Today is the first Sunday of Advent, which is also the first Sunday of a new Liturgical Year for the Church. The word Advent comes from the Latin word “Adventus” meaning “coming or arrival”. It originated in the early Church as a short period of intense preparation for the celebration of the nativity of the Lord on Dec.25 There are two- fold aspects to Advent: It is a time of preparation for Christians in which the first coming of Christ is recalled; at the same time, it directs our thoughts to the second coming of Christ. It is divided into two parts. The first part, which runs from the beginning until December 16, expresses the eschatological aspect of Advent. The second part, which runs from Dec 17 to Dec 24, focuses on the first coming of Christ. The readings of today calls us to reflect on End Time and the need to stay awake, to watch and pray, to keep oneself uncontaminated by the world, and to remain steadfast in the face of persecution and the terrible catastrophes that must precede the second coming of Christ. In Luke 21:25-28, Jesus warns his disciples that there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars.
On the earth, nations shall be in agony. Men and women shall be bewildered by the turmoil of the ocean and its waves. Many shall faint away with terror and fear at what menaces the world, for the powers of heaven shall be coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But he says, “When these things begin to take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.” When Jesus speaks about the end of the world, he presents it to us not as an event that should frighten us. Rather, he presents the “Day of the Lord” as a glorious day that the faithful should look forward to with joyous expectation, because that day shall mark the end of their suffering. That day shall mark the end of the regime of greed and corruption, hatred and wickedness, violence and war. That day shall mark the end of the period in between the first and second coming of Christ, the period that is characterised by struggle between the forces of good and the forces of evil. The Day of the Lord shall witness the disappearance of the imperfect world of sinful men and women and the emergence of a new world where righteousness shall be at home.
The first reading tells us that Prophet Isaiah had a dream of universal peace. He dreamt of a world where there would be justice between the nations, an end to war, and the prosperity that would follow when people turned their energies to cultivating the earth instead of making war. Isaiah’s dream of universal peace is not a mere daydreaming. This is the kind of world we long for. And this is what is promised. This is the ‘Mountain’ towards which we, Christians, spend our lives traveling in hope. This universal peace will be fully achieved at the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. When the Lord does come, the prophecy of Isaiah will be fulfilled, namely that the lion shall lie down with the lamb, and the small child shall play into the cobra’s hole. On that day, righteousness shall descend like the rain, and peace like an overflowing stream. Christ in the Gospel reading compares the “coming of the Son of Man” with the “days of Noah” (Matthew 24:37)? Scripture describes both events as a day of judgment and the separation of the just from the unjust. It is a time when the Lord of heaven and earth gathers to himself those who are his own. Separation is an inevitable consequence of the fundamental choices people have made-whether for God or against God.
The fundamental choice we make can either lead us towards God and his will for us or they can lead us in a direction that is opposed to God or contrary to his wisdom and plan for our lives and wellbeing. The Lord Jesus warned his disciples and he issues the same warning to us today-be alert and be prepared to meet the Lord today and everyday and when he comes again to judge the living and the dead. Advent is the period of joyful expectation of God’s powerful intervention in our lives as individuals, and in the universe as a whole. Advent is also a time to take seriously the admonition of Christ that we should stay awake and watch and pray. As the Master delays to come, many hearts run the risk of being weighed down by the worries and anxieties of life; as he delays to come, many people will get too preoccupied with temporal and material goods. But the message of Advent is clear: Don’t get too engrossed in a world that is passing away; don’t let too many earthly securities bind you in chains; don’t let too many vanities take up your attention; don’t get too heavy; stay light and be ever ready to move; you have no lasting city here below, so don’t get too attached.
Isn’t this an invaluable admonition for the men and women of our generation who are enslaved to materialism and consumerism? Isn’t this s most needed exhortation for many professed Christians in our country today who see Christian salvation as consonant with material prosperity. We should live each day as the day of the Lord’s coming. We should watch through a life of prayer. We should watch through our consistent rejection of hatred and violence. We should watch through the practice of purity and piety. We should watch through our dedication to the pursuit of justice. We should watch through our love and compassion for the poor and the weak. Above all, we should watch through our commitment to the emergence of Christ’s civilization of love. In this way, we shall be united with the early Christians whose entire life was sustained by the Advent Prayer-MARANATHA, that is “COME LORD JESUS”.
