Education in Faith
Sunday was the beginning of the Advent season. We are, perhaps, used to thinking of the season of Advent as a time of preparation for the celebration of Christmas. But this week’s readings, and the readings of the next few weeks, remind us that the notion of preparation extends well beyond the celebration of the birth of Jesus. The coming of the Messiah would usher in a new prosperity and a divine reign of God. The earliest Christians began to see that the ancient prophecies could all be applied to Jesus and they began to regard Jesus as the promised Messiah – the fulfilment of prophecy. However, Jesus also promised that he would come again, and the expectation of the first followers of Jesus was that his return would be in their lifetime.
Have you thought about it? – Waiting, waiting, waiting …
I’m not a big fan of waiting! Anticipation is pretty good; getting prepared and getting ready are OK, too. But when it comes down to being all dressed up and ready to go, I’m just hopeless at waiting. If Advent is a time of pointless waiting for Christmas then we’ve somehow missed the message. Rather than just waiting, Advent is a time of preparation and anticipation. But it’s not just about anticipating Christmas. That’s part of it, sure. However, Advent is about reminding ourselves that we have a job to do: preparing for the reign of God – in our lives and in our world.