The days are growing shorter. Advent begins in two weeks. The readings today invite each of us to contemplate the end-time — the Second Coming of the Lord and the end of history as we know it. The older we are the more likely we might ponder what happens when it all comes to an end. We would be foolish if we didn’t.
Every particle of God’s creation wears a little tag that says “Return to Creator.” When and how? No one knows for sure. Jesus says “Be alive and alert! Live in the present moment with peace and gratitude, but live in expectation of the End too!” God knows what time it is. It is November 15, 2015. It is time to join the company of those who believe “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end.”
—Fr. Paul Harman, S.J. is a Jesuit of the USA Northeast Province. He has worked in Jesuit formation and over many years has been a valued administrator at the College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA.