Waiting-in-action

Advent means a "coming". The season of Advent which starts today, is a liturgical and ritualistic remembering of the first coming of Christ to become one among us. Christmas. But beyond the remembering is the reality that Christ comes to us in our day-to-day life. Are we aware of this? Do we in fact respond to his loving, persistent presence in our lives, so that when the moment of our mortal death comes, He finds us waiting-in-action?

In faith, I take this more as the relevant meaning of today’s Gospel parable in our lives. "Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come" (Mk. 13: 33-37). We cannot afford to be caught unaware. Each day that comes is a day closer to our death. We do not know the exact day or hour. All we know is that our time is precious and limited. And whether we are aware of it or not, our lives are constantly changing and fragile. So we better "be watchful" for the signs of Christ’s unmistakable presence in our daily lives, so that we can constantly respond by loving-in-action. Loving God and loving our neighbor as we love ourselves.

Otherwise, if we keep referring to Christ’s coming as the Second Coming at the end of time or parousia, we will tend to continually delay, procrastinate, or even forget our intended response to Christ’s call.

As the spiritual writer J. Donders once wrote: "If we expect Jesus only in the end, then we are co-responsible for Christ’s absence in this world here and now."

This is precisely what is happening in our country today. So many Christian Filipinos from all sectors of our society are not yet responding to Christ’s presence in their lives. Let today’s Gospel message be a divine warning to us all, while there is still time. On the other hand, there are quite a number of our people who are truly responding to Christ’s presence in the here-and-now, without waiting for the parousia. There is hope for our country.

I am reminded of a Sufi story that goes this way: "Past the seeker, as he prayed, came the crippled and the beggar and the beaten. And seeing them, the holy one went down into deep prayer and cried, ‘Great God, how is it that a loving creator can see such things and yet do nothing about them?’ And out of a long silence, God said: ‘I did do something about them. I made you.’"

Brothers and Sisters, that means you and me. All of us. That’s more than just a Sufi anecdote. That’s God’s mission for us who are not crippled and begging and beaten. And with God’s grace, there is indeed hope for our country. Let us be watchful but not passive. Let us be waiting-in-action, loving in all directions.

It is in this connection that I will mention again Atty. Alexander Lacson’s patriotic primer which has been gaining momentum among more and more groups. His 12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country. One of the latest institutions that invited him was our own Loyola School of Theology for their Theological Hour last Wednesday. For the benefit of our readers who still do not know about them, here are the 12 Little Things in summary form:

"1.Follow traffic rules. Follow the law.

2. Whenever you buy or pay for anything, always ask for an official receipt.

3. Don’t buy smuggled goods. Buy local. Buy Filipino.

4. When you talk to others, especially foreigners, speak positively about us and our country.

5. Respect your traffic officer, policeman, and soldier.

6. Do not litter. Dispose your garbage properly. Segregate. Recycle. Conserve.

7. Support your church.

8. During elections, do your solemn duty.

9. Pay your employees well.

10. Pay your taxes.

11. Adopt a scholar or a poor child.

12. Be a good parent. Teach your kids to follow the law and love our country."

This doable formula can indeed be the "tipping point" toward a major revolution in our country.