Advent: A Time to Uphold the Normalcy of Justice

1 Advent A      December 1, 2019
Is. 2:1-5      Psalms 122
Rom. 13:8-14   Matt. 24:37-44


 Lectionary Link 

  Today is the First Sunday of Advent and that means it is first day of the New Year, the Christian New Year, so Happy New Year!  Did you party hearty last night to bring in the New Year?  Or did you forget about the Christian New Year, again?    So, why do we have a church calendar?  Why do we have calendars and watches and all measures and qualifications of time?  One of the tasks of life is to influence our orientation to time.  We are born to organize time.  So, we have clocks and calendars.  Today, the church calendar has many competing calendars.  We have many orientations for the times of our lives.  We have fiscal calendars, we have school calendars, entertainment calendars, concert calendars, we have agricultural calendars, we have commercial calendars, (the know, the one where Christmas begins the day after Halloween), we have personal family calendars built around the birthdays and anniversaries of family members, political calendars, work and job calendars, we have sports calendars galore for every sport on every level.  Every calendar that we follow provides specific orientation toward directing our activities in time.

        The church calendar did not always have so many competing calendars.  The modern era has created so many social occasions in life requiring many calendars to organize alternative participation to church life.

        So, what is the church calendar and its purpose?  And what is the meaning of the season of Advent?  When we try to study history, we can't study it all at once.  We break it up into time periods and location of people.  We establish curricula to study the entire body of knowledge in bits and pieces.

         The church calendar is an annual cycle of the presentation of the full body of Christian knowledge.  In short, the church calendar is a curriculum of Christian knowledge.  It is a method of progressive learning and repetitive review of themes in our faith based upon the events in the life of Jesus and the theology of that these events came to have in the early church and church history.

          So, what are the themes of Advent?  Advent means coming.  Advent is a season of two comings.  If the Messiah came first as a babe in Bethlehem but then died as the Suffering Servant Messiah, there had to be a second coming to be a theological corrective to fulfill the definition of the Messiah by many Jews.  For the followers of Jesus, there were other comings of Christ between the first coming and a future great coming.  Jesus came again from the dead in his post-resurrection appearances.  In the theology of the early church Jesus left in the Ascension, only to return in the experience of Pentecost in the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is also the Spirt of Christ.  Still Jewish Messianic theology required a conquering kingly Messiah, and so there arose the theology of the big Second Coming of Christ as a future figure of corrective justice for a suffering world.  The big second coming and return of Christ was what the early church needed as way to answer the Jewish belief that Jesus of Nazareth did not qualify for the full definition of a Davidic, kingly Messiah.  The Second Coming theology fulfilled the fuller definition of what the Messiah should be.

     Advent is a season about anticipating a big second coming of Christ.  Why do we need such a discourse of the second coming?  We need the Second Coming, because we need to continue to believe in the normalcy of justice.  We need to believe in fairness.  We need to believe that eventually in some ways, all accounts will be settled.  We need to believe in the normalcy of agricultural complex for feeding the people of the world, over the industrial military complexes of the world which have been the lifestyle of humanity at war.  (We wish the resources of the world could be used to feed and care for people, rather than be dominated by swords and the weapons of warfare). 

         The oracle words of Risen Christ given in the Gospel words were to prepare the Christians for the uneven events of what can arise in the free conditions of the world.  Like in the days of Noah a flood can arise and wipe out lots of people.  In the time of the early church, Jerusalem would be destroyed; there would be uneven persecutions and martyrdoms.  Like in the days of Noah, some were taken away in the death,  while others are left behind to survive and keep the church alive and well.

     In the modern era, many have let themselves be dismissive of Advent and the Second Coming of Christ discourse.  Why?  The fundamentalists have literalized them as exactly predicative of specific futures, and 1000's of apocalyptic preachers have tried to predict the exact dates of the end of the world, even though they were told by Jesus that no one knows the end, but only the eternal father.  And if only the Father knows, who is everlasting, it means there is no end day, there is only the latest day.  Time means that there will only always be the latest day.  Life is continuous, but we live by the unit of the story with beginnings and endings; we need book ends for stories even while we know that arbitrary beginning and endings of stories cannot limit the continuity of time.  Our entertainment life is full of stories of endings and the exacting of justice by the good guys over the bad guys.  If people have left the church and the stories of Advent justice, they still embrace the Advent themes in their novels, science fiction and cinema.

