The Season of Advent and Christmas – #4
In Advent, we celebrate the memory of what has been, but we celebrate the hope of what will come. The idea that there will be a second coming. And this second coming will be glorious and with power.
Family of Nazareth, Stained Glass - Image Source
When Jesus returns in the second coming, he will come with power and glory. He will come to subdue all his enemies, to defeat the infernal empire once and for all, to judge the living and the dead, to resurrect all those who were called to life.
All of us, when we die, continue to live with God or far from God. When we die, the private judgment happens immediately. After our death, we see ourselves in God and will know where we will go.
If we choose God in this life, we will go to Heaven. If we have something to purify, we will go to Purgatory, but we will already be saved. And if we have the misfortune of dying far from God, we will go to Hell.
In the final judgment, all those who are already alive in eternity and those who are still alive on Earth will be judged; many people will not die, and many will be judged while still alive. And then there will be the resurrection of the flesh.
Family of Nazareth, Stained Glass - Image Source
Those who were lost will suffer these punishments eternally and physically, and those who are in Purgatory will go to Heaven. In Heaven, the souls of those who were saved will also be resurrected physically, gloriously, in a body that will not die, that will not get sick. And this will then be the great glory of Christ and the end of history. We enter eternity.
The story, time will end. We celebrate these two comings in Advent: the first in humility and the second in glory. And therefore, Advent is a time of expectation of waiting.
So, how should I prepare for this wait? I must prepare myself with penance. Yes, I must do penance in Advent. Advent is a time of penance. That's why the Church dresses in purple; Priests will wear purple vestments during Advent to highlight this penitential season.
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"The Adoration of the Magi" painting by Peter Paul Rubens - Image Source
But it is a penance a little different from the Lenten penance. Lenten penance is a penance in which we think exclusively about our distance from God. We think about our conversion, getting closer to God, seeking to correct defects, and associating our suffering with the suffering of Jesus because of the celebration of Easter, the Resurrection.
And in Advent, what changes? In Advent, penance is charged with a kind of vigilant joy. This penance brings joy to those who await the birth of the Savior.
Even Lenten penance brings a particular joy because it is the joy of Christ's victory in the Resurrection. Still, in the season of Advent, it is the joy of the coming of Christ who will triumph over everything and reign over everything.
To be continued...
Bibliography; Jesus Cristo, sua Vida, sua Paixão e seu Triunfo by Padre Augustin Berti
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