Tuesday after Advent 2

God of liberating disruptions,  grant us wisdom to identify the certitudes by which we live, and the courage to notice your governance even beyond our treasured certitudes.  In his name.  Amen

Psalm 26 

Amos 7:10-17

Revelation 1:9-16 

Matthew 22:34-46 

It is comforting to have an explanatory system that accounts for everything; and we all have them.  Such a system may be a theological orthodoxy that delivers unfailing assurance.  Or such a system may be a moral code that confidently reduces everything to simple right and wrong with appropriate rewards and punishments.  Or such a system may be an economic orthodoxy, like free-market capitalism, that can reduce everything to production and consumption.  Any such system  comforts us and keeps us safe.

In the purview of Advent thinking, however, any such system - theological, moral or economic - is an illusion.  It is sure to be interrupted and exposed as inadequate and placed in jeopardy.  In Christian life,  Advent is the big interruption of all our explanatory illusions.

- In the Amos reading, the liturgic certitude of Bethel is interrupted by the prophet who speaks of justice.  The priest banishes the prophet, but his words do not go away. 

-  In the book of Revelation the interruption takes the form of "a loud voice." In what follows after our text, the voice will confront the several churches with gospel truth.

-  In the Gospel reading, one of the Pharisees put a trick question to Jesus, trying to contain him in their brand of Torah interpretation.  He, however, outflanks them with his enigma statement that eludes their decipherment. 

In Advent it is useful to identify the explanatory systems on which we rely and then to consider how they are being disrupted in disconcerting ways.  We would mostly like to stop such interruption;  but, of course, we cannot.