A Story for Advent (4)

This is an excerpt from "Advent Reflections: Come Lord Jesus", by Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan from December 2007. I found his insights on the 3 comings of Jesus - His coming in History, His coming in Mystery and His coming in Majesty something really to think about as we approach the last week in Advent.

His article begins here:

Our Lord Jesus Christ came in history. This is, of course, the coming that drove the dreams of the faithful people of Israel, who had waited so eagerly and so long for the coming of the Messiah. What we try to do as the Church in Advent, in a small way, is to consolidate those centuries of waiting into four short weeks. And we’re reminded — guess what? — that God takes His sweet old time in fulfilling His promises.

God may have promised a Savior in the Garden of Eden. You bet He did. But He was slow in following through on that sacred promise. So that’s why we hear words such as “yearning,” “waiting,” “hoping,” “watching,” “longing,” “looking,” and “preparing” throughout this holy season. These words all become part of our Advent vocabulary at the sacred liturgy. But all that yearning, waiting, hoping, watching, longing, looking, and preparing — was it ever worth it when He finally did come, for as St. John the Evangelist records: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). There is His coming in history.

And continues here.

The Rev. Dolan was named Archbishop of Milwaukee in 2002 by Pope John Paul II.
For more about him, go here.