The Christmas Rose: Preparing

 The Christmas Rose

An Advent Story Calendar

The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing.             Isaiah 35:1-2a KJV

My father loved roses. He had fifty varieties growing in our yard. He bred and named hybrids, carefully wrapping each bloom in a plastic bag to collect the pollen and brushing it onto a second bloom. My siblings and I spent many warm afternoons dusting, pruning, and picking beetles from the leaves. Every summer morning, my father chose two perfect roses to take to his secretary — with my mother’s blessing because she was his Darling rose. He named one of his hybrids after Mom —Marie. By his request, white roses filled my wedding bouquet. When his first granddaughter was born, a basket of white roses arrived at the hospital with a note from Mom and Dad: Our love renewed.

With all this rose history, you might imagine that my yard is filled with roses. All those hot summer days picking beetles from blooms put me off growing roses. We only have one bush — given by Dad for our new home — a Peace Rose with blossoms that brings me great joy as I remember Dad and Mom and the sweet scent of their love.

Roses are mentioned 48 times in the Bible. The Hebrew word for rose is Chabatsteleth which means red and bulb. According to tradition, roses symbolize God’s love at work in the world. The intricacy of the petals demonstrates the genius of a masterful Creator. The blossoms’ layers illustrate spiritual wisdom unfolding in our lives. The sweet scent represents the sweet essence of God’s love. Many religions have traditions and legends related to roses. Each color or variety has a meaning.

Jesus is often represented as a rose. The rarity, beauty, and fragrance of roses represent the qualities of Jesus. Jesus is the fairest of ten thousand, like the rose. Mary, the mother of Jesus, is also connected to roses for her purity. The fragrance of roses traditionally announces the presence of angels. Christians represent the flower of Christ among the thorns, or evils, of the world. 

The Christmas Rose, also called the Snow Rose or Winter Rose, the only true flower to bloom in winter, grows in the mountains of Central Europe. Since ancient times, this miraculous flower has been used for medicinal purposes. Greeks and Romans used the plant to treat madness, nervous disorders, and heart ailments. Three digitalis-like substances are still used to treat heart disease and rose hips are a source of Vitamin C. In the Middle Ages, people threw rose petals on the floors of their homes to keep evil spirits away. Petals strewn before a newly married couple keep evil spirits from their marriage.

One of the best-known rose legends is that of a shepherd girl who had no gift for the newborn Savior. The Magi leave their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh for the baby Jesus, and the shepherds leave gifts of honey and fruit. Her tears of despair bring a miracle. In 1917, Pietro Yon wrote a beloved Christmas hymn about this miracle — Gesu Bambino.

Read one page each day in Advent. Reflect on the Bible verses (most from The Voice) The rose information and quotations can be found at various places online. Pray the prayers with love. Look for miracles in the season of winter — like a baby born to be a Savior and King. 

Live in the sweet scent of God’s love.