Dec. 3,2017: 1st Sunday of Advent, Year B
Dec. 3, 2017:1st Sunday Advent B
Welcome to the beginning of a new liturgical year starting with the season of Advent. We are in Year B of the three year cycle in which we are going to focus on the Gospel according to St. Mark. In the course of this new year, we will be unfolding the whole mystery of the life of Christ, beginning with the anticipation of a Messiah, through the events of his birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension into heaven, and his sending of the Holy Spirit. The Church’s Year is divided into two parts. The first part spans from Advent to Pentecost and is devoted to reliving the events of spread of the Gospel and retelling the events of salvation history and celebrating what God has done for his people. The second part spans from Pentecost to Advent and is devoted to contemplating events of the Gospel, how it applies in the life of the disciples and how it continues to apply in our everyday lives. The secular year in Southern Louisiana takes us through football season, hunting season, sugar cane grinding season, oyster season, Mardi Gras season, crawfish season, and sno-ball season. In contrast, the Liturgical Year takes us on a journey, traveling in the footsteps of Jesus. The destination of this journey is the Kingdom of God. Each year, the Church tells the story of Jesus again; while it seems the same, it is also ever new. Every year it is our hope that we grow in our relationship and understanding of Our Lord.
Just as we hang calendars on our walls and set resolutions at the beginning of each calendar year, there are some things we can do to enter appropriately the Season of Advent. The first step is to reset or reestablish what we truly desire in our lives. Advent is a time to renew our longing for the Kingdom of God. Frantic activities of work and family have made us feel anxious and unfocused. Our busyness has muddled what our hearts truly desire -- our love for God. Perhaps that love has become faint as we have ignored Him or pursued something trivial. Preparing for Advent means that we face the reality of our sinfulness and acknowledge the emptiness, dryness, and lifelessness of our pursuits. Conversion and renewal of our hearts through the Sacrament of Reconciliation is important during this season. Through the mercy of God, our tepid and weak longing for God is transformed by the grace of the Sacrament. Prophet Isaiah in our First Reading uses the image of God as a potter and we as the clay. When we have regained our rightful longing for God, do we appreciate Isaiah’s prayer, “You, LORD, are our father, our redeemer you are named forever. Why do you let us wander, O LORD, from your ways, and harden our hearts so that we fear you not? Return for the sake of your servants…”
Another step toward entering the Season of Advent is to find some time to let our minds be quiet and our hearts open in prayer. Everything seems to accelerate during the month of December--family and work obligations and parties. To spend time praying during this season may seem unproductive and pointless. Through prayer, we invite him in and grow in our relationship.
There is a beautiful painting of Jesus by William Holman Hunt called, “The Light of the World,” that illustrates why prayer is so important. The painting is based on the scripture, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, [then] I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me.” (Rev. 3:20). In the painting, Jesus is dressed in his royal garment and crown, holding a lantern in his hand, and is standing at a door of a home in the middle of a night. The night signifies the time when our senses are at rest and also the uncertain time when Jesus arrives. The image of the middle of the night is often used by Jesus in his parables to highlight the disciples’ need to be vigilant, wait, and watch for the Master’s return. The door of the home is overgrown with weeds and dessicated thorns, indicating what the door of our hearts are like from our lack of prayer; it may have been awhile since we invited him. In the painting, Jesus the King is seen knocking on this door softly, not to barge in but to ask for our invitation to enter. Once we invite him in, the light from his lantern dispels any darkness in our hearts.
Our Lord desires to prepare us for the advent for his arrival. His message to us for Advent is to wait for God in patient hope. For some of us this Advent season is difficult for one reason or another. In the Church’s great wisdom, we begin this season that offers us an opportunity to be closer to God. He comes to us in flesh in the womb of the Blessed Mother. Rekindle your your longing for God by purifying the desires of your hearts and by spending time in prayer. We need to echo the prayer of the psalmist, “Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.” As we begin Advent, let us pray for the grace to recognize how God breaks into our daily lives, in the joys and the sorrows, to form us in his love.
https://youtu.be/s-LxjkOipdE
