Advent is Patience

This week we mark the beginning of Advent.

A lot could be said about Advent as the beginning of the liturgical year for Christians. About the significance of preparation.

But a simple observation by Nathan Hamm on his Twitter account really caught my attention. He wrote:

"violence is impatience
war is impatience
consumerism is impatience
greed is impatience

Advent is patience."

I had really never thought that being impatient is violent. But then, when you stop to consider what actions typically flow from impatience it makes sense. Things like cutting remarks, sarcasm, rudeness can all escalate to violence. 

Violence can lead to war. Think of the beginnings of the two "world" wars we've had. Each was started by violent actions. An Archduke gets assassinated. Royal families take sides. Soon Europe is drawn in. Followed by much of the rest of the world. Or an extremely narcissistic individual conveniently blames all his frustrations and the frustrations of a nation upon one religious group. And proceeds to gain political advantage through racism. Then proceeds to gobble up neighboring countries, bent on world domination.

I read once that most modern (post WWII) wars could be blamed on a growing impatience with diplomatic means to end conflict. So, rather than expend the energy and time necessary to negotiate, military might is seen as the answer - simply because it's a convenient, quicker solution.

How about consumerism?

Well-healed ad firms on Madison Avenue tell us we need the latest thing, and we need it now. There isn't just build-in obsolescence with material things, there's build-in impatience. We can't seem to wait for the latest, newest version of whatever we have. Smartphones and other electronic devices are notoriously geared this way.

Black Fridays usually feature photos of crowds roaring through the front doors of big box stores. And nowadays, Black Friday has morphed into Black Thanksgiving. Some retailers are actually open on Thanksgiving, while on-line sales begin a few days before.

I remember as a young boy, in the 1960s, waiting with my Dad at the neighborhood Sears automotive center, as snow tires were being put on the family car. And my Dad turned to me and said, "You wait. Pretty soon they'll be playing Christmas music before Thanksgiving." I thought he was being really sarcastic, but he was right.

On a spiritual level, you could say that violence, war and consumerism are all run on greed. 

We're most prone to become violent when we're fearful. Or feel threatened. Or insecure. But rather than admit how we're feeling, or face the cause of these feelings, we can resort to violence. It's a quick way to get our way without having to consider others.

War involves violence on a mass level. Wars seldom settle problems. They only temporarily mask them until the deeper issues that caused the war are addressed. 

For diplomacy to work, it requires patience. And trust. But violence and war don't promote either one.

Which brings us to Advent.

What if, over the next four weeks, we considered a way to break the cycle of impatience in our lives?

What would that look like?

What would it look like if we were patient while driving our cars? Would we let more people in ahead of us? Would we drive a little slower? Would we be less inclined to tailgate? Would we slow down at yellow lights instead of barreling through them? 

What would it feel like to stop assuming for a day, and patiently give people the space to explain? To stay calm instead of racing to judgment? To give the other person the benefit of the doubt?

Where would our actions take us if we were patient? Would we open the door for others? Would we give up our place in line? Would we smile at the cashier at the grocery store? Would we offer to help our neighbor?

If we were patient, would that help us appreciate our family and friends more? Not taking them for granted? 

Would patience result in thankfulness? 

And thankfulness in generosity? 

And generosity in a better world?

Photo Credits: Top: MarshmallowRanch,  Middle: The Muslim Time, Bottom: Womenplatform.