Today we light the first candle on the Advent wreath, which symbolises hope. In the last weeks of November we have been reflecting on the end of time, as the Church’s year comes to a close. “Use your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.” (Apocalypse 14:18) There is a sense of completion here, with final unfolding of God’s plan. It is appropriate to bring this to mind as we begin to think about how it worked through history, bringing about the birth of Jesus Christ, our Saviour, the First and the Last.
It is Mary’s time too as she waits in joyful expectation for the birth of her baby. This young Jewish woman said “Yes” to God and made possible our salvation. She indeed was the fruit of all that was best in the people of Israel, who had longed for the coming of the Messiah. There is a sense of joining them now in our shared scriptures, for their long history was their advent. We must never forget Jesus’ words to the women of Samaria: “For salvation is from the Jews” (John 4:22).
On the First Sunday of Advent, there is yet a sense of distance from the event that would change human history.
"I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near -
a star shall come out of Jacob,
and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel."
- Oracle of Balaam, Numbers 24:17