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To be Catholic is to be a bit out of sync with modern America. While the rest of the country is beginning the “Holiday Season,” we are entering into the Holy Season of Advent. Amid the din and frenetic activity that surrounds us at this time of year, we Catholics are invited to quietly prepare for the coming of the Lord in glory at the end of the age, even as we prepare to celebrate his first coming in humility at Christmas.
One thing that the Holiday Season and the Holy Seaons of Advent have in common is that they both involve waiting.
But we all know that there are two different ways of waiting.
We can wait with great irritation, or
We can wait in joyful hope.
There is a difference.
In a world with Amazon Prime, we seem to have grown used to the idea that anything we can desire and afford (or that we desire and can NOT afford) can be delivered the next day. We live in a world of fast food, fast cars, instant pudding, instant coffee, instantaneous communications.
Just this morning I was on FaceTime with a colleague in Italy.
We are used to getting what we want, when we want it, how we want it.
And if we are forced to wait…we get irritated.
Now, a word of prophecy…Between now and Christmas Day, you are going to find yourself waiting.
It may be in line in a store
It may be in traffic
And as you are forced to wait behind this person you are going to start to feel irritated.
When that feeling of irritation begins to rise within your craw and you begin to plot their demise in mean and nasty ways…
Think of my words today…and do this instead:
– Say a Hail Mary for this person, because they are probably having a worse day than you.
– and when you are done with that, pray for the person behind you, because are going to have to wait longer than you.
Simply put, as a Christian, REFUSE to wait with great irritation. That is not your call, that is not your destiny. That is not the message that is our gift to the world.
Isaiah helps us to understand this.
He paints a marvelous picture of a world at peace. As instruction goes forth from Zion, and justice is established for the nations, all peoples are caught up in world set aright. Swords are beaten into plowshares; spears into pruning hooks.
Isaiah teaches us that peace is not simply the absence of conflict. Rather peace is when everything is as it was meant be. When things are thus, war and conflict simply don’t make sense.
Theologically speaking, what Isaiah is describing is the Messianic Age – the age of Grace, the very age in which we live.
Paul alludes to this when he tells us that “our salvation is near at hand.
The night of our past sins is spent and it is time to walk in the light.
Paul’s words are reflective of a Church that was waiting with great expectation for the glorious coming of Christ at the end of the age.
This glorious coming is what our Our Lord was talking about when he said that we must also be prepared,
‘for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”
To be Christian is to live awaiting the blessed hope of the resurrection and the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
And so the Church gives us this season of Advent to help us to prepare. We do so in many ways. Simple ways they may be, but they help us remember who are and the life of grace to which we are called. As Peter says, we are a “holy nation, a people set apart.” I prefer to think of us as, the joyful, dyssynchronous People of God.
What are some of these ways?
The color purple—is the color of penitential preparation. Advent is very much a “little Lent” in one sense. The Savior born to us, saves us by the forgiveness of our sins. What better time to take stock of our lives and come to the Sacrament of Reconciliation? All the communal penance services in the Archdiocese are listed in this month’s edition of the Catholic Anchor. Our penance service will be held on December 18th at 7:00 PM.
The Advent Wreath—forms a circle representing the eternal love of God for us. The world was in the darkness of sin and death, but the light of Christ dispels the darkness. A candle is lit each week. Like the return of the sun at the winter solstice, the increasing light of each new candle reminds us of the light of Christ who comes into the world.
The Sunday readings—call us in the first three weeks to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Messiah. John the Baptist figures prominently this year. He reminds us of our prophetic role in proclaiming the coming of Christ at the end of the age. We need to be ready.
Advent Calendars—are just plain fun! Some can be purchased, but it’s super fun to make them yourself. I have one that is a model house with 25 different windows to open. Some families I know make them treats, but also with special notes inside that say things like, “Today I will hug my sister.” or “Today I will pray for a classmate.”
The One Percent Challenge!—Can you give one percent of your day to prayer during Advent? We make it easy this year with a little card to jump start your prayer life. Take one and see what happens!
To be Catholic is to be a bit out of sync with modern society. While others are celebrating the “Holiday Season,” we enter into the Holy Season of Advent, quietly preparing for the coming of the Lord in glory at the end of the age,
As the liturgy says, “We await the Blessed Hope, and the coming of our Savior Jesus Christ.”