Deacon Mike Meyer / Sunday, December 1, 2024 / Categories: Blog, Homilies I Feel Fine Homily for the First Sunday in Advent, Year C In 1987, the American alternative rock band R.E.M. released a song on its fifth album that would develop somewhat of a cult following. The track is a rapid-fire, stream of consciousness rant covering just about everything that lyricist Michael Stipe didn’t like about the world, with a few things he liked mixed in for good measure. Although not wildly popular at the time, “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” seems to generate renewed interest whenever history hands us an event that people interpret as a sign that the end is nigh. Sales jumped 500 percent during the week of the supposed Mayan Apocalypse in 2012, and online downloads of the tune grew 184 percent and streams 48 percent during the COVID-19 pandemic. We’ve even heard it mournfully played by the losing side after the past few national elections. The song’s message rings true because it is the end of the world as we know it, not because of any of the reasons I mentioned but because Jesus said it is. Today’s readings and the Advent season challenge us to consider how we feel about that. The violet trappings, the absence of the Gloria, and, of course, the colorful wreath remind us that today is the First Sunday of Advent. Advent, we know, is the liturgical season that helps us prepare spiritually for Jesus’ birth at Christmas, but it’s also a time to consider and contemplate his second coming at the end of time. You see, “the Church uses the beginning of Advent, which is the beginning of our liturgical year, to remind us of our end,”[1] the reason we needed Jesus in the first place. What will that end be like? At first blush, Jesus’ forecast of nations in dismay, roaring seas and waves, and people dying of fright doesn’t paint the rosiest picture for us. But a closer look shows that Jesus is giving us a pep talk. He’s encouraging us to stand up straight, raise our heads, and be vigilant when we see these signs because our redemption, bought with the price of his own blood, is at hand. “Despite [his] disconcerting description of the cataclysmic end of the world, [Jesus is reassuring] the faithful that God’s promised salvation will . . . come to pass.”[2] Jeremiah’s prophecy in our first reading reinforces his message, assuring us that the faithful will be safe and secure when the Messiah reigns. And therein lies the catch. Today’s readings offer the hope of salvation to the faithful – to all who live as God intended for us to live, to all who love as Jesus taught us to love. Our Psalm reminds us that “the friendship of the Lord is with those who fear him,” those who hold him in awe, reverence, and yes, a little trepidation. Saint Paul, in our second reading, tells us how, encouraging us to “abound in love for one another and for all” and “to be blameless in holiness” when Jesus comes again. What does all of this mean? It means that if we follow Jesus, we’ll have nothing to fear at the end of time. Of course, we may still fear the sufferings and failures we experience in this world, and that’s natural, but if we follow Christ, we can live with the calm assurance right now that the end of the world as we know it will usher in a new world of perfect peace, justice, and love. Now, let me be clear because Jesus is clear: the final battle between good and evil at the end of time “will assault everyone.” All who choose evil should be shaking in their boots, but those who follow Christ should stand steadfast in our sure faith that God’s promised salvation is near. So, how do we feel about that? If we’re confident that we’ve lived our lives as God commanded, we should feel fine, but we need to be careful that we’re not complacent about it. I would bet that most people pay little attention to God during the average day, but when times get tough, we run back, begging God for help because we know that we can’t get through it without God’s help. If my suspicion is correct, we’re sending God mixed messages about our commitment to God’s side. “The person who goes out in the morning without prayer is, in effect, saying: ‘I can tackle today quite well on my own.’ The person who goes to bed without speaking to God is, in effect, saying: ‘I can bear on my own whatever consequences today has brought.’”[3] For many, then, myself included, the failure to live as Jesus taught may have its roots in trying to live well without God’s help, and that’s impossible. Sure, we believe in God, but do we choose to include God in every aspect of our lives? We need to choose God over everything and everyone else. We need to practice our faith with even greater dedication and determination than we devote to sports, music lessons, or our jobs. And guess what? Advent is the perfect time to recommit ourselves to God, to choose the life that God wants us to live, and devote ourselves to prayer, penance, and charitable works. Pick an item from our Giving Tree in the Narthex to give a little Christmas joy to a family in need. Come to First Friday Adoration on December 6 and spend some time with our Lord in prayer. Go to confession, where God relieves us of the burden of sin and reconciles us to himself. We’re even offering a two-for-one special at our parish retreat on December 15, where we’ll have Adoration and confession, with a bonus presentation on the spirituality of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol thrown in for good measure. Now there’s a great book about what not to do if you want get into heaven and the power of God’s redeeming love. We don’t know the day or the hour when Christ will come and the world as we know it will end, so we need to be ready for it at any time. If today’s readings tell us anything, it’s that God wants nothing more than to welcome us into his eternal Kingdom at the end of time. But in the end, whether we get there is up to us. We need to be vigilant; we need to pray; we need to choose God and make God our priority right now. Let’s use this Advent to order and conduct our lives as God intended. If we do, when the world comes to its end, we’ll be able to confidently join the heavenly chorus singing: “It’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine!” Readings: Jeremiah 33:14-16; Psalm 25; 1 Thessalonians 3:12-4:2; Luke 21:25-28, 34-36 [1] Peter Kreeft. Food for the Soul: Reflections on the Mass Readings (Cycle C) (Park Ridge, IL: Word on Fire, 2021), 31. [2] Normand Bonneau, The Sunday Lectionary: Ritual Word, Paschal Shape (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1998), 132. [3] William Barclay, The Letters to the Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians, The New Daily Study Bible (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003), 228. Rules! I Feel Fine Print 9 Please login or register to post comments.