Beards on the faces of six influential Christians (compiled from a web search at images.google.com, with help from wikipedia.com)[Learn about the Advent Beard, and these weekly devotionals, here]
“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard,
on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes!
It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion!
For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.”
(Psalm 133)
Unity. It’s one of the core teachings of the Christian church. To be one in Christ; to be united; to be a band of brothers; to be of one accord; to be a team. How good is unity, according to Psalm 133? As good as oil on our beards. Now, some of us have tried soap, or maybe shampoo on our hairy faces, sure. But most of us aren’t familiar with the idea of “anointing oil” in today’s society. To fully understand the Advent Beard, and the unshaven unity therein, we must understand anointing.
To be anointed with oil in biblical times – and in some traditions today – is to be made sacred; to be declared “set apart.” To be anointed with oil was to be dedicated to serve God. So the true meaning of Psalm 133 is this: “unity is sweet” – and that unity within our faith is something that spans history, continents, and every other border that generally divides people.
What else crosses time, space, and walls of division within Christian history? The obvious answer, found in this Psalm, is the beard. In countless ceremonies anointing kings, priests, and servants of the Lord, generous amounts of oil were poured onto one’s head – and for every man united in service to God, would continue down to wet the hairs of his chin. These oil-drenched mutton chops, these dripping goatees, these soaking soul patches, have remained a symbol of devotion and service through the centuries. From the time of Aaron (Israel’s first high priest), to the time of Bro. Steve Winter[1], the beard has united men in service to God, and this trans-millennia brotherhood is the kind of unity described in the 133rd Psalm.
The founders and thinkers of great Christian movements have been unified by their love for Christ, and by their beards. Seen above, from left to right, are the beards of (1) John Calvin, author of the first systematic theology; (2) Athanasius, the Alexandrian bishop who did early work on the incarnation and defined the New Testament; (3) Augustine, one of the earliest prominent figures in developing western Christianity; (4) Charles Spurgeon, the pastor of London’s largest church; (5) Paul the Apostle, the great missionary and New Testament author; (5) Justin Martyr, the earliest Christian apologist; and (6) Jesus the Christ, the savior of God’s people who will reign for all eternity. And these six could be joined by countless unshaven others from times past, present, and future, who pursue God, minister to people, and proudly grow their beards.
We, the growers of facial hair; the non-shavers for December, have likewise devoted ourselves; dedicated ourselves; set ourselves apart. We are at least awaiting Christ’s Advent. But let our beards do more than that during this joyous season. As we see our hidden faces in the mirror; as we scrape our hands on fuzzy chins, let us be united with these centuries of bearded brethren who have gone on before. Let us be set apart. Let us be holy. Let us be one. And in our beards, dripping with oil or not, let us experience “how good an pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity”
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[1] “Bro.” Steve Winter is a gent with a huge beard (sans ‘stache even!). He also has a completely off-the-wall video on YouTube where he does a Bible Study on beards (no joke). Favorite quote from the portion I watched: “If you’re a preacher & you’re watching this & you teach against beards, you sir are a liar. And all liars will have their part in the lake of fire.” Hopefully it goes without saying, but the content is a little off. But to continue the satirical spirit of the Advent Beard, give it a watch here (at least check out the bush on his face!), here.
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