Hope Springs Eternal
Advent 1B
Isaiah 64:1-9; Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18; Mark13:24-37
11/30/08
Lorraine Ljunggren

        Well. Advent is here – though we are weeks away from the world's observance of a new calendar year, Advent arrives, a time to begin a new year in the rhythm of our worship life. The cool blues and purples of our hangings are soothing to our eyes and to our spirits. That first of four candles in our Advent Wreath glows like a solitary beacon – a symbol of light in days where, in our Northern Hemisphere, the velvet of night seems to shrink the sun's reach.

        Advent, which means 'come' or 'coming' is, in the church's year, a season of anticipation, of expectation, and of hope. We set aside these four Sundays to provide us with opportunities to quiet the fervor of the world's rush – four Sundays giving us a chance to catch our breath and consider what it means for Jesus to come into the world – to wonder about his birth and about what it means for the faithful to say Jesus the Christ will come again. But, it seems to me that the best use to which we might put this Advent is to consider – to contemplate – what it means for Christ Jesus to come – to be present with us – here and now.

        I like to think of Advent as a time in which we actively contemplate our relationship with God. But, I sometimes wonder if we moderns, who rush about from appointment to appointment, from voice mail to e-mail to text message to mall – I wonder if we would just as soon leave contemplation to 'designated contemplatives!' For example, to those in religious orders whose lives are committed to prayer and to study. It's easier if we leave such business to cloistered nuns or monks padding softly to and from dimly lighted chapels in which chants accumulate from centuries of voices joined together.

        But, if we do so, we miss what 'contemplation' might truly mean and what its purpose might be. Sister Joan Chittister, a prolific and inspiring author, who happens to be a Roman Catholic religious, wrote a reflection following a conference sponsored by the Global Peace Initiative of Women. It was a conference which brought together representatives of many, many religious traditions. She wrote, “'As one of the questions to the group put it, “What is the call of our time and how must we (as contemplatives) respond?' Addressing such a question to professed contemplatives of any particular spiritual path might seem a strange one to those who think that the 'contemplative' is one who seeks to escape the world. But to those who understand contemplation to be the spiritual commitment to come to see the world as God sees the world, the conference and its question make serious sense.” (GPIW.org)
        “What is the call of our time and how must we…respond?” If contemplation is “…the spiritual commitment to come to see the world as God sees the world,” then we have our work cut out for us this Advent.

        And, if, as Isaiah says, “…we are the clay, and [God] is our potter; we are all the work of your hand [God],” then examining how God seeks to shape our individual and common life is an important undertaking and an adventure.

        “What is the call of our time and how must we respond?” If we fail even to take time to ask such a question, if we fail to contemplate our relationship with God, if we rush past opportunities to see the world as God sees it, if we don't stop long enough to consider what it means for Jesus to come among us and what difference it makes that Jesus is with us here and now, where will we end up??

        I would submit we end up on a spiritually dead end street, caught in an alleyway of the world's design, facing a brick wall so high we cannot see our sisters and brothers, and perhaps not even being able to glimpse God because all we see is the wall separating us.

        If, on the other hand, we take time, make time, even a little bit of time, to consider, to contemplate how Jesus' presence here with us now can help us answer these important questions, then, I would submit, we will find ourselves on a street paved with great spiritual power and that we might be in a better position to solve some of the world's greatest problems.

        Over a decade ago, an author named Charles Edward wrote in a publication called The Servant: “Our task is to seek and find Christ in our world as it is, and not as it might be. The fact that the world is other than it might be does not alter the truth that Christ is present in it…” Edward went on to say, “Our Advent is the celebration of hope. What is uncertain is not the 'coming' of Christ, but our own reception of [Christ], our own response… our own readiness and capacity to 'go forth to meet [Christ].' We must be willing to see…and acclaim [Christ]… even at the moment our whole life's work and all its meaning seem to collapse.” (Synthesis, 11/30/08, quoting from Oct-Dec 1995, p. 13)

        A quick look around us might seem as if much of life's work and meaning is collapsing. It would be difficult to miss the economic meltdown taking place around the globe – jobs are shrinking, being lost. Here in the U.S. we're suffering from having built an economy based on consuming rather than producing. And, already the T.V. commercials are telling us to get back to spending, especially tempting us to overspend which helped get us in this pickle in the first place! Unless we have been away from newspapers, television, or radio, it would be almost impossible to not be grieving for the citizens from different countries killed and injured by terrorists organized to do as much damage as possible in Mumbai, India. We still have soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Mosquitoes are still spreading malaria in Africa. Whether we are in agreement about climate change or not, a large segment of Antarctica is at risk of breaking apart.

        But it is there in the midst of calamity that we can find Jesus the Christ revealing to us the truest hope that comes from God and not from the structures we construct of this world. Because in the midst of such turmoil are God's people.

        I live in hope that there are business people of integrity trying to figure out how to get us out of the worldwide economic mess. We need to educate ourselves
about what we can do to help. whether by simplifying our lives or buying groceries from local farmers so they stay afloat, or, when we do need to things, buying products made by U.S. companies which will hopefully save workers' jobs.

        I live in the hope that there are people who rush in to help whenever disasters of various kinds occur in our world. People who care for those hurt physically or emotionally or spiritually, who walk alongside those who mourn. We can do the same whenever disaster comes near us.

        I live in hope there are people behind the scenes as well as on the front lines trying to figure out how to end the wars devastating countries of our world. We can do our part by keeping up the pressure on our leaders.

        I live in hope that the mosquito netting we and others send to Africa will save even more lives than are already being saved. We can do our part to slow down climate change by reducing our consumption of energy, by wasting less, by recycling more. Every little bit helps truly does help.

        And, there is something else we can do. We can pray. We can pray by reaching down deep into our own souls, calling on all that is holy in God's universe, seeking with all one's heart for healing where it is needed, for reconciliation where there is division, and for hope in all circumstances. If there is any symbol that rings true to what Advent is all about, it is hope and hope springs eternal wherever and whenever God's people pray for it and cling to it.

        My friends, this world in which we live is not an easy world to inhabit. The world is not as we or God would have it.

        But if we begin to see the world as God sees it – a world with all the possibilities for goodness – a world with resources enough to meet the needs of many and perhaps all – a world in which kindness, honesty, integrity and decency can come to be the norm, then we can find the means within us to make it so.

        Henry Nouwen wrote, “Jesus says [we] must stand ready, stay awake, stay tuned to the word of God, so that [we] will survive all that is going to happen and be able to stand confidently (con fide with trust) in the presence of God together in community… ” (Synthesis, quoting from Watch for the Light)

I would add, that if we take time, make time, even a little bit of time, to consider, to contemplate what it means for Christ Jesus to come to be present with us here and now, we will be empowered to stand con fide with trust, with God. Then we'll have a true ADVENTure to CHRISTmas. And we can pray with confidence, 'Come, Lord Jesus, here and now.' Amen.

©2008 Lorraine Ljunggren