In Pennsylvania Deer Season and Advent coincide on the
calendar. Both seasons involve ancient rituals, observe time honored
traditions, tell often-repeated stories, and encourage great expectations. Both
involve the wearing of certain color-coded vestments: blue or purple for
church; blaze orange for deer hunting. Both seasons have their origins in the
wilderness. “The voice of one crying in the wilderness,” begins the Gospel of
Mark, “Prepare the way of the Lord.” Advent calls for a return to the sources
of faith and identity, to the darkness before
dawn where we can see through the eyes of our spiritual ancestors, who
looked out upon the world in wonder and amazement and gratitude. As the first
light dawns, it is as if we can witness the creation of the world, and the
outrageous miracle of our being there to see it. Without wilderness, there is
no Advent.
In Advent we are “hunting” for God, but,
amazingly, God comes “hunting” for us. The
hunter
becomes the hunted, stalked by a ghostly presence. Yet, despite our
vulnerability, we find ourselves
without
shame or fear, because this powerful being is the most
gentle of
predators, the kindest of adversaries. To be swallowed by God is the happiest
of fates.
To be
ambushed by God is to cast out all fear. To be preyed upon by God is the
epitome of
prayer. To
die with God is to be reborn with Christ at Bethlehem, in Michigan, or in heaven.
