Monday of the Fourth Week of Advent

Lectionary: 199​

Lo, I will send you

Elijah, the prophet,

Before the day of the LORD comes,

the great and terrible day,

To turn the hearts of the fathers to their children,

and the hearts of the children to their fathers,

Lest I come and strike

the land with doom.

Two dinosaurs are standing together, looking out to sea. Noah's ark can be seen in the distance. One dinosaur says to the other, "Was that today?"

"Timing is everything." they say. Human beings, unlike other creatures, are deeply aware of time. Where other animals act instinctively by the season, the human being must study times and seasons to decide what to do and when to do it. Many centuries went into the formation of an accurate calendar to help farmers determine when to plant which seed. The solar calendar proved to be more useful despite the religious preference for the lunar.

Our annual celebration of Christmas reminds people of spiritual opportunities, and the danger of ignoring them. Our Catholic tradition, for instance, encourages us to "go to confession" sometime between Ash Wednesday and Pentecost. You might not go to hell if you miss it; but, like the dinosaurs, you might regret it nonetheless. Advent is also a penitential season, an opportunity to consider our willingness to greet a "Savior." Occasionally we should ask, "Do I need a savior?" and, "From what must I be saved?"

I'm sure there are some who have it made in the shade and habitually ignore the opportunity. They may suffer vague memories of fire-breathing teachers and preachers who threatened children but they have discarded all that like yesterday's fashions.

But some of us look at the present crises -- there are many -- and despair of a technological, social, political, or religious fix. There aren't enough silver bullets. Despite the promises of pretentious politicians, snake oil salesmen, and telegenic preachers, we cannot save ourselves. We have lost our wars on poverty, drugs, and suicide. There are no more formulas, programs, or new ideas. Even if we knew what to do we could not agree on the timing.

Christmas reminds us to look to God our Savior. When we have despaired of saving ourselves and turned to the Lord, the Holy Spirit, that effervescent grace, will tell us what to do next.