We join a new Christian Year with the coming of the First Sunday in Advent. “The coming of Advent jolts the Church out of Ordinary Time with the invasive news that it’s time to think about fresh possibilities for deliverance and human wholeness”, says Patricia deJong (FEASTING on the WORD, B 1:4). Some will see Advent as merely a preparation for Christmas; bring on those wise men, angels and donkeys. But there’s more: a promise of God to keep interfering in our sordid world, as we search longingly for News beyond Business as Usual.
ISAIAH 64:1-9 was probably heard after the People returned from Babylonian Exile, yet before the Temple was rebuilt. Most of the Exiles were too young to remember the old traditions; they were firmly enmeshed in the urban culture of Mesopotamia, and had returned to the Promised Land only to please Grandma. Third Isaiah whined, “There is no one who calls on your name”, and in the margin an earlier version of myself has written “ain’t it the truth!” All that was left was a two-pronged hope: first, that YHWH was there; and second, that God cared enough to break in. Isaiah calls people of faith to watch with eyes of Hope.
St. Paul opens his FIRST LETTER TO THE CORINTHANS in a graceful manner, knowing that he would eventually lay some pretty heavy stuff on them. “…as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, he will also strengthen you to the end.” Paul believed in the immanent coming of Christ, so these verses (1:3-9) attempt to cheer those who waver between worldly living and a more holy lifestyle. Expecting this Advent, he celebrates that which already shows in congregational life: the passage invites us to be thankful not only for material gifts, but for the spiritual ones as well.
MARK is the first known Gospel to be written: unaware of the Christmas stories, his idea of Advent dwells especially on the wait for Jesus to appear. In 13:24-37, he remembers (?) Jesus speaking about Final Things–the great darkness, the falling stars, and Jesus himself appearing in the clouds. No one knows when this Day of the Lord will come upon us, so Be Alert! How does this contrast with our own Advent waiting?
Holly and mistletoe are very nice! I enjoy my neighbors’ festive lights already marking our streets! Who doesn’t like Christmas trees? But the Words of the Church call us deeper into the anticipation of a Living Christ, who comes into our midst often to remind us that there’s Something else than glitter and glitz. The Lord is near!!
In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King
Please join in the conversation every Tuesday, as we together contemplate texts assigned to the upcoming weekend.
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