No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
--Matthew 24:36-44
"In order to prevent his disciples from questioning him about the hour of his coming, our Lord Jesus Christ went on to say: But of that day and hour no one has knowledge—not even the angels in heaven, nor even the Son.
"It is not for you to know the day or the time. This he has hidden from us so that we should be watchful and should all believe this coming will happen during our own lifetime. Had the time of his coming been revealed, then his advent would have been in vain and the nations and the ages in which it was to happen would not have yearned for it in faith. He said that he was coming, but he did not make it clear at what precise moment, so that every generation and age might long for him. Even though he made known the signs of his coming, we cannot clearly tell the day of their accomplishments, for in ever-changing manifestations these signs come and go and are always with us.
"His second coming is like his first:many prophets and upright men longed for the sight of him, thinking he would appear in their own day; so too, every believer of our own time hopes to live to welcome him, especially as he did not clearly state at what moment he would appear, and this above all so that none should think him subject to a decree or to a day, when he is the one who ordains time and sequence. How then can the time of his coming be hidden from him, for he himself decreed it and described the signs that would herald it? He drew their attention to these signs, so that from the very beginning every nation and every age should believe that the coming of Christ might well happen in their own day.
"Be watchful, for when the soul is overpowered by the weary burden of weakness and sorrow the enemy takes charge and can sway it to suit his will. This is why the Lord spoke of watchfulness, to prevent the soul from succumbing to spiritual numbness; for it is written: Let righteousness awaken you! and again: I am risen, and here I am, present with you, and again: I beg you, then, not to relax your vigilance, and further on: seeing we have, by an act of mercy, been entrusted with this apostolate, there must be no weakening on our part."
-—Saint Ephrem the Deacon
"Precisely because we cannot predict the moment, we must be ready at all moments. Our Lord repeated this practical conclusion again and again; as if the promise of the Return had been made for the sake of this conclusion alone. Watch, watch, is the burden of his advice. I shall come like a thief. You will not, I most solemnly assure you, you will not see me approaching. If the householder had known at what time the burglar would arrive, he would have been ready for him. If the servant had known when his absent employer would come home, he would not have been found drunk in the kitchen. But they didn’t. Nor will you. Therefore you must be ready at all times. The point is surely simple enough. The schoolboy does not know which part of his Virgil lesson he will be made to translate:that is why he must be prepared to translate any passage. The sentry does not know at what time an enemy will attack, or an officer inspect, his post:that is why he must keep awake all the time. The Return is wholly unpredictable. There will be wars and rumours of wars and all kinds of catastrophes, as there always are. Things will be, in that sense, normal, the hour before the heavens roll up like a scroll. You cannot guess it."
-—C. S. Lewis
1 comment:
These reflections sweep away the timetable, sky-watching rapture spirituality that I grew up with. There's an element of hard teaching to this, but I find it comforting all the same. Don't look for signs. Don't read signs as signs. Just wait, and be ready.
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