Rethinking Lessons and Carols

It doesn't seem possible, but the Advent and Christmas seasons will be here soon! Some eager and organized leaders may even be planning services for this time.

I've been thinking about this time of year for several months while writing an article about the Advent/Christmas service, Lessons and Carols. My interest centers on the Scripture readings typically used in that service – Genesis 3:8-15, 17-19; Genesis 22:15-18; Isaiah 9:2, 6-7; Isaiah 11:1-4a, 6-9; Luke 1:26-35, 38; Luke 2:1, 3-7; Luke 2:8-16; Matthew 2:1-12; John 1:1-14. What do they communicate about the Bible? What Christian story do they tell?

The article is available online. Just click on the title below.

“Read and Mark in Holy Scripture”: Reassessing the Scripture Readings of "A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols" in a Post-Shoah World in Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations, 20(1).
https://doi.org/10.6017/scjr.v20i1.20441

Here's a summary:

The Christian Eve service, A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, broadcast yearly around the world by King’s College, Cambridge, has nine lessons (i.e., biblical passages) read during the service. Today, many churches around the world celebrate the Christmas season by reading these same nine passages: Genesis 3:8-15, 17-19; Genesis 22:15-18; Isaiah 9:2, 6-7; Isaiah 11:1-4a, 6-9; Luke 1:26-35, 38; Luke 2:1, 3-7; Luke 2:8-16; Matthew 2:1-12; John 1:1-14. This article unfolds in three sections as it critically examines the nine biblical lessons to problematize their selection and ordering within this service. First, I place these scripture readings within the literary context of the biblical canon and the liturgical context of the service to understand how these readings weave a particular theological story within the overall service. I focus on how the service frames the lessons liturgically, examining its use of an introductory interpretive sentence at the beginning of each lesson as an exercise in liturgical hermeneutics of the bible. Second, I critique the assumed theology and hermeneutics behind these biblical selections using the theological concept of the Christmas standard canonical narrative and argue that these specific readings in this particular sequence (i.e., the reading of the biblical passages in canonical order from Genesis to Isaiah to the three gospels) are ethically and theologically problematic in a post-Holocaust world. These lessons individually and collectively posit an implicit, problematic theology of the bible as a whole and of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament in particular, and its understanding of the grand story of Scripture. Third, I suggest new guidelines for selecting lessons and examples for a reimagined service. I explore how Christian leaders might rethink the role of Scripture in this service.

For more information about the service at King's College, Cambridge, see
https://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/chapel/festival-nine-lessons-and-carols

Advent Planning

The First (Old Testament) Readings during Advent this year come from the prophetic book of Isaiah.

First Sunday November 30 Isaiah 2:1-5
Second Sunday December 7 Isaiah 11:1-10
Third Sunday December 14 Isaiah 35:1-10
Fourth Sunday December 21 Isaiah 7:10-16

Perhaps a sermon series on these beautiful passages might be one way to celebrate the Advent season.

A Benediction (Or Miscellaneous Thoughts)

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