Saturday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 508

Be vigilant at all times
and pray that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man."

As the seasons change from autumn to winter and ordinary time to Advent, we're admonished to be vigilant at all times. We must escape the coming tribulations and stand before the One who will judge the earth and all its peoples. If our fear of the Lord cannot be transformed into courage at his coming, we must perish before his judgment. 

This warning comes at the end of the cycle. It should cause us to pause and consider our readiness. Have we maintained the vigilance throughout this past year? Had the enemy come -- which Thank God they didn't -- were we prepared to withstand them. 

But there were failures. Perhaps not catastrophic because we're still here. But bad enough. And we lost something by them. Advent alerts us to the coming danger; it's like the unexpected supervision of the general who appears upon the ramparts to review the sentinels. Are they alert? Are they fit? Do they know what to do should something arise. How soon will they sound the alarm when something suspicious appears? They needn't overreact to a possum scurrying in the moonlight, but they should recognize the sound of a Russian T-14 Armata tank. 

Advent does not invite indulgence. Rather, we should remember our human weakness, fearfulness, and occasional passivity in the face of challenges. At the approach of Christmas, the world around us goes sick with consumption. The 19th century word meant tuberculosis but in the 21st century consumption signifies a relentless social disease. It imposes poverty on the unwary with its fellow demons: illiteracy, racism, and corruption. It spreads over the airwaves and attacks a civil society, dividing people into social strata of rich and poor which soon becomes a chasm which no one can cross. 

Advent invites us to quiet reflection on our crying need for deliverance. We cannot stop the madness of modern life; no amount of angry protest will arouse even a murmur of alarm in the horde of shoppers. We must respond with grateful prayer that the Lord has shown us how to prepare for the Coming of the Lord. We have an instinctive knowledge of what God's Kingdom demands of us, and the Spirit of Advent prepares us to pay the price. Its cost is not half as severe as that of "Happy Holidays." 

We'll pay attention to the liturgical readings of Advent; the more fortunate will practice lectio divina and the Liturgy of the Hours; we'll confess our sins again; and practice reasonable restraint until the Lord himself invites us to sit down at his table and enjoy.