      During this season of Advent, let us be comfortable with the normalcy of justice and when we know poignantly, that we don't live in a fair and just world, we still do not give up the ideals of justice.  We continue to make an Advent station at the story of the second coming of Christ as our belief in eternal justice and our hope that a God-human being can persuade all this cosmos into a harmonic unity.

       We will keep forever, the Advent second coming tradition, because in the worst of times, our entire being recoils against injustice.  And in Advent, we profess that we live toward justice as what we believe should finally win in this world.

        Let us not be uncomfortable with the language of the Second Coming of Christ; if we deny it in our faith, we will find it in the secular culture where many people have gone to find the story forms for belief in justice.  But let us not be so proud in our rightness, that we think God will and should intervene to prove that our particular view and lifestyle is better than anyone else's.  The fundamentalists essentially believe in the Second Coming of Christ as way to say that God is going to come and prove them right.  Let us not use the stories of the second coming of Christ to trivialize God in such way; but let us seek solace in the stories which proclaim the justice of a loving, winsome, Christ, forever.  Amen.

Sunday School, December 1, 2019 1 Advent Cycle A

Sunday School, December 1, 2019     1 Advent Cycle A

Themes:

The Beginning of Christian New Year

Review the calendars in our lives.  The Gregorian Calendar that we use.  School calendars, Sports Calendars, Work Calendar, Concert Season Calendars.  The Country’s Patriotic Time and Official Holidays.

Have children list the number of calendars in their lives.  Calendars are used to measure time.  Different calendars measure time in different ways depending upon the human events which are occurring at different times.

The Church Calendar

Why do we have one?  Because we want to schedule that time that we give to God, through learning throughout the year about the meaning of God for our lives.

How does the Church Calendar work?  It works like a school curriculum.  The church takes the Christian program of learning and divides it into a yearly cycle to presentation.  The year is divided into six seasons.  These seasons give us the opportunity to review each year different teachings about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and the life of the church.

What are the seasons?  Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter and Pentecost

What does Advent mean?  It means “Coming.”  It refers to the first coming of Christ when he came as the baby Jesus at Christmas.  So the season of Advent is a time to prepare for Christmas.  It also refers to the future comings of Christ in our lives and the life of the world.  We believe that Christ will come to our future and this gives us hope that the future can be better no matter what seems to be happening in our lives or in our world.

What do we read during Advent from the Bible?  We read about John the Baptist and how he helped prepared the way for Jesus.  We also read about the future and how God will establish fairness and justice and how the promise of fairness in the future can help us survive now when we realize that our lives are not perfect and some harmful things are happening now even to good people.  During Advent, we believe that a future perfect world is still calling us as a model for how we can become better.

What is an important word during Advent?  Repent.  Repent means to Educate ourselves to keep changing our minds with better knowledge and wisdom, not just to know more, but to change our behavior as a way of preparing to greet Jesus as our friend.

A Sermon:

Happy New Year!  Did you have a big New Year Eve’s party last night?  Did you know that today is the first day of the new Christian Year.  Today is the First Sunday of Advent.  Let us renew our Seasons of the Christian Year.  Repeat after me.  Advent.  Christmas. Epiphany.  Lent East and Pentecost.  Now what is the color for the Season of Advent?  Purple.  And what kind of season is Advent?  Is it a celebrating season like Christmas and Easter?  No, it is a serious season.  A season of training and preparation.  Sometimes with all of the early Christmas parties, Advent is just seen as a speed bump in the road as people are racing to a Christmas celebration.

  Advent is a time for us to pray just a little bit more.  To give just a little bit more to those who are needy.  And to take good care of our selves.  Take good care of our bodies.  We see all of the Christmas sweets coming out early, but remember Advent is a time to prepare and take care of ourselves.  And why should we take care of our selves and our world?

  Because Advent means: Coming.  We are preparing for the coming of someone very important.  When someone special is coming to your house, what do you do?  You rush around and clean up the house.  You fix some special food because you want everything just right for the coming of the special people in your life.

  During Advent, we prepare our selves for the coming of Jesus Christ.  And Christ comes to us in many ways.  Christ came to us as the Baby Jesus in the manger, and that is what we celebrate at Christmas.  Christ comes to us each day in special way through the love and care of our family and friends.  Christ comes to us as we gather to bless the bread and the wine and receive the presence of Christ into our hearts and as we know that Christ is as near to us as the bread and wine become after we eat and drink.  We also believe that Christ will come in our future in many special ways.

