When Ave Maria Press asked Catholic author Heather Khym to write an Advent book, she prayed on a thematic direction. She thought of Advent’s dual focus—looking back 2,000 years to Jesus’ Incarnation and looking forward to His second coming. And then she thought of the present.
“As I prayed, I felt like Jesus was saying ‘and I also want to come right now,’” she said. “I felt like the Holy Spirit was speaking to me as I was praying about what this book should be about. I said, ‘Lord, what would you like me to do’ and those words ‘He comes’ were right in my mind and that is what I went with.”
Khym divided her book Encountering Emmanuel into four weekly parts. She wrote of the four reasons God became incarnate as written in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Each day, her Advent devotional opens with an excerpt that ranges from a John Paul II quote in his address to Bologna youth in the 1990s to a line of scripture from Isaiah. A meditation written by Khym follows. Her words are derived from scripture, the Catechism, or personal life experience.
“I like that the meditation is short. It is not overwhelming,” notes Khym.
In her “He Comes to be Held” meditation, written for the third week of Advent, Khym writes an imaginative reflection, placing the reader inside the lantern-lit Bethlehem stable. Mary is resting on a bed of straw and Joseph, next to her, holds the newborn Jesus, asking the reader, “Do you want to hold Him?”
“Jesus has made Himself so vulnerable,” says Khym. “He doesn’t come to intimidate us. He makes Himself vulnerable and allows us to hold Him, to touch Him. He wants to be that close to us.”
A single-line breath prayer such as “Where I fear being vulnerable, Jesus be born in me” concludes each meditation.
“An important aspect of our Advent preparation for the Savior’s coming is to journey within and see the places that are empty and in need of Him; a single-line breath prayer is included at the end of each meditation to help you invite Him in,” notes Khym.
In the closing reflection, Khym writes two to three questions for readers to ponder and there is space allotted each day for journaling. Khym hopes that through writing, readers can experience the meditations in both mind and heart.
“We are in such a digital age right now where we are used to scrolling through things and reading things very quickly. We are just containing a ton of content,” says Khym. “The journaling allows us to slow down and to actually give an opportunity for it to be integrated and become a reality; so, instead of it just being information that is going into our mind, it starts to seep down into our heart and transform and change us.”
She alludes to one of her favorite quotes from Mother Teresa further illustrating the point.
“Mother Teresa says, ‘God is the friend of silence.’ I think to quiet ourselves and to listen to the voice of God and to take time to journal and go under the surface of our own heart is essential to the human experience, and we often don’t take time to do that, so the journalling is a great opportunity,” Khym says.
Her questions are designed for readers to ponder individually or in a group setting whether with a friend over zoom, over coffee at home, or within a parish group. Companion videos and a guide are also freely available on the publisher’s site.
“I hope the questions help to bring connection and community with other people and also facilitate going deeper into our conversations with each other about faith,” says Khym.
Besides pondering text, readers can study the illustrations throughout the book by Portland, Oregon-based artist Josiah Henley whose work is inspired by the ancient art and architecture of the Church. Khym flips to a page in the book that illustrates the Annunciation, the saving theme for the first week of Advent.
“This is a beautiful art piece that I have spent time praying over,” says Khym. “Josiah is a wonderful artist. There is a beauty to what he created here. It has an iconography style, yet it looks new at the same time. I think his work gives us an opportunity to meditate on the art—to allow the message of what the art is speaking of to come into our heart.”
This Advent Khym plans to spend time daily with God—and is actually scheduling it into her planner to do so. Aside from authoring Encountering Emmanuel and Abide: A Pathway to Transformative Healing and Intimacy with Jesus, the mom of three college-age children balances several occupations. Alongside her husband, Jake, she cofounded and directs Life Restoration Ministries. As a speaker and retreat leader for more than 25 years, her organization offers workshops in the US and Canada. She currently is working with the religious community at her alma mater, the Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio. She also directs Celtic Cross Foundation.
“I think the most important thing that I am doing this Advent which I want to encourage people to do is to be intentional on setting aside time to grow in their relationship with God, to get quiet, and to pray because it is such a busy season,” she says. “If we are not intentional about taking time to set aside to grow in our faith or actually experience Advent and the gifts of Advent, I think it just passes by.”
Each Monday this Advent, Khym will expound on the weekly themes of Encountering Emmanuel through Abiding Together, a podcast she co-hosts with Michelle Benzinger and Sister Miriam James Heidland. The podcast is described as a place of connection, rest, and encouragement for people who are on the journey of living out their passion and purpose in Jesus. Since its debut seven years ago, the spiritual podcast has garnered a top one percent rank on Spotify.
“It is beautiful thing to be a part of this weekly podcast and uniquely, we offer discussion and journaling questions for every episode,” says Khym.
She hopes Encountering Emmanuel readers will find themselves close to God through reading the text, studying the art, and journaling.
“Advent is an intense training that directs us towards He who already came, He who will come, and He who comes continuously,” she says. “Each day is an invitation for Jesus to be born into our hearts and in the circumstances of our lives where we need His saving power, His light, and His healing. Jesus wants to come very close to us. My hope is that the book puts people in proximity to receive who Jesus really is.”
Author’s Note: For more information on author Heather Khym and her new release Encountering Emmanuel, please visit the Ave Maria Press website.
Image by Josiah Henley
