First Sunday of Advent
As
I prepared this homily for the First Sunday in Advent, a question arose in my
mind: why do we even have advent?
Christmas songs began on some radio stations on All Saints Day, November
1. Christmas decorations went up
in most stores at about the same time.
So why take this time, this season of hope, this season of penance? Is it just an excuse for the clergy to
swap vestments from green to violet, with rose stuck in on the third Sunday
just for good measure? Why bring
out a wreath with four candles to mark the passing of time? We have iPhones and Droids which have
much more sexy apps to countdown to Christmas. Why Advent?
Advent
is lost to the extent that it’s misunderstood. It loses its force and its power when we don’t know why we
do what we do. And to understand
in order that we might believe, perhaps we need to take a look at Advent again,
to capture its beauty and its power.
Advent
comes from the Latin word adveniens
and means “a coming.” What we
celebrate in Advent is not just any coming, any expectation for any person, but
the expectation for the Person who reveals man to his very
self, as Gaudium et spes, 22, from
the Second Vatican Council says.
We are awaiting Jesus.
Because we are only 23 days away from the celebration of Jesus’ birth,
that naturally leads us to feel like we are preparing for Christmas. But St. Bernard of Clairvaux reminds us
that Advent is really a celebration, an expectation, of three comings of
Christ: the first coming at Bethlehem which we celebrate at Christmas; the
second coming of Christ at the end of time, which our readings focus on today;
and the thid coming of Jesus: the desire of Christ to come into our hearts
daily and make a home there, so that Christ might be born in us.
To
help us prepare for the first coming, the celebration of Jesus’ birth at Bethlehem,
we use symbols: some in the home, some at Church. In the Church we use an advent wreath with four candles,
traditionally 3 violet and 1 rose, to give us a visual reminder of how close we
are. And candles are fitting
because they remind us of Jesus who is the light of the world. The closer we get to celebrating the
birth of Jesus, the more light there is, even as the days get shorter around us
and darkness increases. Even the
traditional colors of the candles are dark, and yet the third rose candle
reminds us that our wait is almost over, that we are more than halfway to the
joyful celebration of our knowledge that “the Word was made flesh and dwelt
among us.” In your homes you might
have an advent wreath as well.
Others will use a calendar where you open little panels that reveal a
fuller picture of the Nativity, sometimes with recommended passages from
Scripture, other times with little chocolates. However as we draw closer to celebrating the birth of Jesus,
we are meant to be more and more excited as the day of celebration draws near.
The
second coming is the main focus of the first two weeks of advent, when we still
hear readings of how Jesus will come in glory to establish the fullness of His
kingdom, where Christ is King of the Universe and all others are subject to
Him. That is why advent takes on a
penitential tone, because all of us are in need of further conversion. Some of us may be more ready than
others for Jesus’ second coming, but we take on penances to atone for our sins
that have placed ourselves or another on a throne, rather than Jesus. Whether Jesus comes on December 21, or
tomorrow, or whenever, Advent reminds us to stay awake and be ready for the
bridegroom to return. For at the
moment we least expect, He will come.
We light our candles in imitation of the wise virgins who kept enough
oil in their lamps to be ready to welcome the Bridegroom with their flames
burning brightly.
The
third coming of Jesus—His desire to enter into our hearts—is something that we
can grow in every day of the year, not just at this time. But we take this special time to
redouble our efforts to make straight the pathways of our God. We take this time to level the
mountains and fill in the valleys that make an obstacle for Jesus to come to
us. Just as we clean our house to
welcome family and friends over for Christmas celebrations, so we should be
daily striving to clean our hearts and souls to welcome the Trinity into
us. Maybe we take time each day to
slowly read over the meditation from the Little Blue Book, or Magnificat, and
spend the time and energy it takes to develop a deep, strong relationship with
the Lord; maybe we attend sung Evening Prayer on Friday evenings at 6:30 p.m.
at St. Thomas to stretch our usual forms of prayer; maybe we join a Bible
study, or a faith-sharing group; maybe we celebration the Sacrament of Reconciliation
on the usual days or with the greater Lansing area on December 16 at 2 p.m. at
St. Thomas; whatever we do, the key is that we are trying to make more time for
Jesus so that He is comfortable in our hearts, rather than a stranger. And, we pray for those who have been
away from the Lord, away from His Church, inviting them to join us again in
this holy place, because Christ wants to enter their hearts as well, and He
often uses His disciples to extend that invitation.
If
we treat this time no differently than any other; if we figure that we’ve been
preparing for the parties, the eggnog, the gift giving, and the hype of the
secular celebration of Christmas since November 1, then I can assure you that
you won’t be ready when Christ comes: for the celebration of the first coming
at Christmas; for the celebration of the second coming at the end of time; and
for the daily desire of Christ to come into your heart. But, if amidst the hustle and bustle of
the secular season, you take time to spend with the Lord in prayer, getting to
know Him better and letting the symbols touch your heart and soul, then I can
also assure you that you will know the joy of the angels as they sang “Glory to
God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will,” as we celebrate
the first coming; you will know the joy of the elect as Christ comes a second
time as the eternal King of Glory, with everything subjected to His reign; and
you will know the joy of the abiding presence of God as He comes into your
heart and makes His home there, truly making you a temple of the Holy Spirit,
and the dwelling place of God.
