Preparing for the End of the World

CEBU, Philippines – November 30 this year is the First Sunday of Advent in the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church. The word “advent” comes from the Latin “adventus,” meaning “coming.” During the advent season – four weeks prior to Christmas – the Church reminds us of the three “comings” of our Lord Jesus Christ; to wit:

The first is when the word of God become flesh and was born of the blessed Virgin Mary inside the cave of Judea’s smallest town, Bethlehem, “ because there was no place for them at the inn.” This was the First Christmas.

The second coming is when each one of us shall meet our Lord Jesus Christ at the moment of death, when He will judge us individually. This is Particular Judgment.

The third and final “advent” refers to the end of the world when both living and dead will be gathered – the good will be publicly admitted into their eternal reward in heaven, while the bad will be publicly sentenced into their never-ending punishment in hell. This is the General Judgment.

“Parousia” is the technical term in Greek for the final coming of our Lord Jesus Christ at the General Judgment. And the Gospel on November 30, 2014, the First Sunday in Advent, is taken from Mark 13:33-37. It urges us to be watchful and to be ready for the “parousia” at the end of the world.

Likewise the Catholic Church Preparing for the Parousia (CCPP) is reminding one and all to prepare for the end of the world . And the best preparation is found in the Gospel according to St. Matthew 25:31-46.

Actually, two articles on the CCPP were published in The Freeman (July 27, 2014, p.20 and August 30, 2014, p.17). In the August 30 issue, the two “C’s” in this movement’s acronym are explained, i.e., “Catholic” and “Church”. The word “Catholic” means universal , or all-embracing .The CCPP embraces all human beings not just the Christians , but the non-Christians and even the pagans as well. It encompasses not only the Roman Catholics but also the Filipino Catholics, including the roaming Catholics.

The word “Church” comes from the Greek “kyriakos,” which means belonging to the Lord. In the case of the CCPP, it does not refer to a building set apart for public worship because this movement does not construct any material structures in which to worship God, Who is a Spirit.

God is in each and every human being whose body is referred to as the Temple of the Holy Spirit. Neither does “Church” in CCPP refer to an organized worship with a Hierarchy, but to a group of worshippers sans bishops, priest, clergy to guide them in worshipping the Almighty Who is dwelling in each one’s innermost heart.

The other “P” stands for “Preparing.” There have lately been signs that the end of times is not so far away .What with earthquakes and super typhoons here and everywhere! Our Mayon volcano is just one among many threatening to erupt in different parts of the world! Brothers are fighting against brothers, such us the Jews and Palestinians, some Filipino Muslims and their Christian brothers, etc...

The theme song of Pope Francis trying to restore peace among these warring brothers is that of Don Quijote fighting the windmill in Cervantes’ “The Man from La Mancha”: “To dream the impossible dream…” Using the vocabulary introduced by the present Pope, we can hope that the “God of surprises” will do what is impossible for frail human beings.

Lest my readers might think that CCPP is a means of going into the world’s greatest business – religion – I say that it is not. The movement is not money-making nor money-relying because this movement does not collect or ask for contributions. It simply aims to remind everyone about the certainty of the end of the world.