Hauntingly Beautiful

    As we've just emerged from the Halloween season, I would wager you've recently heard the word "haunting" or one of its many inflections. I would also wager that the word was used to describe something dark or evil. I've never been a fan of Halloween, but I'm a big fan of the word "haunting" and don't associate it with darkness or evil at all. Let me explain why. 

     The dictionary defines haunting as something "poignant and evocative, difficult to ignore or forget." In this way I define something that is "haunting," to be ponderous, sober, and thought-provoking. Not fast and jovial, but slow, deep, and filled with great intention. It is something with a gravity that makes it abide with you and your thoughts for a very long time.  

     My favorite musical artist is Danish musician and songwriter Agnes Obel. I find her sounds, tones, and diction to be hauntingly beautiful. Her songs relax me, while simultaneously sparking my deep-thinking tendencies and my imagination. (Listen to "Fuel to Fire" by Agnes Obel.)

     My favorite author, John Eldredge, describes the longing that mankind has for womankind in this way, and I love his usage of the word "haunted": "It is mythological. Look at the lengths men will go to find the golden-haired woman. They have fought duals over her beauty; they have fought wars. You see, every man remembers Eve. We are haunted by her."

     So what's my long-winded, around-the-bush-beating point? Well, the Halloween Season is finally over... (I don't apologize.) Which means the infinitely, incomparably superior Christmas Season is finally fast approaching... (I equally do not apologize.)

     While there are lots of those fast and jovial things about Christmas that I love greatly, there are also the deep chords of seriousness in the season that are so essential. I want to examine another song I find hauntingly beautiful... "O Come O Come Emmanuel," is one of the oldest Christmas Carols we know of. It is believed to have been created over 1200 years ago, although I'm sure its form and presentation have been greatly changed during that time. It was sung in Latin originally and was a monastic praise. It was around 1861 that the song was organized into a hymn and translated into modern english. This is the version of the song we most easily recognize... 

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here,
Until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel,
Shall come to thee O Israel.

*Full Hymnal Lyrics Below.

     Taryn Harbidge is a well known musician who creates incredible renditions of a wide variety of songs. Her instrumental, stylized version of this song is my favorite. It never fails to evoke a powerful emotion within me. I will include a link below so you can listen to it if you wish. 

     I am sharing my thoughts on this song now, rather than later, so that I might be able to influence how you will choose to celebrate Christmas in the coming weeks. Listening to "O Come O Come Emmanuel" reminds me how much of a desperate miracle the birth of Christ was and is. I think the peaceful interlude of the manger scene is often our primary view. However it is the non-peaceful context of the Christmas miracle that gives it its awesome power. 

      Luke 2:10-11 "And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. For unto to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord."

     Isaiah 9:6 "For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.   

     Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

     Reconsider the familiar Christmas story in this context:

     The birth of Christ was a holy invasion deep behind enemy lines into captured territory. The ultimate and most dangerous rescue mission that has ever and will ever take place.
   Throughout all of history, since the fall of man, creation has wept and begged for deliverance from sin and death. "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. Come to us, God Who is With Us." 
   Then the call was answered in a victory so audacious and unexpected. The Birth of Christ. God become flesh, to be our shield and sacrifice. What a struggle there must have been between the accuser and the Redeemer...
   We can't fully understand it, but we SHOULD TRY to imagine it. That's what it means to muse, and to ponder the meaning of Emmanuel coming to us.
   We often deflect the charge to meditate on the power and purpose of God. We cheapen the process by simply saying "I can't imagine" when describing the mysteries of God and his plans.
   Well. I challenge you this season. Try. Try to imagine the true inflection and effect of the miracle of Christmas. And if you need inspiration, allow yourself to be haunted by the message of "O Come O Come Emmanuel."

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here,
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory o'er the grave.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Dayspring, from on high,
And cheer us by Thy drawing nigh;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Key of David, come
And open wide our heav'nly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Adonai, Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai's height,
In ancient times didst give the law
In cloud and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.