The Dual Season

I think one of the most overlooked beauties of Christianity is its approach to time. Time operates beyond our linear understanding of it. Advent begins, and we wait for Christ, even though it’s been 2,000 years since his birth. We anticipate all over again. We wait for the first and second coming simultaneously. It’s a dual season. Advent is a time of prophecy and preparation. There is excitement mixed with anxiety, feasting mixed with penance. The days are dreary and shortening. The season is bright and alive. We bring candles and evergreens into our homes to fight the darkness. We drape the church in purple, a color meaning both royalty and solemnity. Advent is a season of repetitious chaos, of organized uncertainty. There is a rush to prepare and the calm tempo that this season will pass. Christmas arrives each year as expected. Christ comes. And Christ comes again.