The word Advent is derived from two Latin words: ad venire, which mean, “to come towards.. During the four weeks of Advent, we contemplate the coming towards us of the One who is Lord of Lords and King of Kings. As with so many of the activities of God, who was and who is and who is to be, this coming occurs in three tenses.
Past: Jesus the Christ came in history as a baby in Bethlehem, born into poverty. He grew up and gave us an example of Kingdom living, often rebelling against the norms of His time and culture. He died, and all seemed lost. He rose again, defeating the powers of oppression, death and darkness; He ascended to the Father, and there He ever lives, interceding for us.
Present: Christ comes to us daily, with His mercies that are “new every morning,” in our neighbors, in the Church and especially in the Sacraments. He lives in us by His Spirit within us, given to us in our Baptism, and remakes us in His own glorious image, transforming us into the likeness of God that we were designed to be.
Future: Christ shall come again in glory, “with clouds,” “with His holy angels,” “with the sound of the trumpet,” “to judge the living and the dead.”
During Advent, as we prepare for Christ’s coming, we run the risk of either being sentimentally fixated on an idealized past, wishing we could have been present at the manger in Bethlehem (without the least idea of what that was really like); or of consuming ourselves with longing for (or dreading) the future, with all those Apocalyptic images. In so doing, we can miss the wonders of the present; the many ways in which our King comes into our lives each day.
The culture around us is preparing too – for Santa Claus, over-indulgence and the post-season sales. This preparation involves rushing around madly, and usually results in physical and emotional exhaustion, followed by disappointment when the “season” does not result in the ecstasy promised by the commercials.
In the midst of this, the Church issues its counter-cultural call for a different kind of preparation, that sounds amazingly like the invitation from St Benedict: Slow down, be quiet and pay attention. Thus may we learn from the past to recognize Christ in our present lives, and be ready at any moment for that final Coming.
Marana tha! Come quickly, Lord Jesus!
– Angie Forde
