November 28, 1999 |
We Christians hold a great festival during the winter solstice, the shortest days of the year. We call this wintertime festival Christmas, meaning the feast of Christ. This feast takes several weeks to prepare and several weeks to celebrate.
The weeks of preparation are called Advent - the season of growing darkness before the solstice. The weeks of celebration are called Christmastime - the season of growing light after the solstice.
In contrast, the commercial holiday season begins in November and then crashes to a halt on December 25. Advertisers have no use for Christmastime except when it comes to stealing all the religious symbols of this season - the tree, the greens, the lights, the music - in order to sell their wares. And advertisers especially have no use for Advent, a season that calls us to hold off on Christmas and to wait patiently and soberly.
We Christians own Advent and Christmastime. The symbols of these seasons are our property, not just an advertiser's gimmick. And if we want to keep these symbols as part of Christianity, we're going to have to wrestle them back, probably with a good fight.
And it's worth a fight. We need Advent. We need a time before Christmas to encounter the darkness, to slip slowly into winter instead of immediately masking it with tinsel. We need a season of hunger and silence to make us eager for our coming festival, instead of holiday parties and concerts and all the other distractions that can rob Advent from us.
For without Advent we stop being what we are: a people who are waiting. We need the gospel's terrifying announcement of the end of time. We need the prophets' consolations and threats. We Christians learn who we are in the uneasy raving of John the Baptist and in the gentle strength of Holy Mary.
We also need Christmastime, the merry days that begin on December 25 and last well into January. We need a festival that runs beyond a single day, beyond a single week. We need time to tell about the journey of the magi, about the embrace of old Simeon, and about that glorious voice over the Jordan River thundering what we yearn to hear from our God: You are my beloved child!
In the many days of Christmastime we shout loud and clear that Jesus Christ is born. The reign of God is here among us in our own flesh and blood. That's why we gather around the bright tree of life, and tinsel our homes in sliver and gold, and spread our tables with the bounty of the harvest. The marvels of Christmas are not just pretty decorations. They are signs of God's reign, signs of a life that conquers death, of the light shining on in darkness, a darkness that did not overcome it (John 1:5).
Of course, Advent cannot exist if we jump the gun on Christmas. And Christmastime cannot exist if we are already tired of it by December 25. These two seasons demand each other. Only after the silence of Advent can the carols of Christmastime spring. Only after Advent's darkness can a single star give such cheer. Only after Advent's terror can an angel be heard, once again, telling us to fear not. Year after year, we so genuinely need these seasons as rehearsal for heaven.
This festival of the winter solstice - this feast of Christ - does more than lead us from one year to another. In the power of Christ, Advent and Christmastime lead us from time into eternity.
(© Liturgical Training Publications)
Leader: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
All: Amen
Leader: Let us pray. O God, by Whose word all things are santified, pour forth Your blessing on this wreath, and grant that we who use it may prepare our hearts for the coming of Christ and may receive from You abundant graces. We ask this through Christ Our Lord.
All: Amen
All: O Lord, stir up Your power, we beg You, and come, that by Your protection we may be rescued from the threatening dangers of our sins and be saved by your deliverance. We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
On candle is lighted and left burning during the meal.
Today begins a new calendar year in the Church's liturgical cycle. It began to evolve into a liturgical season after the date for the celebration of Christmas was set in the fourth century. In the beginning it was not. The Church year began with the celebration of the Birth of the Lord. The word "Advent" means beginning. It grew into a season in a similar way that the season of Lent began, as a preparation time of fasting and penance in preparation for a great feast.
The ancient peoples used to prepare for a feast by "getting ready". They offered their suffering of hunger pangs to the ancient gods possibly to achieve success in their hunting for food. Success in the hunt was celebrated with a great feast and thanksgiving to the gods.
The Church adapted these pagan practices to the great celebrations of our Feasts. The themes of Advent are a mixture of penance and anticipation for the coming event, the beginning of our Incarnation in Christ.
The Advent Wreath, a visible sign of the season, is an adaptation of pagan custom. During the winter months, candles were lit around a wheel as a prayer that sun, with its light and warmth, might return again.
Advent is meant to be a preparation time for the coming of Jesus; a time of anticipation with joyful expectation that His birth will be commemorated at Christmas.
The Advent Wreath is a very old tradition, probably originating in the time of the Renaissance in middle European countries. Now many families create their own version and use it in their preparation for the coming of Jesus.
Today our Advent wreath custom retains the circular base, symbolizing the ever-renewing circle of the season. It reminds us that God is eternal. He had no beginning, and will live forever. The evergreens are also a symbol of eternal life-God is always with us and never changes. Even in the darkness of our winters, He remains. The light of the candles reminds us that Christ is the Light of the World. Three of the candles are purple representing our longing and sprit of repentance. One is pink (lit on the third Sunday of Advent) expression our joy that the Lord is near. Some families replace the candles at Christmas with red or white and add a dominant Christmas candle in the center.
