St. Bernard: Three Comings of the Lord

"WE know that there are three comings of the Lord. The third lies between the other two. It is invisible, while the other two are visible. In the first coming he was seen on earth, dwelling among human beings; he himself testifies that they saw him and many hated him. In the final coming all flesh will see the salvation of our God, and they will look on him whom they pierced. The intermediate coming is a hidden one; in it only those on the path to God see the Lord within their own selves, and they experience salvation. In his first coming our Lord came in our flesh and in our weakness; in this middle coming he comes in spirit and in power; in the final coming he will be seen in glory and majesty."

~St. Bernard of Clairvaux: from Sermo 5, In Adventu Domini.

The Nativity, by Federico Fiori Barocci.

Oil on canvas, 1597; Museo del Prado, Madrid.