Psalms 148,149,150; Isaiah 5: 1-7; Luke 7: 28-35
Listen to the author read their meditation and prayer:
The Very Rev. S. Chad Vaughn, Advent Meditation
The holly jolly merriment has begun to be piped into our cathedrals of commerce before the 
Halloween candy even arrives. Christmas is indeed coming, but it is not here yet. Bing Crosby and his lot need to wait a few more weeks to croon their “fa-la-las.” But we have Advent songs that need to be sung now. And their tunes will cause our feet to move in the dance of metanoia – in the dance of turning back to God. The Psalmist has given us the instruments and the tune. John the Baptist came sober and somber and we called his desert wild dance “mania.” And then Jesus came and invited those to whom he was sent to the dance and then, when they would not join in, he found better partners in the margins. Can we defer our “jingle-jangling” for a few more weeks and, in the meantime, embrace John and Mary as our partners in the dance that will lead us into a deeper experience of the Incarnation?
I danced for the scribe and the Pharisee,
But they would not dance and they wouldn’t follow me.
I danced for the fishermen, for James and John –
They came with me and the Dance went on.
Dance, then, wherever you may be,
I am the Lord of the Dance, said he,
And I’ll lead you all, wherever you may be,
And I’ll lead you all in the Dance, said he.
-“Lord of the Dance” by Sydney Carter
Come Holy One and open our hearts to the music of your whirling, eternal embrace as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Very Rev. S. Chadwick Vaughn, ‘06
St. Bede’s Episcopal Church
ATLANTA, GEORGIA
The Very Rev’d S. Chadwick Vaughn serves as the fifth Rector of St. Bede’s Episcopal Church in Atlanta, Georgia as well as the Dean of the East Atlanta Convocation of the Diocese of Atlanta. Chad previously served for three years as Rector of St. Francis, Macon, Georgia and Dean of the Macon Convocation. Prior to that, Chad served for three years as Priest Associate for Liturgy, Outreach, and Communication at St. David’s, Austin, Texas. Chad is an alumnus of the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest in Austin, where he currently serves on the Board of Trustees and the Alumni Steering Committee. He is also an alumnus of Oglethorpe University in Atlanta where he earned a B.A. with a double major in English and Art History. Chad and his wife Amanda are both natives of Atlanta. They have twin daughters who are five years old.