Our scripture readings today set the tone for this beautiful season of Advent. As we prepare for Christmas, Advent reminds us not only that the Lord has come into our human history two thousand years ago, but also that He will indeed come again. There are several themes that run through our liturgy for this First Sunday of Advent: faithfulness of those who suffer; the admonition to watch and wait; and the expectation of the coming of the Day of the Lord. These themes seem to shape the context for the entire season.
In our first reading today Isaiah reflects on the reality of human pain and suffering and a deep longing of the human spirit for God. "Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down"-this is a prayer of lamentation that Israel did not hesitate to incorporate into their life of worship. This is a disposition that seldom finds a place in our public prayer. But it is a beautiful prayer of faith. It is a turning to God when we are oppressed, overburdened, or even hopeless. It is the cry of the broken spirit lamenting the suffering that touches every life. Life brings inevitable difficulties and sufferings, often unexpected. Through the ages believers cried out: "Where is God?" or: "How long, O Lord?"
This is the context for the watchful waiting theme of today's gospel. As we wait for the coming of the Lord, we watch with an attentive, alert awareness of His presence even in the midst of our daily round of responsibilities. In the tradition of ancient Israel, it is entirely appropriate to cry out to the Lord in these challenging moments of our lives. It takes a real effort of faith to wait for the coming of the Lord with patient expectation and joyful hope. We believe that we have a future worth waiting for, that there are promises God will keep. And so we look expectantly to the Day of the Lord, that future day of ultimate fulfillment. And we don't wait idly. In the gospel story the servants are responsible for the work of the household.
Paul reminds the Christian community that they all have the gifts and talents they need to live faithfully in this world, awaiting the coming of the Day of the Lord.
This can be a very busy time of our lives; and yet, Advent respectfully calls us to take quiet time to enter into the spirit of this season, to ponder the scriptures as Mary did. May it be a time of deep peace as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of the Lord.
Father James Tobin, S.M.
Pastor
ADVENT! Now that we have celebrated Thanksgiving, the holiday season will be fast approaching. Today we begin the new Church year with Advent, that time of preparing for Christ. In fact we are preparing for what has been traditionally referred to as the three comings of Christ. For the first part of Advent our readings will sound pretty much like the past several weeks as we anticipate the promise of Christ to return in glory. How prepared are we for that? Good time to look at our lives again, start the new Church year with some good resolutions, and begin again on a journey of faith, hope and charity. As we progress closer to Christmas our focus will turn to the actual commemoration of the advent of Christ into our world almost 2000 years ago. Each Christmas begins the retelling of the greatest love story ever told. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us! God's eternal Word, Jesus Christ, born in humble circumstance comes to bring us salvation. Why do we get so sentimental around this time? Could it be that for a few days, we realize how much we are truly loved by God, and how much He gave to prove that love for us? The third coming of Christ is the one we sometimes overlook. Jesus comes to us daily, in Word and Sacrament, to strengthen us in holiness. Are we watching for this advent with eyes and hearts of faith? Where did I find strength to do this or that?, we sometimes wonder. Isn't it the living Christ, working in us and through us, daily accomplishing the work of building God's Kingdom? During the Advent journey, the Church calls us to Watch and Wait. May we do just that, and be preparing a manger in our hearts for whenever He comes!
As we begin looking forward to Christmas, Advent begins a new liturgical year for the Church. Christmas celebrates a unique presence of God in human history. Advent attempts to awaken us to an awareness of God's presence in our own lives.
In today's gospel, Mark offers us an answer of how to be aware of God's presence in our lives daily. In the words of Jesus we are told to take heed, watch and pray. Mark's Gospel today suggests that we remain faithfully awake and alert to God's presence; it is up to us to open our eyes and take notice.
And that is a problem for most of us operating in the hectic pace of day-to-day living. Most of us have so many responsibilities, so much to worry about, so many projects demanding our attention, so much to do, that we live mechanically and become almost numb in our awareness. We don't notice much of anything. We're so busy that we regularly complain: I don't know where my life has been, or I don't know where the time has gone, or I can't believe another Christmas is here already. How can we be aware of the presence of God in our lives, when we don't even notice that time is passing us by and that the whole seasons, birthdays, anniversaries, holidays have come and gone?
Spirituality is basically the art of being awake; it is the discipline of being aware. Spiritual growth is essentially becoming more and more conscious of God in our daily lives. The biggest handicap to our personal spiritual development is that we live almost unconsciously. We become so immersed in our habits and routines that we don't even notice obvious solutions to our dissatisfactions and golden opportunities for growth. In like manner, we don't sense the presence of God because we are half-asleep. Our need, therefore, is to wake up and take notice of what is going on in our lives, moment to moment. Advent is a wake up call. We prepare the way of the Lord by being on the look out for his presence.