  So, Advent is a season of preparation, when we make our selves always ready for the special coming of Christ in our lives.

  So before we rush to Christmas celebrations, let us remember that we are in the season of Advent.  And Advent is a special season of preparation for the coming of Christ.  Is Christ welcome in your home?  Is Christ welcome in your life?  Of course he is.  Advent is season when we practice for the welcoming of Christ into our lives.  Amen.

An Intergenerational Holy Eucharist

December 1, 2019  The First Sunday of Advent, A

Gathering Songs: We Light the Advent Candles, If You’re Happy and You Know It,  Father, I Adore You,  Soon and Very Soon

Liturgist: Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

People: And blessed be God’s kingdom, now and forever.  Amen.

Liturgist:  Oh God, Our hearts are open to you.

And you know us and we can hide nothing from you.

Prepare our hearts and our minds to love you and worship you.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Song:  We Light the Advent Candles (While lighting the first purple candle)

We light the Advent candles against the winter night, to welcome our Lord Jesus who is the world’s True Light, to welcome our Lord Jesus who is the World’s True Light.

The first one will remind us that Christ will soon return.  We light it in the darkness and watch it gleam and burn.  We light it in the darkness and watch it gleam and burn.

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Litany of Praise: Alleluia

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

O God, you have made yourself known to us!  Alleluia

O God, you have provided us with us a Savior!  Alleluia

O God, you have given us a Christian family!  Alleluia

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

O God, you brought your Son Jesus back from the dead!  Alleluia

A reading from the Prophet Isaiah

For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.  He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. 

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 122

Peace be within your walls *and quietness within your towers.

For my brethren and companions' sake, * I pray for your prosperity.

Because of the house of the LORD our God, * I will seek to do you good."

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God!

Litanist:

For the good earth, for our food and clothing. Thanks be to God!

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

For the talents and gifts that you have given to us. Thanks be to God!

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

For health and for a good night’s sleep. Thanks be to God!

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

For the happy events of our lives. Thanks be to God!

For the celebration of the birthdays and anniversaries of our friends and parish family.

   Thanks be to God!

Liturgist:         The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

Jesus said to the disciples, "But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour."

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon – 

Children’s Creed

We did not make ourselves, so we believe that God the Father is the maker of the world.

Since God is so great and we are so small,

We believe God came into our world and was born as Jesus, son of the Virgin Mary.

We need God’s help and we believe that God saved us by the life, death and

     resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We believe that God is present with us now as the Holy Spirit.

We believe that we are baptized into God’s family the Church where everyone is

     welcome.

We believe that Christ is kind and fair.

We believe that we have a future in knowing Jesus Christ.

And since we all must die, we believe that God will preserve us forever.  Amen.

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy.

For fighting and war to cease in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For peace on earth and good will towards all. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety of all who travel. Christ, have mercy.

For jobs for all who need them. Christ, have mercy.

For care of those who are growing old. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety, health and nutrition of all the children in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For the well-being of our families and friends. Christ, have mercy.

For the good health of those we know to be ill. Christ, have mercy.

For the remembrance of those who have died. Christ, have mercy.

For the forgiveness of all of our sins. Christ, have mercy.

Youth Liturgist:          The Peace of the Lord be always with you.

People:                        And also with you.

Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering

Song: If You’re Happy and You Know It (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 124)

If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.  If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.  If you’re happy and you know it, then your face should surely show it.  If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.

…Make a high five…. 

…shout Amen!….

Doxology

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below.

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Prologue to the Eucharist

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, for to them belong the kingdom of God.”

All become members of a family by birth or adoption.

Baptism is a celebration of birth into the family of God.

A family meal gathers and sustains each human family.

The Holy Eucharist is the special meal that Jesus gave to his friends to keep us together as the family of Christ.

The Lord be with you

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to God.

It is right to give God thanks and praise.

It is very good and right to give thanks, because God made us, Jesus redeemed us and the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts.  Therefore with Angels and Archangels and all of the world that we see and don’t see, we forever sing this hymn of praise:

Holy, Holy, Holy (Intoned)

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of Power and Might.  Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the Highest.

(All may gather around the altar)

Our grateful praise we offer to you God, our Creator;

You have made us in your image

And you gave us many men and women of faith to help us to live by faith:

Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachael.

