‘The coming of our God, our thoughts must now employ.” These words set the tone for our approach to Christmas.
The famous Advent sermon of St Bernard of Clairvaux helps us to grasp their full meaning. He says that there are three comings of Christ for which we must be ready: the first coming of Christ, in the flesh, in time; his second coming at the end of time; and a third coming which “lies between the other two. It is invisible, while the other two are visible.”
He makes his meaning clear with these words:
