Did you catch any of the “Armageddon Week” programming on the History Channel? From Nostradamus’ predictions of doom to the final hours on the ancient Mayan calendar, this cable network did everything in its power to whip us into a panic as the fateful year of 2012 approaches. If you haven’t heard, something cosmic is predicted to happen on December 21, 2012. It could mean the end of us (better celebrate Christmas early that year!) or it could mean the beginning of a whole new era of peace and enlightenment (that gets my vote!)
It seems that every few years we hear of some small sect that huddles in a cave and waits for the predicted end of the world. Inevitably, they are disappointed. This is nothing new to our time. Would you be surprised to learn that Christ’s Apostles were expecting the end of the world and Christ’s return during their time on earth? So too did the early church. They believed this so completely that the Church declared a person could only repent from sin once in their lifetime, in anticipation of an immanent end. Quite a crisis developed when the end didn’t come yet people kept on sinning.
Well here we are, a couple of millennia later, still waiting, still sinning, still praising God each week at the celebration of the Eucharist. We get a glimpse of the end of time when we gather here. Not a horrible fiery end but a time of fulfillment. Our table is the table that reflects the holy banquet in heaven. People of all ages, backgrounds, political views, and social status are welcomed here and joined as one to the Body of Christ.
The central focus of unity we experience here is our baptism. On this day when we conclude the Christmas season with the feast of the Baptism of The Lord, we have an opportunity to reflect upon our own baptism, perhaps not on the ceremony itself, but on what it means for our lives. Through baptism we are linked to Christ and one another for all time. Now that’s a cosmic happening!
In our society, which prizes individualism, being part of a group possesses many challenges. Through technology, the world gets smaller and smaller. We realize how closely all people (and life) on the planet is bound together. Unfortunately its things like global climate change and a global recession that cause us to see how connected we all are. For us baptized believers, these connections should remind us of Christ’s prayer on the night before he died: “Father, may they be one as you and I are one”.
It seems that in attempting to achieve oneness, sometimes something as basic as civil cooperation becomes an incredible task. Some people (and countries)
really don’t want to play in the sandbox and share their toys. Others cling to the power and authority that they think will save them. Add to this a huge amount of inequality, injustice, vindictiveness, hatred – well you get the picture –you certainly can be convinced that this is the end of time! Well, in the view of the Church – it is!
We call the time in which we live, between Christ’s resurrection and his second coming, the “end time”. This is the time to get our act together, a time to live out our baptism call. Christ may come back tomorrow; the world may be forever changed in the year 2012, who knows? The more important question to ponder is: “how have I lived out my baptismal commitment during my time here on earth? When all is said and done, will I have helped Christ bear light and peace to the world? Is this planet a holier place because of my presence?” It doesn’t really matter if it all ends tomorrow or goes on for millions and millions years more. What does matter to us Christians is faithfulness to our baptismal commitment to love and serve the Lord and each other. |
|
Last Updated ( Sunday, 01 February 2009 )
|
From Fr Fran 
