There are three stages in the journey of the Christian faith. The first stage is a journey to the Bethlehem of the heart: a new birth within. This is followed by the journey to the Jerusalem of the heart: the crucifixion and resurrection of love. The third is the journey to the Emmaus of the heart, where the birth within, the crucifixion and resurrection of love and a personal companionship with Love at the heart of things are internalized in the depths of our being. You cannot deal with the Baby without the Cross; you can’t deal with the Cross without the Resurrection, and you cannot get hold of any of it without the experience of Emmaus.
Advent is the first stage of that arduous journey. It involves the journey to the Bethlehem of the heart: the new birth within. There are many words to describe this new birth; you can call it an awakening, a new consciousness, or an epiphany, if you like. This trek to the Bethlehem of the heart is not a “one time” trip. You can’t see or experience it all at once. You have to go back again and again and again and be born again and again and again. Why? Because the Bethlehem of the heart is not a constant. The scenery changes with every passing day, month and year—and we change. New mountains, hills and valleys form that weren’t present on any previous journey. That is why Advent comes, year after year, calling us once again to prepare for a new birth within, a new thing to happen, a new time to begin, a new dance to dance, a new song to sing. Every new valley must be lifted up, every new mountain and hill brought low. The crooked roads must be made straight again, and the rough ways made smooth. Yes, we must be born again—and again—and again!
The Advent journey is not about visiting the actual village of Bethlehem or some re-created nativity scene. It is not about decorating the tree, singing carols, or keeping family traditions. It is about a journey into our very own life. My inner life and your inner life has experienced many stumbling blocks—mountains, hills, deserts and valleys, plains and wilderness places in the year 2023. Advent is a journey into our own inner geography. It is here, in this Bethlehem of the heart that Jesus must be born anew in us this year. Last year’s experience won’t do. Just as the child Jesus grew in stature and wisdom so have we. It is now time for a new birth, a new awakening within. God speaks to us in this Advent time, even as God spoke to Isaiah in the long ago: “Behold, I am about to do something new; now it shall spring forth; will you know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.” Yes, Advent comes, year after year, so that we may take the journey to Bethlehem and experience a new birth within.
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