December 3, 2006 Sermon
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Advent 1 – C
December 3, 2006 8:00a.m. Allan Conkling
Today begins the new church year. God, who has brought us safe thus far, is opening a new chapter in our life together. The curtain rises on another year: the 21st of my ordained ministry, going into the 3rd as Rector of this parish, and the ______for Emmanuel, San Angelo. Unlike the Greek Stoics who regarded history as circular—like a treadmill going round and round; or the Cynics, who saw the world as basically pointless, we Christians believe that life has a point- that there is a goal and a purpose in life. We believe that everything has its final end and ultimate meaning in God, who has been most fully revealed in Jesus Christ. Advent, as the first season of the Church year brings us, as it always does, to the intersection of God’s time and our time: Kairos and Chronos. As has been done every year since the beginning, we Christians tell a story that is filled with hopes, dreams and promises; that story “of the good life” which we share as travelers on a journey of faith.
More and more, we Episcopalians find ourselves out of step with most other Protestant churches. Most churches don’t do Advent at all, which is always a mystery to me. Most places use this time as the countdown to Christmas – which in one hand it certainly is. But in our tradition there has always been more. Here, we aren’t just counting down the days until Christmas and the birth of the Baby Jesus. In fact nothing we read, except right at the very last week, is about the Baby Jesus. Today we are counting down the days until the end of time. Advent is about the end…the gathering in of all history into God. Early Christians expected the end to come at any time. [READ]:
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming on the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.”
Nowadays we say that there is no way of knowing when that end will come. And by spending all our time “looking up” we miss the beauty of the world around us.
And yet we if we are to be true to the spirit of Advent we are to be vigilant. This season calls us to live in joyful anticipation, not worrying about the end, but not forgetting it either. The purpose of this time is not to make us frightened or confused, but it is to help increase our depth of spirituality, to help us remember our place in the scheme of things, and to remind us that we are forever dependent not upon our selves or our own resourcefulness, but upon God, our creator and sustainer.
So let the season begin! [10:30—we celebrate “Youth Sunday”. What better way to think of the future than with our young people!] I invite you to start the new Christian year by making a different New Year’s resolution than what we will do in a month from now. First, resolve to anticipate. Make it a point over the next few weeks to stop what you are doing from time to time, and let things unfold according to God’s timing. Second, give thanks to God in all things and for all things. Third, get busy, but in a way that has nothing to do with party preparation or holiday shopping. Get busy living life to its fullest. Love exceedingly all of God’s creation. And be all that God would have you be. Stay awake to opportunities to serve and pray and give your life to Christ. And of course enjoy the day.
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Revised: 12/10/06