And then you gave us your Son, Jesus, born of Mary, nurtured by Joseph

And he called us to be sons and daughters of God.

Your Son called us to live better lives and he gave us this Holy Meal so that when we eat the bread and drink the wine, we can know that the Presence of Christ is as near to us as this food and drink that becomes a part of us.

And so, Father, we bring you these gifts of bread and wine. Bless and sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Sanctify us by your Holy Spirit so that we may love God and our neighbor.

On the night when Jesus was betrayed he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to his friends, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper, Jesus took the cup of wine, gave thanks, and said, "Drink this, all of you. This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Father, we now celebrate the memorial of your Son. When we eat this holy Meal of Bread and Wine, we are telling the entire world about the life, death and resurrection of Christ and that his presence will be with us in our future.

Let this holy meal keep us together as friends who share a special relationship because of your Son Jesus Christ.  May we forever live with praise to God to whom we belong as sons and daughters.

By Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

And now as our Savior Christ has taught us, we now sing,

Our Father: (Renew # 180, West Indian Lord’s Prayer)

Our Father who art in heaven:  Hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done: Hallowed be thy name.

Done on earth as it is in heaven: Hallowed be thy name.

Give us this day our daily bread: Hallowed be thy name.

And forgive us all our debts: Hallowed be thy name.

As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.

But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory: Hallowed be thy name.

Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Breaking of the Bread

Celebrant:       Alleluia, Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia.

Words of Administration

Communion Song:   Father, I Adore You (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 56)

1          Father, I adore you, lay my life before you, how I love you.

2          Jesus….

3          Spirit…

Post-Communion Prayer

Everlasting God, we have gathered for the meal that Jesus asked us to keep;

We have remembered his words of blessing on the bread and the wine.

And His Presence has been known to us.

We have remembered that we are sons and daughters of God and brothers

    and sisters in Christ.

Send us forth now into our everyday lives remembering that the blessing in the

     bread and wine spreads into each time, place and person in our lives,

As we are ever blessed by you, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Closing Song: Soon and Very Soon (Renew! # 276)

1-Soon and very soon, we are going to see the King; soon and very soon we are going to see the King.  Soon and very soon, we are going to see the King.  Alleluia, alleluia, we are going to see the King.

2-No more dying there, we are going to see the King.  No more dying there, we are going to see the King.  No more dying there we are going to see the King.  Alleluia, alleluia, we are going to see the King.

3.  Repeat verse 1

Dismissal:   

Liturgist: Let us go forth in the Name of Christ.

People: Thanks be to God! 

Sunday School, November 27, 2016      1 Advent Cycle A

Apocalyptic as Abstract Thinking about the Future

1 Advent A      November 27, 2016
Is. 2:1-5      Psalms 122
Rom. 13:8-14   Matt. 24:37-44

Lectionary Link

           Happy New Year!  Happy Christian New Year on this first Sunday of Advent.  Advent refers to coming!  Advent is a time for using the language of the future to inspire our lives in the present time.

The Bible is full of language about what is coming.  It is a book of futurism.  But what do we know about the future?  Future is only a function of the present because we can only speak about the future in the present.  So, language about the future is meant to affect our lives right now.

We live by a beckoning toward what is not yet.  And so, we like to anticipate what is not yet.  In our lives, we live by what we call probable outcomes.  In our commonsense lives, we observe what we might call statistical probability.  We know that there are likely predictive outcomes for most things in life.  In fact, we don’t even think about most predictive outcomes.  We have memorized so many redundancies that we take for granted most predictive outcomes.  In fact, when the usual outcome does not happen, then it stands out as unique.

In our commonsense moral lives, we assume what is natural and normal is goodness and freedom from pain.  We assume that fairness should govern our lives.   And when our commonsense universe of goodness, justice and freedom from pain is not the rule of the day, the moral order of the entire world seems to be upset.  When the moral order seems to be upset in our lives and  in societies at large, we call this a crisis.

      During crises, leaders are needed.  Inspiration is needed to help comfort the people in crisis and to help visualize potential future end of the crises.

       Much of biblical literature was written during times of crises when the moral order of goodness and freedom from pain was upset for a significant group of people of faith.  Prophets and teachers arose in these communities of faith to try to comfort people in pain and suffering.  Prophets came to inspire by presenting a visualization of a future beyond the current situation of pain.

         Advent is a season of a future beyond the current pain of life.  Advent is a season of visualizing a better world to inform the world now living with the imperfect practice of justice and love.

