Advent: 14 December 2022
Good morning,
O is for… Ox and Ass, the two animals traditionally depicted as attending the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. Neither is mentioned in the two gospels which tell the story, Matthew and Luke, but early depictions of the Nativity portrayed an ox and ass by the side of the manger. This is a fourth century sarcophagus kept at the Basilica of San Ambrogio in Milan:
Where did the animals come from? Prophecy in the Old Testament influenced the development, particularly Isaiah 1:3:
The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib; but Israel doth not know, my people do not consider.
The people not following God are contrasted with animals who do acknowledge the one on whom they depend. We can see how some creative application of Isaiah to early Christian faith alongside the universal love of depicting animals in art has led to the ox and ass on Christmas cards currently en route (perhaps more at the pace of an ox rather than an eagle) to their destinations.
Tonight is the Alumni Carol Service at St Salvator’s Chapel at 7 pm. All are welcome – there is no need to reserve a space for the service, though spaces at the reception are bookable here: https://sparc.st-andrews.ac.uk/alumni-carol-service?erid=17226872&trid=e8cc1cc3-9ece-4d9b-9efb-d61cc7c19d97 The service will also livestreamed here: https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/chaplaincy/worship/
At this service we’ll sing an English version of the medieval carol In dulci jubilo which celebrates our pair of animals:
Ox and ass before him bow,
And he is in the manger now.
Last week, when in London for the Alumni Carol Service there, I had time to go to an exhibition called Japan: Courts and Culture at The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace, a show exploring British royal encounters with Japan over nearly 400 years. One exhibit was this ox, an incense burner from Arita (fairly near where I lived in Japan, on the island of Kyushu) from 1640-70, acquired by Mary II.
Before we leave the oxen behind, here is an unsentimental mention from my box of quotations, which may help us remember that amidst the comfort and joy of this time, it is good to spare a thought and more for people who are oppressed. Russia, Ukraine and Iran come to mind. This is George Orwell, opposed to oppression wherever he saw it, in ‘Looking Back on the Spanish War,’ from Shooting an Elephant:
The major problem of our time is the decay of the belief in personal immortality, and it cannot be dealt with while the average human being is either drudging like an ox or shivering in fear of the secret police.
Yours,
Donald.