The .Plan

Starting today, the A Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack will be in heavy rotation on my iPod.

On this first Sunday of Advent, I am finding that I need to constantly remind myself of the ways in which I misunderstand the already and not yet of the kingdom of God. He is not holding out on us. The prophet Isaiah could not be plainer: God has acted decisively to redeem human history. We feel the “not yet” more keenly because we are the ones who are holding out on Him.

Several years ago, a friend of mine described the pathology of how we often stake our hearts on the idea that life begins when a certain event happens. Life begins when I… graduate from college, or from my Ph.D. program; or finish residency; or get married; or father a child; or become a homeowner. I often recognize the same tendency in myself, which is a massive disservice to God — to live or think in a way that suggests that the time I spend in a particular season is somehow a waste, and in doing so to fail to be a full participant in the exciting adventure that he is unfolding before me.

William Cavanaugh has written compellingly that the Christian life is about “practicing heaven now, on earth, even if it gets you killed. It’s not about making our way to Christ in some far-off eschaton; Christ is the way”.

So sang Mary:

My soul exalts the Lord,
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave;
For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.
For the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
And His mercy is upon generation after generation toward those who fear him.
He has done mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And has exalted those who were humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things;
And sent away the rich empty-handed.
He has given help to Israel His servant,
In remembrance of His mercy,
As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and his descendants forever.
–the Gospel of St. Luke, Chapter 1, vv.46-55

What has always appealed to me about this passage is that it is a beautiful expression of Mary’s long memory of God’s longsuffering and lovingkindness.

I often wonder what it was like to live during a time when the first coming was imminent. Perhaps it was easier. But then again, what does one make of the politics of a minority bastard child born to a father descended not just from David but also from Rahab and Ahaz, in a tiny corner of the Roman Empire, whose arrival, confirmed by the Magi, frightened a ruler of awesome geopolitical talent who built his regime through repression, persecution, and assassination? Through this veil the Christ child came smashing through into human history.

Now we are impelled to look beyond the first coming — to the second coming, when God’s promise will no longer be just a hint and the painful gap between hope and daily experience is closed.