative set of interior monologues which re-create the consciousness of thirty classic Advent characters: from Isaiah and David and Ruth, through Zechariah, Elizabeth, and Simeon, all the way to the Donkey who accompanies the Holy Family, the Archangel who bears the annunciation, and the Evangelist Luke who bears the Good News–and all centered, of course, in Mary, who bears the Child.

Katsarka finds a voice for these familiar characters that may surprise the reader, but which always remains faithful to the sense of Scripture: Isaiah, for example, is no robotic seer but a conflicted, confused poet, struggling with God’s tantalizing promises. Waiting, in short, offers anew perspective on familiar characters–new, yet deeply traditional.

L. William Countryman offers a poetic counterpart to Katsarka’s prose: a day-by-day anthology of Advent-appropriate poems entitled Run, Shepherds, Run: Poems for Advent and Christmas. The great age of English language Christian poetry was the seventeenth century (as T. S. Eliot realized), and Countryman’s selection bears that out: the truly magnificent poetry of George Herbert and John Donne, the delightful visions of Henry Vaughan, and some lesser known gems by William Drummond (from whom he borrowed his title) and Robert Herrick are all well-represented. But Countryman also includes some ancient classics (several of which he translates himself), and such various talents as Christina Rosetti and Emily Dickinson as well as several contemporary poets. Run, Shepherds is a marvelous volume, and would support a most rewarding day-by-day Advent practice.

The third, and in some ways the most important, of the three is Katherine Howard’s Waiting in Joyful Hope: Daily Reflections for Advent and Christmas, 2005-06. This set of readings, geared to the Daily Office lectionary, will probably only work for those who read the Office, but its depth, insight, and graceful sense of Biblical context is extraordinary. Howard is herself a Benedictine, and has served as a Prioress: this wonderful little volume is an opportunity for anyone to share the gift of her guidance as a spiritual director.
“Gift” really is the key word here–not just for Howard’s volume, but for all three creative, intelligent works. Morehouse has more than met the standards of the season here. These are deeply serious, yet joyful, catalysts for prayer and meditation for this most complex of seasons. They should help anyone get ready for the Lord’s visit–whatever shape that visit may assume.

Visit www.morehousegroup.com for further information or to purchase these titles.

THE EPISCOPAL NEW YORKER
Not by Books Alone	September/October 2005
Voices for the Season Three Advent Volumes from Morehouse By the REV. DR. CLAIR MCPHERSON

Waiting in Joyful Hope 2005-06: Daily Reflections for Advent and Christmas By Katherine L. Howard 107 pages Waiting for the Wonder: Voices of Advent By Katerina Katsarka Whitley 102 pages Run, Shepherds, Run: Poems for Advent and Christmas By L. William Countryman 100 pages The season of Advent, like so many things Christian, began as a Christian version of a major event everyone in the ancient world knew very well: the “Advent,” from the Latin adventus, “arrival,” of a king, general, governor, or Emperor. This visiting dignitary was welcomed with a festive parade, food and drink, songs, poetry, games; in turn, he was expected to share his wealth and power: by gifting the city in some way and by gifting the poor by tossing them coins. These “advents” were joyful occasions which involved plenty of thoughtful preparation. Christians translated this into their Calendar. Advent became a season for preparing for God’s arrival–in its multiple manifestations. It not only prepares us for the Nativity season; it also recalls the various ways Yahweh visited the people in the days of Torah and Prophet; it urges us to ready our households for the Second Advent of Christ; and it reminds us to be ready at all times for our Lord’s personal, private, and unscheduled visits. It is deeply serious, as getting ready for a big event always should be, and yet always joyful, as anticipation of a visit from a friend or loved one always is. Morehouse Publishing has, most appropriately, offered three books that can help any Christian keep Advent. The first, Katerina Katsarka Whitley’s Waiting for the Wonder: Voices of Advent, is an imaginative set of interior monologues which re-create the consciousness of thirty classic Advent characters: from Isaiah and David and Ruth, through Zechariah, Elizabeth, and Simeon, all the way to the Donkey who accompanies the Holy Family, the Archangel who bears the annunciation, and the Evangelist Luke who bears the Good News–and all centered, of course, in Mary, who bears the Child. Katsarka finds a voice for these familiar characters that may surprise the reader, but which always remains faithful to the sense of Scripture: Isaiah, for example, is no robotic seer but a conflicted, confused poet, struggling with God’s tantalizing promises. Waiting, in short, offers anew perspective on familiar characters–new, yet deeply traditional. L. William Countryman offers a poetic counterpart to Katsarka’s prose: a day-by-day anthology of Advent-appropriate poems entitled Run, Shepherds, Run: Poems for Advent and Christmas. The great age of English language Christian poetry was the seventeenth century (as T. S. Eliot realized), and Countryman’s selection bears that out: the truly magnificent poetry of George Herbert and John Donne, the delightful visions of Henry Vaughan, and some lesser known gems by William Drummond (from whom he borrowed his title) and Robert Herrick are all well-represented. But Countryman also includes some ancient classics (several of which he translates himself), and such various talents as Christina Rosetti and Emily Dickinson as well as several contemporary poets. Run, Shepherds is a marvelous volume, and would support a most rewarding day-by-day Advent practice. The third, and in some ways the most important, of the three is Katherine Howard’s Waiting in Joyful Hope: Daily Reflections for Advent and Christmas, 2005-06. This set of readings, geared to the Daily Office lectionary, will probably only work for those who read the Office, but its depth, insight, and graceful sense of Biblical context is extraordinary. Howard is herself a Benedictine, and has served as a Prioress: this wonderful little volume is an opportunity for anyone to share the gift of her guidance as a spiritual director. “Gift” really is the key word here–not just for Howard’s volume, but for all three creative, intelligent works. Morehouse has more than met the standards of the season here. These are deeply serious, yet joyful, catalysts for prayer and meditation for this most complex of seasons. They should help anyone get ready for the Lord’s visit–whatever shape that visit may assume. Visit www.morehousegroup.com for further information or to purchase these titles.