Advent begins

The season of Advent began today, and it is a reminder that we seek hope in dark times. The lectionary reading from Mark chapter 13 makes grim reading indeed. It talks of great tragedy, and pain, then the coming of Christ. But it makes little sense, the longer reading indicates that even Christ thought that he would return in the disciples lifetime (perhaps the resurrection is enough?)

The thrust of the scripture is that we need to be alert, to stay awake. Prayer, action, care for others is all part of our preparation for the coming of the true king. In this Advent season, we need to take care of each other, we need to take care of the stranger, we need to take care of our relationship with God. For this last part, we need to talk to God much more, and bring to him, through Christ, all our hopes and fears. We need to ask for guidance, and listen to that guidance when it comes. We need to let go of our need for security, and be prepared to be shocked into new beginnings.

The test of our Advent is how we hold the 'coming Christ' in Tension with the 'Christ in our midst'. Christ's kingdom of love and justice is clearly not here on earth, and yet experienced by us in our lives. Christ is present and yet his presence is not fully realised.

In this season of Advent, we look to the hope of Christ, and pray that our witness to him brings hope and joy to others. He is our light, we ask that we reflect that light onto the path of those who feel close to stumbling.