Fr. Frank Majka, SJ – The Bridge

Impatient Waiting

In Advent the Church urges us to practice longing for God’s coming. The reading from Isaiah for the first Sunday of Advent spells it out: “O that You would rend the heavens and come down!” — a plea, almost a command in clearly apocalyptic language that God tear open the sky and change us and our world. Yes, Advent asks us to cultivate passionate impatience until the kingdom of this world becomes “the Kingdom of our God and of his Christ, who shall reign for ever and ever.”

Unfortunately, Christ’s coming may not be welcome by those who enjoy having power and influence in this world and who live without regard for the often desperate needs of others. They may not be so eager to have the Lord come, at least not for a long time because, as Mary says in her prayer in the second chapter of the gospel of Luke, God will fill the lowly with good things but send the rich away empty.

The last words of the Bible are, “Come Lord Jesus! Come quickly!” That’s the prayer the church prays in Advent. It may be good for us to ask ourselves if we can honestly pray that prayer and if we are ready to welcome the new world that Christ will bring.