About Oom Riaan and Advent

Riaan Cruywagen is a household name in South Africa. The Afrikaans newsreader, sporting the same wig for the past almost forty years, is doing his last bulletin tonight. For many families, oom Riaan has become part of the furniture for half an hour every evening. After forty years, oom Riaan’s complexion hasn’t changed one bit; so when he announced that he is finally calling it quits, we were all a bit shocked.

During a radio interview last week, oom Riaan was asked what his most memorable news report had been. Bear in mind that over the past forty years, he had seen some pretty shocking and devastating things happening. But what will always stick in his mind, was the day when former president FW de Klerk announced that South Africa would have an election where anyone was welcome to vote.

His most memorable news was good news.

This is where Advent comes in. In the church year, Advent is the few weeks to follow leading up to Christmas. In a world where the retail market takes Christmas very seriously (for obvious reasons), as followers of Christ, it really is worthwhile to think about Advent, and why Advent has particular meaning.

During Advent, we wait. We wait with bated breath, with a definite expectation. That something is about to happen. We wait with a longing desire that something should happen. Of course, we are waiting for the celebration of the birth of Christ. Each year during Advent, it’s almost as if we are expectantly waiting for the birth of Christ for the first time.

We are also waiting for the second coming of Christ. We know that Christ will come again. And so, once again, we wait. We long for that day.

In the house that I stayed in a year ago, we had a rhythm of watching the news on Al Jazeera while having breakfast. We followed the Arab awakening, remembering when the Egyptian government was toppled, and following what happened in Libya. We saw a whole lot of bad news, and some good news in between.

We don’t watch the news because we have a twisted desire to hear about all the bad stuff happening around the world. We watch the news, because we have the expectation that bad news can be turned into good news. And that is why we pray. For countries we will probably never get to see with our own eyes. For leaders that we can’t help but wonder if they will ever change. But we don’t lose hope.

I love watching Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. I always get emotional during an episode. Because families, amidst a hopeless situation, receive a bit of hope.

Advent is a hopeful season. We don’t mind waiting, because we have a hopeful expectation. Even though sometimes hope seems nowhere to be found, we know it’s worth waiting for. And while we wait, we start living the hope we crave.

The Good News is coming. Don’t let the bad news try to convince you otherwise.

Have a hope-filled Advent.