God of newness, give us honesty about our present illusions. Give us readiness for your newness that eludes all our categories. In his name, Amen.
Psalm 47
Zechariah 2:1-13
Revelation 3:14-22
Matthew 24:32-41
The present world of modern morality, advanced technology, and uncompromising ideology feels like (and claims to be) a closed system in which all possibilities for the future are well in hand. It is an arrangement of power and resources that benefits some at the cruel expense of others.
Advent is the awareness that this seemingly closed, guaranteed system is rendered penultimate by the holy power of God We can see in the Gospel reading how the rhetoric strains to give voice to possibility of newness in the world that seems close to perpetuity. The Matthew tradition has Jesus appeal to the old imagery of a rescuer sent by God on the wings of a cloud, an agent of such awesome power that his entry will not be resisted.
According to Zechariah, a "man" will, in the opening for newness, make possible a new Jerusalem where God will dwell. That new city of justice and righteousness in Israel's imagination, will be the epicenter of a new heaven of presence and a new earth of justice. It will not be like the old, current, fractious Jerusalem of lethal political quarrels, but a metaphor for and embodiment of all things new.
The church in Laodicea is chided for being "lukewarm," refusing to decide. So it is with many of us, lukewarm about a choice between an old impenetrable system or a newness that centers in God's own presence. Advent is a time to break out of lukewarm indifference, to opt for the coming newness of God. Faithful witness is to recognize the illusions of well-being in present tense, to walk through the door into God's new world.
Walter Bruggemann: Gift and Task
I am finding that this book is indispensable for my daily practice. It's more edifying than concentrating on how it feels to breathe. As you can see from my more superficial posts, I need the practice, a lot.
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