God is a thief…

First Sunday of Advent
Gospel: Mt 24:37-44
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/113025.cfm

Today is the first day of Advent; the season preparing us for the coming of Jesus; the moment when the creator becomes the created. To kick off this season, we have today’s gospel. In this gospel, Jesus speaks of the coming of the son of man as being like the flood or a thief in the night.

Jesus provides different images of people keeping up with their day-to-day activities. He speaks of eating and drinking, marrying and being given to marriage, working in the fields, milling, sleeping. In the midst of all these activities, something miraculous is going on. Something truly transformational could be occurring just under the surface, but goes unnoticed. The divine encounter could be happening to us at any moment, but we stay lost in our daily activities. This experience of God is not limited to a time or place but is always around us and has the potential to be noticed and participated in.

Twice in this gospel, Jesus provides an alternative to us being lost in the stupor of our activities by telling us to remain awake.  We have the capacity to see beyond the repetitions of human endeavors to the greater truth that is at play. For our egos, the divine encounter is like a thief in the night. God steals the false securities, pretenses, and foundations we maintain for ourselves so that they can become something more. God, in every moment, is revealing truth and beauty, but we must keep ourselves awake to see it. Transformation is difficult so it is easy for us to overlook. Even change for the better is a risk as it takes us into the unknown, beyond our current certitudes.

Through this season, may we open ourselves up more to this divine encounter. May we see beyond the monotony of our daily lives to encounter the living God who is always and actively transforming the world around us.