So then, if anyone is in Christ, that person is part of the new creation. The old things have gone away, and look, new things have arrived! All of these new things are from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and who gave us the ministry of reconciliation. – 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 (CEB)
Ah, we’ve made it to June, where the promise of the slower pace of summer seems within reach. What images of summer come to your mind these days? Sitting by the pool or on the beach? Lemonade in a hammock? Playing baseball or at least going to a game? Laying on a grassy bank watching the clouds or the stars? An afternoon barbeque with family and friends? We all have images of summer that speak to us. Of course, it is only occasionally that the reality aligns with the image, but those images help give us something to aim for as we try to navigate the mundane realities of the ordinary everyday we generally experience.
Going to a baseball game is certainly high on my list of summer activities. It is not quite the same as the feeling of hitting the ball and the dirt in my face while sliding headfirst into second base that I loved when I was still young enough to play the game, but being at the ballpark (preferably with a scorecard) marks for me the relaxed enjoyment of not needing to look at the clock or fill my time with multi-tasking. That is one of my main images of summer I look forward to each year. Yet so far this year I’ve gone to two games. The first was opening day for the Jersey Shore Blue Claws. It was so cold – in the 30s with a wind chill of 21 – that by the 6th inning we were done. It was too cold to enjoy anymore. Not exactly an image of summer! Then over Memorial Day weekend, we went to a Phillies game. We sat through a cold and rainy game that included a two-hour delay. It was fun, but again not the image of summer that I had in mind. Reality rarely aligns with the dream, and yet that image holds power for us because every once in a while we get the dream game. Every so often we manage to go to the game on a clear and warm but not too hot and not too humid day where we have plenty of time to sit and enjoy being at the game. Every so often we have the perfect day at the beach or a perfect view of the stars without being swarmed by insect. It happens, and it reminds us of the wonder of life.
In theology, there is a term called “proleptic.” It is a strange technical term, but it talks about an important part of our life of faith. Our claim as Christians is that in God there is a new creation. The sin, shame, suffering, and injustice of this world is overcome in this new creation. Christ opens to us the possibility of being part of this new creation; in him we are a new creation. We have images of what this life in Christ looks like and how wonderful it is. Yet most of the time our reality does not align with those images. Every so often, though, for a moment we do see it. We see instances of this new creation for a brief moment, or signs of the reigning of God in the world now. These brief moments are called proleptic glimpses. We know the new creation is the true reality and the future that we are headed towards. These brief glimpses remind us of the wonder of God and the wonder of life in God. They only happen for a moment, but through them our faith is strengthened. We can keep going even when reality is far from the ideal image that we know in Christ, because it is a reminder of what will be. It helps us to continue to trust in God and God’s promise that all things will indeed be made new.