HOPE, MODERNISM AND
ADVENT
The Rev. Harold Shepherd, CD, M.A., S.T.M., LL.B., LL.M.,
Ph.D.
Sermon from December 14, 2003
Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O
Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter
Jerusalem! The LORD has taken away the judgments against
you, he has turned away your enemies. The king of Israel,
the LORD, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no
more. Zephaniah 3:14-15
The third Sunday of Advent is otherwise known as Gaudate
Sunday. One distinguishing feature is the optional use of
rose as the liturgical colour of the day. The third candle
in the Advent wreath may also be rose. The reason for this
can be found in the imperative Gaudate- Rejoice!, as can be
found in the reading from Zephaniah 3. The Advent theme of
preparing the way of the Lord shifts on the third Sunday of
Advent to one of rejoicing in what God has done in the
midst of his people. Preparation for the advent of the
Messiah is tempered with rejoicing in what God is now doing
in our lives. In order to prepare for the future, we must
look to the history of God’s work among us.
In the 1950's and 1960's, theology was grappling with
challenges presented by modernism. The post-war era was
marked by an optimistic belief in human progress through
science, technology and social evolution. Rapid
advancements in medicine, electronics, transportation and
the like were accompanied by a sense of social Darwinism
that believed in the advancement of society from a
primitive level to increasingly advanced ones. A well-known
example of this optimism can be found in the classic Star
Trek television program of the 1960's. The message conveyed
is that through science and technology we will overcome
limitations, take to the stars, end famine and cure
disease. Through social evolution, we will end wars on
earth. The future is bright.
The underlying premise for this world view is that the
world is a closed system that can be manipulated and
improved, given sufficient academic research by inventive
minds. Obstacles to progress can be overcome by proper
scientific method, be they material or social challenges.
This type of materialism left no place for spiritual or
religious perspectives, moving them off to the realm of
private beliefs. The only absolutes that count are those
that can be discovered through scientific method. Christian
values and teachings that had been the cohesive force that
held Western civilization together became relegated to the
domain of personal piety. The medieval Church and society
synthesis was replaced by the notion of Church in society,
voicing one philosophy of life among many.
The Church of the 1960's began to reflect on the challenge
posed by secular culture that took the view that God is
dead. One approach was to retreat from the material world
and adopt the view that religion concerns the inner life or
pietism. Christian existentialism, for example, attempts to
develop a concept of authentic humanity through making
choices in relationships and service that make a positive
contribution to society. From this point of view,
Christianity has value as a positive force for good in the
world and as a value system that promotes a sense of
fulfillment in life. It allows science and technology to go
its separate way in peace, with no conflict between it and
religion. The problem is that this approach followed ones
that can be traced back to the nineteenth century that
viewed Biblical teaching about the future advent of the
Kingdom of God as being mythological- not to be taken
literally. What really matters in God’s work in our
midst now. Human existence is the place of encounter with
God. The future will unfold as progress, research,
technology and science move us forward.
In the 1960's, an important theological approach developed
that argued that Biblical teaching about the future advent
of God’s reign in the future really matters. A good
example of this is Jurgen Moltmann’s 1965 Theology of
Hope. For him, meaning and motivation in life depends in
large part on hope in the future. Most of the choices we
make are in anticipation of some desired outcome. Without
hope and anticipation of some future good, despair and
depression can easily take hold of us. For Moltmann, the
expectation of the promised Kingdom of God creates life and
makes us ready to participate without restraint or
reservation in God’s work of reconciliation. We can
remember the past with a sense of nostalgia, but what
motivates us to get out and do things is our hope in the
future. This is formed by awareness of what God has done in
the past and what he is doing now among us. By knowing who
God is and what he has done, one can have a sure conviction
of what God will do in the future and what part we can
play. God is the Lord of the world and history, not simply
of the inner self. Science, technology and social
development really do matter to him and to us. This is
God’s world, not a closed system limited to laws of
nature. We are stewards of God’s creation,
accountable to him and future generations. In God’s
future we find our own.