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| Simon Marmion |
3rd Advent
1 Thessalonians 4, 13-18
We will not leave you in
ignorance, dear brothers, about how it is with those who have fallen asleep, so
that you may not grieve like the others who have no hope.
As surely as our heart
knows through faith that Jesus broke through death into resurrection, so sure
may we also be that God will lead to the same goal those who have fallen asleep
united with Christ.
This we announce to you as
a word that comes from Christ: we who live, and are preserved as living till
the time of the return of the Lord, will have no precedence over those who are
asleep.
So will it once be: when
the call resounds, the voice of the archangel thunders again, and the trumpets
sound which are heard out of the world of the Spirit, then will Christ, our
Lord, descend out of the spiritual heights. Then there will be awakened in the
spirit first those who have died in Christ. And afterwards we who live and
tread paths of earth will be taken up with them into the living world of the
spirit, to an encounter with Christ in the realm of the soul. Then shall we be
inseparably united with Him, the Risen One. With thoughts of this kind shall
you mutually uphold, encourage and strengthen each other.
3rd Advent
December 14, 2014
1 Thessalonians 4, 13-18
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| Helen Chamberlain |
At every sunset, the light disappears; but though we
may fear the dark, we trust that it is only temporary, for we know that the sun will rise again in the
morning. Every year we sense the growing darkness as we approach the longest
night. And yet in confidence we celebrate the slow return of the Christ-Sun
from the greater darkness of the year.
Christ was born on earth a
long time ago. He died. Today he is coming to us again. The archangel is
announcing His arrival. He is drawing near, and the mighty gates of heaven will
open and we will approach Him in spirit-awareness. The light of Christ will be
born within us, illuminating us from within.
In the inner and outer
darkness of our times, we may feel both besieged and forsaken. Yet we may also
cultivate fortitude and bravery in facing our inner and outer demands. Our
fortitude and courage in our trials allow us to develop our presence of mind. We
stay present; we neither flee nor rage. Rather we hold ourselves still and
awake, so that we can remain standing when true spiritual reality breaks in
upon us.
