When Zechariah, the father of John, who later became known as "John the Baptist", witnessed the naming of his son and had his speech restored to him, he uttered the sayings which are known today as the "Benedictus", so called from the first word "blessed" in the Latin translation. About his own son he said: "You, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God, when the day shall dawn upon us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." (Luke 1.76-79)

John was the Prophet of the first advent of the Lord. He prepared the world for the coming of the Lord and the development of the Christian Church. We can see further on in the Gospel of Luke the way in which he convinced others of the validity of the coming of the Messiah and the reality that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, the Lord who would save us from destroying ourselves.

As members of the New Church we wonder what special meaning these words and the whole nativity story have for us. Perhaps we can see the very reason for our existence as a church as well as the mission of our church within Zechariah's statement. The situation has its parallels to our situation. The New Church could readily be "The prophet of the Most High", as it prepares the world for the second advent of the Lord. Are not the writings of the New Church the Prophesy of the future of the Christian church, indeed of all religion in the world? Is it not part of our responsibility to, "give knowledge of salvation" to God's people, so that all may feel there is hope for their eternal life and that salvation is not just for a few select individuals? Is it not our job to "give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death"? This we cannot do if we continue to "hide our light under a bushel"! Can we help to guide all people into the paths of peace?

What impact have the Writings of the Church of the New Jerusalem had on Christianity and other world religions? I am optimistic that the influence has been quite significant as I hear ministers in other churches letting go of long held dogmas and ideas of the Trinity and salvation by faith alone and speak of the fellowship of all mankind and of the acceptability of other faiths as having legitimacy. I am also encouraged by the work of some ministries within the New Church that have ceased being so exclusivist and are working along side of other churches in their communities. Reverend Ray Silverman through his seminars and book "Rise Above It" is just one example as well as recent Publications by George Dole, including "Freedom & Evil" and "A Thoughtful Soul". But the most influential book in my opinion has been Helen Keller's "Light In My Darkness", formerly published as "My Religion." What can we do, as we are not all gifted with the ability to write? We can SHARE. We can share the Writings and ideas of Swedenborg and other New Church authors with our families and friends and churches.

The world in which the Lord of the second advent is struggling for recognition is not the same as the world that Jesus was born into as an infant child. It is a world that has had centuries to develop other false gods to worship. Gods of wealth and ownership. Gods of science and technology. Gods of ICBM warfare and Gods of space and quantum physics. Gods of medicine and pharmacology with their promises of keeping us alive indefinitely. The Gods of instant communication and cyberspace and lastly the gods of media communications. And the gods of capitalism economics and GROSS national profit. All these combine to lead us away from the One God who can give us eternal life and happiness.

Whenever I contemplate the reason for the existence of the New Church, I am always conscious of the description of the Holy City New Jerusalem described as not having a temple in its midst as the Lord is the temple of it. (Rev. 21:22). I think I understand the need for New Church people to be organized, but I feel that that does not mean that we should emulate the organization of the first Christian church by burying ourselves in small enclaves and spending the bulk of our time and energy preaching to the converted. It is through spreading the teachings of the New Christian Church by sharing them with others, and living lives of charity and caring for others, that this church will grow, not in wealth and property but in enlightening souls and opening them up to the life of True Christian Religion. I believe that many people avoid our organized New Churches because they do not want to join yet another club.

Let me return again to the preparations for the first advent of the Lord and how it can be a guide for us in the work of preparation for the second advent. What is the "Peace" that Zachariah was talking about? The book, Apocalypse Revealed indicates that "Peace means all things from the Lord in their aggregate, and so all things of heaven and the church, and the happiness of life in them: these belong to peace in the highest or inmost sense. It follows that "peace is charity, spiritual confidence, and internal rest; for when man is in the Lord, he is in peace with his neighbor, which is charity; and in protection against the hells, which is spiritual security; and when he is in such states, he is in internal rest from evils and falsities. Since therefore all these are from the Lord, it is clear what is meant in general and in particular by "peace" in the following statements from Scripture:

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called God, Hero, the Father of eternity, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end (Isaiah 9.6,7).

Jehovah will bless His people with peace (Ps 29.11). AR 306

If we keep in mind "spiritual peace" we can clearly perceive what is meant by peace. We tend to relate peace with idleness or doing nothing, or to quietness, but this is not what is meant with "spiritual peace". Spiritual peace is "internal rest from evils and falsities." What a concept!!! We know that we cannot escape the daily impact of worldly activity that abounds with selfishness, greed, deceit, and a host of other evils, short of completely withdrawing from society and becoming ascetic, so it is comforting to know that there is an internal peace that we can really experience in our lives that will protect us from the outward onslaught and keep us safe. Given this protection we can be confident in facing all that happens in the world around us. We can be active and effective in our peaceful state. Our mind and soul can be at rest while our body goes about its daily chores. We can do this with "spiritual confidence" which gives us a feeling of security far beyond any physical security we may have. It is the confidence of knowing that no matter what happens we will be "OK".

How could we as individuals guide the feet of others into the way of peace? That is into the safety and security of spiritual confidence and internal rest. First of all we must look to those who are immediately near to us; our family members, relatives and friends, and we must share with them our understanding about the peace that can come into their lives if they will spend but a little time and effort to find it. We can talk to them about the real story and meaning of Advent to show them that there is more to it than buying presents and having a big feast. It can help if they come to understand that God so loves and cares for mankind that He would come into the world as an innocent, vulnerable child, and subject Himself to all the dangers of human life just for the purpose of showing us the way to eternal life and peace.

So this Christmas let us think on these things and share with others the joy and security that we have in our lives as the Lord comes once again to us in His Divine Humanity. Amen

Painting: Zachariah by
Michelangelo, 1475-1564
Page Design by Judy Ebbe