The Second Sunday of Advent. Another candle lit on the Advent wreath. One week closer to the celebration of Jesus’ birth.
This week in the Wednesday morning service we commemorated the life and ministry of one of the “lesser” saints of the church: Channing Moore Williams. Those commemorations come from our calendar of saints, Holy Women, Holy Men. It includes a brief biographical sketch of each saint along with an appointed collect and Scripture readings.
As we celebrated Channing Moore Williams, a few points struck me as particularly appropriate for Advent. First, a little information about who he was.
Bishop Williams, a farmer’s son, was born in Richmond, Virginia on July 18, 1829, and brought up in straitened circumstances by his widowed mother. He attended the College of William and Mary and the Virginia Theological Seminary.
Ordained deacon in 1855, he offered himself for work in China, where he was ordained priest in 1857. Two years later, he was sent to Japan and opened work in Nagasaki. In 1866 he was chosen bishop for both China and Japan.
At a synod in 1887 he helped bring together the English and American missions to form the Nippon Sei Ko Kai, the Holy Catholic Church of Japan, when the Church there numbered fewer than a thousand communicants.
Williams translated parts of the Prayer Book into Japanese; and he was a close friend and warm supporter of Bishop Schereschewsky, his successor in China, in the latter’s arduous work of translating the Bible into Chinese.
So three loosely connected Advent reflections, stirred by the story of Bishop Williams.
The first comes from the collect written for the commemoration of Williams’ ministry. In it we pray, “Raise up in this and every land evangelists and heralds of your kingdom, that your church may proclaim the unsearchable riches of our Savior Jesus Christ.”
The call for heralds is certainly an Advent theme, especially on this day that we particularly remember John the Baptist, but it was the phrase “unsearchable riches” that really caught my attention.
Unsearchable riches of our Savior Jesus Christ. What does that mean? Unsearchable riches? At first glance it doesn’t seem like it’s something positive to proclaim. How is unsearchable a good thing? The English word “unsearchable” is a little tricky. It doesn’t mean what it might seem to mean. It doesn’t mean “cannot be searched for.”
It means “cannot be fully or totally or clearly understood.” The phrase is actually taken from Ephesians. I don’t know if it’s a passage that was particularly important to Bishop Williams. The Greek word translated unsearchable is also sometimes translated unfathomable. Beyond our fathoming.
But here’s the good news. This does not mean that the riches or blessings of Jesus Christ cannot be sought or found. They can be and are. But there is always more. Always more goodness and blessing to be found ahead.
This phrase or passage is a reminder of humility. Don’t ever think you have fully fathomed the riches of Christ. But is also an Advent reminder that we are always searching. Always on a journey. And that more and deeper riches and goodness and blessing always lie ahead.
My second reflection comes from Williams’ ministry in Japan. And it’s a powerful reminder that it takes time for the work of becoming a Christian and for doing Christian ministry. It takes time.
Remember, first, that when Williams initially went to the Far East, he was six months at sea. Then he took a full year to work on the language. Later, when he moved to Japan, it was 6 years before his first convert was baptized. Six years.
Because God works through us, God’s work always takes time. Sometimes lots of time. Time for our own Christian identity and vocation to grow. Time for Christian ministry to come to any fulfillment. Advent is a reminder that waiting is a part of being a Christian. That Christianity is not characterized by instant gratification. A very important Advent reminder in our culture that demands instant everything. Instant communication. Instant acquisition. Instant information. Instant gratification. The development of Christian identity and Christian ministry takes time.
On to my third reflection. As I thought about the counter cultural message of Advent—the positive messages about waiting and taking time—I found it very tempting to turn this into a rant against all sorts of features of contemporary life… the expectation of instant communication, constant texting, always connected to the internet. It was very tempting to label all of that constant communication and connectivity as unchristian.
And yet… The more I thought about it, I think God would love texting. I think God does text. He just doesn’t use a cell phone. Constant communication. Non-stop connectivity. That’s exactly what God offers us and seeks from us. No matter what we’re doing or where we are. If only we could only really claim that sort of ongoing communication with God and constant connectivity to God’s presence.
God doesn’t give us instant gratification or immediate fulfillment of everything we wish for. But God does offer us unceasing presence, guidance and love. Constant communication and connection. And that’s what guides us in our search for the never ending riches of Christ. That’s what strengthens and sustains us as we live into—over time—our Christian identities and ministries.
