Our Lord himself reminds us that he will come “like a thief in the night” and at an hour when we do not expect. The Laborers in the Vineyard blithely abuse the Master’s emissaries and, consequently, feel the heat of his wrath when he finally returns. The Six Foolish Virgins let their lamps go out, and, consequently, they miss the coming of the Bridegroom. Several Bible passages warn of the importance of not falling asleep at the switch. In the midst of the Black Plague, the Irish Potato Famine or the world wars of the 20th century, I’m sure many wondered whether this might be the end.
Of course, the world has grown awfully dark in the past without bringing the Second Coming. It puts us in a properly apocalyptic mood, disposing us to raise our eyes from the gloom of the present life to consider more eschatological horizons. We might think of this as the silver lining to war, pestilence and cultural decline. End-times predictions also feel more credible when the world generally seems to be in a bad way. It helps, of course, that Advent comes in the final days of the calendar year, when the days are short and cold.
As we prepare to celebrate Christ’s coming to Palestine two millennia ago, we are simultaneously urged to prepare for Christ’s imminent return. Again, I do not know how long this world will endure.īut it really can’t hurt to have a sense of urgency about it, and Advent is precisely the time for reminding ourselves of this fact. In some people’s minds, this confession might mark me as a crank, just one step shy of having cozy chats with little green men. I might find myself writing about demographic trends 50 years hence, and the thought will flit into my mind, “If we’re still here, that is.” I’ll make some reference to my future grandchildren and privately think, “If we make it that far.” Nevertheless, the Mormons instilled in me the general sense that the curtain may drop on the grand drama of humanity more or less at any moment - and that impression lingers. It might be tomorrow, or we may muddle along for 5,000 more years. I definitely don’t have any insider information on when the world is going to end. A comportment, you understand, is not the same as a belief. I’m a Catholic now, but I was bemused to realize a few years back that I still have an “End Times” comportment. But, at 13 years old, it seemed like heady stuff. I’m fairly sure we weren’t the only generation to hear this. Practically on our doorsteps, in fact! “You are the generation,” we were told, “that must be prepared to meet your God!” My Sunday-school teachers taught me explicitly that the Apocalypse was near. I was raised in an “End Times” sort of church.
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