“Everything in the cosmos takes its rhythmic course: the stars, as well as the sun, follow a regular rhythm. Would the sun abandon this rhythm even for a moment, an upheaval of untold magnitude would take place in the universe. Rhythm holds sway in the whole of nature, up to the level of the human being. … The rhythm which through the course of the year holds sway in the forces of growth, of propagation and so forth, ceases when we come to the human being. For the human being is to have his roots in freedom … As the light disappears at Christmas-time, so has rhythm … departed from the life of the human being: chaos prevails. But the human being must give birth again to rhythm out of his innermost being, his own initiative. By the exercise of his own will he must so order his life that it flows in rhythm, immutable and sure; his life must take its course with the regularity of the sun. Just as a change of the sun's orbit is inconceivable, it is equally inconceivable that the rhythm of such a life can be broken. The Sun Hero was regarded as the embodiment of this inalterable rhythm; through the power of the higher human being within him, he was able to direct the rhythm of the course of his own life. And this Sun Hero, this higher human being, was born in the Holy Night. In this sense, Christ Jesus is a Sun Hero and was conceived as such in the first centuries of Christendom. Hence the festival of His birth was instituted at the time of the year when, since ancient days, the festival of the birth of the Sun Hero had been celebrated. Hence, too, all that was associated with the history of the life of Christ Jesus; the Mass at midnight celebrated by the early Christians in the depths of caves was in remembrance of the festival of the sun. In this Mass an ocean of light streamed forth at midnight out of the darkness as a remembrance of the rising of the spiritual Sun in the Mysteries. Hence the birth of Christ in the cave — again a remembrance of the cave of rock out of which life was born … As earthly life was born out of the dead stone, so out of the depths was born the Highest — Christ Jesus. Associated with the festival of His nativity was the legend of the three Priest-Sages, the Three Kings. They bring to the Child: gold, the symbol of the outer, wisdom-filled human being; myrrh, the symbol of the victory of life over death; and frankincense the symbol of the cosmic ether in which the Spirit lives.” (Rudolf Steiner in Signs and Symbols of the Christmas Festival, a lecture given by Rudolf Steiner in Berlin on December 17, 1906; The Festivals and Their Meaning / GA 96)
The online Holy Nights Journal is meant to help us to connect to the cosmic rhythm and the yearly rhythm during the time of the holy nights between the Christmas festival and Epiphany. The online Holy Nights Journal can be used as a guide during the 12 days and 13 nights to practice to live with a consciousness that connects in a meaningful way with the higher truths in the universe and concerning our own life. We are encouraged to turn inward and towards a contemplation of the deeper meaning of our lives and of our own particular and unique biography.
You can participate in a group of individuals who are working with the online Holy Nights Journal on a daily basis starting December 24, 2019 and ending January 06, 2020. You will be provided with daily contemplations, tasks and artistic challenges during the time of the twelve days of Christmas and the thirteen Holy Nights. You will be working with the materials provided in a self-directed manner and will be able to share your work with the group online thereby creating a deep and meaningful community experience.
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The online Holy Nights Journal is meant to help us to connect to the cosmic rhythm and the yearly rhythm during the time of the holy nights between the Christmas festival and Epiphany. The online Holy Nights Journal can be used as a guide during the 12 days and 13 nights to practice to live with a consciousness that connects in a meaningful way with the higher truths in the universe and concerning our own life. We are encouraged to turn inward and towards a contemplation of the deeper meaning of our lives and of our own particular and unique biography.
You can participate in a group of individuals who are working with the online Holy Nights Journal on a daily basis starting December 24, 2019 and ending January 06, 2020. You will be provided with daily contemplations, tasks and artistic challenges during the time of the twelve days of Christmas and the thirteen Holy Nights. You will be working with the materials provided in a self-directed manner and will be able to share your work with the group online thereby creating a deep and meaningful community experience.
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