Silent Night Was Likely Anything but Silent

by Kelly Dunlop on Tuesday of the First Week of Advent

Who’s fooling who with this beloved Christmas Carol? Full term pregnant Mary and husband Joseph travel days- Mary on a donkey- deliver in a shack without any help or medical supervision next to a bunch of animals. I am all for historical context and such but that night was likely anything but “Silent” and there was probably very little “heavenly sleep” happening.

On these cold and dark December evenings, it is easy to snuggle up with my two young children and tell them the romanticized account of the “holy night” birth of sweet baby Jesus swaddled in warm blankets in the comforting arms of his mother as his father gazes lovingly upon his son. Who doesn’t love snuggles with an adorable infant, all cozy and innocent? Yet, just as that night was unlikely silent, the birth of Jesus is anything but infantile.

The precious gift of the Christ child shows us how to love and to be loved and calls us each Advent into renewed partnership with God. God loves us as adult partners and invites us into cooperation, participation and co-creation in a very adult way. Despite what our cultural and familial practices may show us, Jesus’ birth is not the pinnacle of the story but only the beginning.

The birthing process is often accompanied by hard work, exertion, pain and sacrifice. And quite frankly, I want the epidural. Numb the pain, give me comfort. Yet I trust that God is like the midwife helping me breathe, my birth partner right by my side through the most painful parts, until the “dawn of redeeming grace” has emerged.  

Question for Reflection and Suggestion for Prayer:
What present circumstances or relationships are you finding particularly challenging this Advent? In prayerful conversation, invite God to show you how you are being asked to respond and what is being birthed anew in you.

-Kelly Dunlop is the Associate Director of Campus Ministry at St. Mary Student Parish.