In the Bible, such literature is called “apocalyptic” discourse and it is a language of the future.  We read about language of the future in the times of biblical writers, but if the language of the future events written down by writers of the Bible has not resulted in those events actually occurring, what does this tell about apocalyptic and future language?  It tells us that the language functioned to comfort the people who were experiencing a time of crisis in their lives when the commonsense moral order of the world seemed to be upset for a significant number of people of faith.

We’ve read a variety of apocalyptic language today from our appointed Bible readings.  Some apocalyptic language is utopian language.  The prophet Isaiah wrote about perfect arbitration for all the nations of the earth, so perfect that the entire military industrial complex will be converted to agricultural enterprise.  The swords will be beaten into plowshares.  War will not be studied any longer.  How’s that for a rosy future?  How many of you believe such a future awaits us in our lifetimes?  The Psalmist wrote about an idealized Jerusalem and yet requests for prayers for the peace of Jerusalem.  Jerusalem, the city of peace, has been anything but that for most of the years of its history.  St. Paul wrote even though the salvation of Christ has arrived, there is some more salvation which was soon to come.  Yes, people knew certain degree of spiritual health, and yet there was still significant more to come.  The Gospels have writing within them which include language of futurism, language of the apocalyptic.  Sometimes the early Christians were living in peace and comfort and during those times, it seemed as those God’s kingdom had arrived as the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives. But sometimes the early Christians went through times of suffering and persecution and were even subject to martyrdom.  During these times the oracle of Christ occurred within their communities to comfort them to indicate an intervention to end the time suffering.  The metaphors and images of the apocalyptic were used to proclaim that suffering, would at some point have an end.  So, we have the futurism that people often call the rapture, the theme of either being left behind or taken.

One can see in apocalyptic writing various language used for motivation and for comfort.  Behavioral psychologists refer to at least two forms of stimulus response in learning behaviors, positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement.  And probably most of us would like to think that we respond best to positive reinforcement.  For our apocalyptic language we probably prefer the Walt Disney approach to a future utopian world even though we know it is a serious abstraction from what is actual in the world.  Utopian apocalyptic discourse is the positive reinforcement of a war-free world.

If we’re honest, sometimes it is only the fear of punishment or future harm which influences us to learn better behaviors.  We don’t like to admit that discourses about what we fear can motivate us.  But they do.  And so in the apocalyptic genre we have language of negative reinforcement.  If you know that your house might be broken into and robbed or injury come to you, what would you do?  You prepare with an alarm system or a security guard.  The possibility of bad things happening influences how we behave now.  The apocalyptic discourse of the Bible includes the language of negative reinforcement.

Biblical apocalyptic language used language of the future.  We are now living in a future many years after the language of the  apocalyptic was used in the Bible.  And that future has not occurred.  So, what does that tell us about apocalyptic futurism?  It tells us that apocalyptic language is an abstraction from the hard reality of life.  Apocalyptic language presents us with rather stark contrasts with what is happening in actual life and for what purposes?

It is for the purpose of survival that such visions of hope are proclaimed  to us to enable us to live by faith now, no matter what happens.  As much as we may want to wish the free conditions of life to permit only good and positive things to happen, we know that this is not true to life.

We know that to varying degrees good and ill are spread unevenly across the years of our lives and across the world even now.   We know it is always the best of times and the worst of times somewhere and somehow.

You and I need to have actuarial ability to live with the free conditions of time.  So did the people for whom the words of the Bible were originally written.  The reason that Bible has inspired relevance for us today is that we like people of all time live under the conditions of everything that can possibly happen to us.

We need a variety of instruction and teaching about the future to help us live our lives in a state of preparation for what is yet to come.

What is coming to your life?  What Advent of God is coming to your life?  What Advent of God is coming to your family?  To our parish?  To our state, country and world?  The apocalyptic language teaches us the abstract thinking of probability thinking so that we might be both comforted and motivated to live with purposeful faith in our lives today.

The Advent of Christ is always the future beckoning to us.  Let us live toward the Advent Christ.  In the most relevant way, the Advent of Christ for each of us is surpassing oneself in excellence in a future state.   The future Phil in different conditions of time beckons the current Phil in the current conditions of this time and place.   Let each of us look to surpass ourselves in excellence as we know the motivational relevance of the continuous Advent of Christ in our lives today.  Amen.