The End Times and Advent

As we near the beginning of the Advent season, and even as we go through it, the focus of Holy Mother Church is on the end times and what will signify them, as well as what we are to expect in those times as followers of Christ and how to prepare and respond. Why do we do this? Advent is the beginning of the liturgical year, and so it signifies the beginning of our journey toward our final destination, heaven, and as with any journey, we need to begin with the destination in mind, with a full understanding of where we’re going and why. As we prepare for Christ’s coming, we also prepare to understand why we wait for His coming and how it helps us get to our destination.

According to St. Bernard, Advent is about preparing for three comings of Christ: His first coming on Earth as man, His coming to reign in our hearts in our own lives, and His final coming at the end of time. While Christmas and the coming of the Baby Jesus is usually the first thing we think of during Advent, being ready for His first coming also requires that we have prepared to welcome Him in our hearts and also given thought to why He came in the first place, to save us from our sins and open the gates of heaven for us, which leads us to think of our final destination after our death and how to get there. Meditating on death and the end of time can be uncomfortable, but it is essential to help us put our lives in perspective and lead us to live it out well so that we can be found worthy of heaven. Welcoming Jesus on Christmas Day as well as welcoming Him into our lives as individuals points us toward the end of time and fills us with the desire for heaven. We read about the end times during this season to fill us with an understanding of what Christ is coming to prepare us for and where we want to be headed when those days have been fulfilled and Christ comes again in judgment. We need to have an understanding of the destination once Christ comes to begin to lead us there.

During this Advent season, take time to prepare not only to celebrate the coming of Christ in the flesh, but also for His coming in your own heart as well as His coming at the end of time. Consider the end of your life and how you can live your life in the present to prepare for that moment, and ask Jesus to give you the graces to carry out a life worthy of heaven. As we prepare for Christmas, reflecting on the coming of the Christ Child and the joy that that will bring, let’s not forget to think about why He came and the final destination that He is leading us to.