Noble simplicity and the Advent Wreath
Pray Tell has a good piece on the Advent Wreath by Episcopal priest and Nashotah House assistant professor of Liturgics and Pastoral Theology Matthew S. C. Olver. I confess to having something of the zeal of the convert on this matter. Once a fan of the Advent Wreath, experience in the parish has increasingly convinced me that it can become a hindrance to the meaningful observance of Advent.
Referring to the various themes associated with each of the candles, Olver states:
The principal problem with these themes is they bare only a slight relationships to the lectionary readings and collects for the day and thus serve only to clutter the liturgy, not enrich its celebration. Furthermore, many of the narrative “explanations” are not very well written and the prayers are forgettable. With three lessons, a psalm, and a collect already (not to mention the minor propers, for those who use them), still more prayers and readings are accretions that we should take care to avoid.
So what should be done about this "fetishizing (is that too strong a word?) of the Advent wreath as something somehow intrinsic to the season". Olver points to a 2005 article by Bruce Russell in a Prayer Book Society of Canada publication, encouraging a "focus and tendency toward simplicity":
Our challenge is to find ways to integrate this observance within the spirit and form of Anglican traditional liturgy while avoiding the trite language and clichéd typologies of many of the rites that are in circulation. Often the simplest solution is the most appropriate in Liturgy, allowing signs and gestures to speak for themselves. Once again the Book of Common Prayer can accommodate thoughtful innovation that respects and compliments its integrity.
Perhaps the "simplest solution" is have the respective candle of the Advent Wreath lit without liturgical ceremony. It is not as if the various meanings attached to the candles are deeply embedded in liturgical tradition: Russell shows quite clearly that the liturgical use of the Wreath is a 20th century devotion. It can have value as a means of marking the four Sundays of Advent and the culmination of the season in the celebration of the Nativity of our Lord, while the use of greenery instead of flowers is an Advent custom.
Crowding other meanings on top of this, however, risks disordering the Advent liturgy, introducing a 'thematic' observance of the Sundays of Advent which does not cohere with either traditional or contemporary lectionaries. For example, this Second Sunday in Advent the Gospel reading in the contemporary lectionary is Like 3:1-6, on the witness of St John the Baptist, the theme of the lighting of the Wreath on the Third Sunday in Advent.
In other words, the Advent Wreath should be - to use words from the title of Olver's piece - on the periphery of the Advent liturgy, certainly not at its centre. The use of greenery and light in Advent can be meaningful in itself, not requiring liturgical ceremony. In fact, the significance of greenery and light in Advent can be overshadowed by the addition of the thematic approach and accompanying ceremony.
This seems to be "within the spirit and form of traditional Anglican liturgy". As Liam Beadle said in a recent Faith and Worship article:
There is, in the Book of Common Prayer, a careful rejection of that which which is fiddly or ambiguous ... here we find ... a dignified restraint, a noble simplicity.
Such noble simplicity helps to ensure that the traditional focus of Advent is not overlaid and obscured by ceremonies and devotions which are not oriented towards "the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious Majesty".
Advent wreaths are a striking way to mark time. That's it. While the symbolism of growing light is there, there's also the sense of an hourglass about it, that one is running out of time. Used to be that Advent was marked with black hangings, and Dies Irae was originally an Advent sequence. Add evergreens and the blood red of holly berries, etc. and there's quite a striking image. White or red candles for the Advent wreath finishes the imagery, both festive and challenging. Also, if one simply must light the candles during the liturgy, light them at the collect in some way, either just before or just after, with the appropriate silence. The collects (and introits, if you want) give us the meanings of the Sundays, not some churched up equivalents of a greeting card company!
ReplyDeleteEntirely agree. Less can be more. The "greeting card" approach really does distract from the traditional, great Advent focus.
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