[From the original version]
A shrill blast pierces the silence of the descending darkness of an autumn evening. It is the shofar, the ram’s horn, summoning the people to a sobering awareness of the end times as the Jewish New Year begins in autumn.
Today the New Year for the Church begins. The voice of Jesus sounds the call for readiness, awareness, sobriety, watchfulness—in short, for prayer. The message shakes us to our roots, loosening those places within where we are bound to a world passing away.
What the shofar is to the silence, the first Advent candle is to the darkness. Enter the beauty of the darkness of this season and the way in which tiny particles of light pierce the night with an expanding joy. Jesus is coming.
What are “Bible Breaths”? Learn More…
Sundays are dedicated to the Gospels from the Revised Common Lectionary.
In year C, we give a special focus to the Gospel of Luke.
For all the Firestarters I recommend the ebook. You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or tablet. Check the menu options at the site for more information.
The Bible Through the Seasons 