1st Sunday of Advent (Mt. 24:37-44) “Who Are We On the Inside?”
Anticipation. A lot of our life is lived in anticipation of what is about to happen. At times we have a sense of what might happen, but we aren’t sure. We wonder how to prepare. We are uncomfortable with just doing nothing.
We are going through our first major winter snowstorm this weekend. We all knew that it was going to happen. We all tried to prepare in advance in a variety of ways. We probably made sure our snow blower was working. We went out to get some salt to melt the ice. We made sure our winter coat was taken out of storage.
We might have checked the weather repeatedly over the last few days. Will the storm be as bad as it was predicted? If we had to travel home for Thanksgiving, we probably started well in advance so we could get to our appointed destination. We tried to control as many things as we could. We probably asked ourselves repeatedly, “What should I do next?” The constant question we ask is: "How should I wait for the storm that is about to happen: actively, passively?
Today Advent begins. During Advent we reflect on the three comings of Christ. Jesus came in time and was born like all human beings are born. Jesus comes to us all the time in the people that we meet in our life because each person that we meet is Christ in disguise, and that keeps life interesting. As Christians we are to treat each person with charity. Finally, we reflect during this time of year on the Second Coming of Jesus at the end of all time. Jesus is coming again. During Advent, we remember that. Are we ready to encounter him?
A story is told about St. John XXIII. He was the Pope in the early 1960’s. One Advent he was asked an interesting question by a reporter. “Your holiness what would you advise people to do who are working in the Vatican if you heard Jesus had just arrived at the front door of St. Peter’s?” St. John the XXIII said, “I would say, 'quick everyone, look busy.' ”
Perhaps that is the key. We read in the Gospel how it will be at the end of all time. The exact day and time Jesus will come aren’t known by anybody. We hear how two men will be working in a field. One will be taken; the other will be left. Two women will be grinding meal. One will be taken, and the other will be left. We are left to wonder what the difference is between the two men and two women. Each man and each woman were doing the same thing as their partner. Everyone was fulfilling their duties. Why were certain people ready while others were not? We get a sense that the difference between the people described is not on the exterior but on the interior. We can’t see anything different on the surface, but it is something going on inside that differentiates people.
We have four short weeks until Christmas arrives. We look around us, and there are all kinds of busyness. We all know the drill; cooking, cleaning, decorating, wrapping, buying, eating, drinking, making merry. If we ask most people what they are preparing for, they would say, “I am getting ready to celebrate Christ’s birthday.” Very few would say, “I am getting ready to have a personal encounter with Jesus at the end of my time on earth.” The busyness might look the same, but what is going on inside?
Are we ready? The predictions of Jesus arrival will be announced daily this Advent by the prophetic writings we read. All the prophets are like meteorologists reading the data for us. A Messiah is coming. The Son of Man is going to arrive. The anointed one is on the way. Prepare ye the way of the Lord. Do we know Jesus well enough to recognize him? If our heart is in tune with his heart, then we need not fear. At the end of time, it won’t be about how busy we are but how much faith we have that will determine how acceptable we are to the Lord.