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The Archbishop of York’s Advent Book, 2024

 

Do Not Be Afraid

Author Rachel Mann
Publisher SPCK £11.99
Format pbk
ISBN 9780281090013

The subtitle of this powerful book is: ‘The Joy of Waiting in a Time of Fear.’ As Archbishop Stephen Cottrell reminds us in his foreword, we are living in a fallen, imperfect world, scarred by wars, the climate crisis and injustice. The Advent themes of watching and waiting may therefore easily be lost in such fearful times, especially as waiting – whether in a hospital, in a traffic jam, or for an aeroplane – can add to our anxieties and frustrations. And yet, as Rachel Mann immediately reminds us, despite everything, waiting may be a divine gift – an encounter with holiness and a time when we may receive a vision of grace to still our fears. She provides a personal example. When in some danger in the Caribbean Sea she gazed into the night sky and, seeing for the first time the Milky Way, was ‘surprised by the gift of creation.’ Beholding th

e glory of God, her fears were calmed.

The book comprises a narrative for each day of Advent, culminating in a prayer and questions for reflection. The narratives are original and absorbing. Some are personal biographical stories, sometimes self-deprecating; others are clever reflections on poetry from Christina Rossetti or Emily Dickinson; there is an intriguing passage from Jane Austen’s Persuasion; and reflections on the medieval mystics, Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe. We are also reminded how Mary and Joseph waited for the birth of Jesus; and Elizabeth and Zechariah for John the Baptist. Each reflection draws an appropriate biblical allusion or insight. If readers persist throughout Advent in using these reflections and the questions they evoke, maybe for just 20 minutes each day, I am sure they will be spiritually enriched. And many of the prayers are magnificent and memorable. For Christmas Eve, we pray with Richard Baxter (1690): ‘Keep us, O Lord, while we tarry on this earth, in a serious seeking after you’. And for Christmas Day, we have: ‘God of Love, on this glorious day, may our waiting be at an end.’

This is a book which, in many ways, enriches the concept of Christ’s incarnation.

Reviewed by Peter Clough

 

 

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