Psalms 31, 35; Haggai 1:1-15; Matt. 23:27-39; Rev. 2:18-39
I write this as I’m on a train from D.C. to New York City, and with the boarding and disembarking, I feel I’m in a Hitchcock movie: where momentous things happen when we weren’t paying attention. Or, something happens and we fear the culprit, though known to us, might get away with it. Hitchcock films like Shadow of a Doubt and Strangers on a Train are suspense thrillers, where we know ‘whodunnit’ and spend the rest of the movie guessing when and if the perpetrator will get caught.
The sacred season of Advent is a lot like a suspense thriller: we are waiting for something that already happened. We already know what God did. Assuming Jesus of Nazareth died in 33 CE, it was 2,017 years ago when our God—who is known to intervene in human a airs—made the ultimate intervention. St. John the Evangelist describes this intervention poetically, “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)
Like riding on a train, Advent is a time to pause and reflect. Advent is that time of peace, joy, hope, and expectation. Our image of children waiting for Santa to bring gifts is a secular analogy of our waiting again for the Gift God has for all of us. But, our waiting is symbolic, for we already know what we got. We’re actually waiting for what’s already happened. Advent should be a celebration of God’s Gift, Who came before and will come again. The Incarnation (God becoming human in the form of Jesus) is a hallmark of our faith. no wonder we get into the Christmas so early; we know what’s happened and can’t wait to re-live it!
As we march toward the Feast of the Holy Nativity, let us not apologize for our saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. he is the greatest gift God could have given us. We already know God “dunnit.” All we need now is for the whole world to “catch him!”
Heavenly Father, teach us how to wait joyfully for the One Who was, Who is, and Who is to come. Amen.
The Rt. Rev. Carl Wright
Bishop Suffragan
ARMED SERVICES AND FEDERAL MINISTRIES
THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Wright was elected Bishop Suffragan at the Fall 2016 House of Bishops Meeting in Detroit Michigan and will be consecrated Bishop at the Washington National Cathedral on February 11, 2017 by The Most Rev. Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church. Wright has been active in the Episcopal Church both as a civilian priest and an Air Force Chaplain. Wright enlisted in the US Air Force in 1978. Following his initial enlistment Wright was commissioned as an Infantry Officer in the Maryland Army National Guard, and U.S. Army Reserve. In 1993 Wright was commissioned as a Chaplain, US Air Force until his retirement as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2011.
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