By Jonathan Camiolo

 

I just saw the movie 2012 because many of my friends have been talking about the meaning and the possibility of the end of the world.  When I saw it, it was what I expected – a cliché movie about a major occurrence with lots of great graphics and scenes, non-stop action, heroes and a miraculous end.  It was not the doomsday movie with a tragic end.  I thought about the people that truly believe that the world is going to end in 2012 and wondered what they must be thinking?  What are their plans?  What are they going to live like between now and then?  If they really believed it, what would be different?

I was left thinking about that when I read the gospel this week.  Jesus is telling His followers about the signs of the Second Coming; He was sharing the “signs of the times”.  He was telling the apostles to make sure that they were prepared and that others knew the message so that they would be ready.  Jesus is telling us to take it seriously; to be ready when the end comes for any of us.  It may be at all different times but we have no guarantee of the future.  Everyday is a gift.  Everyday is a chance to get ready

It is the beginning of Advent, the beginning of the Church year. We are preparing for the next weeks for the coming of Jesus at Christmas.  We celebrate that Jesus, the Savior of the world, came as a baby to us in a town of Bethlehem.  His birth marked a change in history that the world has never changed.  The calendar we use is marked by His coming.  There are billions of people that call Him Lord and others still that follow His moral teaching and example.  Jesus’ life has made a monumental impact on the course and shape of humanity.

The other readings encourage us to make straight our lives, to follow the commandments and live in the truth Jesus taught.  It is Advent.  Christmas is just weeks away.  Jesus is coming.  What are you waiting for?  Are you waiting for 2012 or some moment in time that scares you into following Jesus more closely, making changes and getting relationships in right order?  Or are you waiting to get older, when you are a “grown up”?  Or are you waiting because you are lazy or unmotivated?  

Let’s all make this Christmas a time we are ready for Jesus to come.  What are you waiting for? Now is the time! Happy Advent!