ADVENT

Advent is the beginning of the new liturgical year of the Church. It comes from the Latin word,  Adventus, which means coming, arrival. It is a time to prepare for the coming of the Lord. There are three comings of the Lord: past, present and future. The present points to His birth in  Bethlehem. This is the historical event when the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. The present points to the daily coming of the Lord in the events of our lives, through the people that we encounter, through the sacraments,  t through the blessings and challenges that we experience everyday. The future refers to His second glorious coming at the end of time to restore all things to Himself. Advent is the season of sacred waiting. But waiting is difficult especially in our world where almost everything is fast and instant. We have instant coffee, instant relationship, instant gratification and instant weight loss program. We want instant results. So, waiting, trusting and patience are tiring. But patience is a virtue. Sacred waiting is painful process of decentering our ego, to let go of our false securities and hopes. It is turning over our lives to the purposes of God and to accept His plans because they are better than our plans. It is to allow God to be the goal of our lives because the goal of life is union with Him. Jesus is the origin, meaning, purpose and goal of history. We are not in control because our lives are not about us. God has the absolute control of history and His love will ultimately prevail. Sacred waiting is building relationship with God so that we grow in wisdom and we understand the true purpose and meaning of life. To grow in wisdom is to see the great patterns of things from the standpoint of God because He alone sees everything and our vision is limited. During this season of Advent, we are called to be constant in watchfulness, vigilant, alert, awake, attentive, ready, prepared and open to God’s grace because the coming of the Lord is sudden, unpredictable, unexpected, swift and surprising. It is to put on the armor of light because Jesus is the light of the world. It is to live each day fully in His company. It is to persevere as witnesses of light and hope. We are called to be faithful, responsible and humble stewards of creation. We are called to imitate Jesus in His total self giving love. When we do this the coming of the Lord in our lives will be an occasion for joy.