The Cycle of Birth
Come, O Come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel!
The tradition of Advent is indeed captivating to anyone who lives in the Judeo-Christian world. Often thought of as a New Testament idea it is grounded in the Old Testaments. It represents archetypically being freed from Egypt by the Messiah more popular called the Christ. At Advent we are preparing for the coming of the Christ to free us. It is the beginning of sacred cycle of birth and death represented by Judeo-Christian practice. Egypt represents the land of the ego and materiality in archetype study, conversely Israel represents the place of freedom where consciousness of a higher state of existence reins. In Israel we are free to know our sense of God free from the ego needs and wants represented by our sojourn in Egypt. We have crossed the hot sands and spent our time in the desert, which represents our subconscious mind. For to go to Israel (Nirvana, land of the milk and honey, i.e., heaven), we must be free of the habits and ego needs found in the subconscious mind.
Christian or not is of little importance in the understanding of Advent and the part is plays in our lives. Advent is an event of consciousness and freedom. Christ-Messiah is looked at as savior and this aspect of consciousness is one of saving and freeing us to be with the father/causer in heaven. To enter the kingdom of heaven, into a communion with our sense of Deity, God, and Truth we cannot enter as sinners (those who do not understand the laws placed by God, through various prophets). The birth of the Messiah brings new law, new understanding of the nature of reality, of God, and ultimately Truth unfolding as consciousness.
Preparation is always needed before we enter a sacred space of consciousness. And these next four weeks are that time of preparation. We begin this preparation by understanding what and where we have sinned misunderstood the laws of God or the nature of reality. We have placed false gods on the alter of our covenant (sacred agreement with our higher consciousness or God) with God. Polluting the sacred space of our communion is because we think what we see, hear, and sense is the Truth or real God. We place this false sense as our God. However, we know that the law of reality is that there is but one, one God, one Truth. In the Nature of Reality, we are one and only one. We are not cloven as the beast, but one in our understanding of our divinity and expression of consciousness.
As we begin our preparation we realize our fear, hopelessness, and sinning, will be put to rest by the coming Messiah (symbolic of the light of understanding). We light our candles each week to show the way and to represent what we must gather to ourselves in this coming of Consciousness.
Suzanne Deakins, HW, M
Portland, Oregon