Peace to all who love the Lord in Simplicity of Heart,
Father Jeff
Gracious God,
in giving us Jesus,
you have forever changed our human destiny.
Through Christ's birth, preaching and healing,
you show us how to live
as your sons and daughters;
by Christ's death and resurrection,
you breathe new hope within us,
reconciling and renewing us
Heal us of our brokenness,
so that as one, holy people,
we might be a light to the nations
bringing your peace to the world,
preparing us for the return of your Son
who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Francis Xavier was born in the family castle of Xavier near Pamplona in 1506. He studied at the University of Paris, met St. Ignatius of Loyola and became one of the seven who founded the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in 1534. In 1540 he went with Fr. Simon Rodriguez as the first Jesuit missionaries to the Far East. He visited the Philippines (1546), Japan (1549), New Guinea, India, and other countries. In 1552 he set out for China, landed on the island of Sancian within sight of his goal, but died before he reached the mainland. Francis Xavier was canonized in 1622 and proclaimed the patron of all foreign missions by Pope Pius X.
ADVENT! What is it? It is countercultural and almost anti-American. Why do I say that? It is a time of waiting and expectation; a time of programmed waiting. The Advent Calendar, where one little window is opened each day, reveals a scriptural thought or reflection that is slowing, moving in the direction of Christ's birth. Even the Advent Wreath is a time-counting device that paces off the weeks to Christmas. Those with longer memories probably remember the Christmas Novena that counted off the last nine days. It all culminated in the great celebration of Christmas Midnight Mass. However, we live in an age of instant everything. Waiting is countercultural. I am not good at waiting. Our culture teaches us to abhor waiting. Advent tells us to slow down and prepare for the coming of the Messiah, the Savior. Our culture says hurry up and prepare for the coming of Santa Claus, and, by the way, you only have so many days left. This conflict is most obvious in Church. The somber starkness of Advent decorations clashes with the bright lights of Christmas outside. There is a rush to schedule Christmas parties when the scriptures are calling for calm and contemplation. I want to hear O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. There is nothing wrong with this hymn, except it is not what I would choose. I like Christmas music and I find it very difficult to celebrate Advent when all other aspects of my life are pointed toward Christmas. Life has become so frantic that the Advent pace is nerve-wracking. On the other hand, celebrating Advent teaches patience. I don't know how many people verbalize their need for patience and tell me that they pray for patience frequently. The Church is offering Patience 101. There are no enrollment fees and there will be no test. This is a personal enrichment course. The successful completion requires an Advent moment a day. Ideally, the moment contains a scripture reflection. However, the Advent moment can be as simple as answering some questions, like, How well did I wait for Jesus' coming today? Did I see Jesus in the other driver? In the crying child? The long checkout line? The frustrating search for a parking place? I think you got the picture. Enjoy!
Father Michael Doyle, OSM
My Dear Family in Christ,
I invite you into this holy season of Advent. Let me speak about hope, that is, the conviction that comes through our faith to see an ultimate purpose to life. We prepare ourselves, again, for the Savior. This means that God has made a total commitment to creation, various people and us, to bring us into the TRUTH.
We have heard much about Y2K; all that could go wrong if the programming on which we rely doesn't register the new millennium, the year 2000. That is a real concern. Nevertheless, I should like to focus on the preparation of our hearts and minds.
When we hope, we put our trust in someone. It means that there is a plan, a direction and ultimately, a goal. In spite of all the violence, disasters, both natural and provoked, nothing should detour us from focusing on the One who loves us.
I invite all in our parish family to take some time to read the readings found in the bulletin for Mass and let these be a guide to await the One who comes to set us free.
May this holy season of Advent renew us in our Christian hope.
Father Ron
Question: How can we be certain that papal infallibility comes from God and not simply from Pope Pius IX during the First Vatican Council? How could the Pope declare the dogma of the Immaculate Conception when that was before the First Vatican Council?
Answer: Christ promised to send the Church the Holy Spirit to guide you into all truth. (Jn 16:13) Likewise Jesus told Peter, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Mt 16:18) Christians are confident that the Church is guided by the Holy Spirit and that the Church will never fall away from the teachings of Christ. (I Tim 3:15)
The belief that the Church is infallible in matters of faith and morals, is an expression of our belief that we are guided by the Holy Spirit. The Pope, as head of the College of Bishops, is preserved by the Holy Spirit from leading the Church into error in regard to faith and morals. Papal infallibility does not mean that the Pope is sinless, or personally infallible, or that he can make infallible statements in regard to science or math, etc. In order for the Pope to declare something infallible, it must pertain to matters of faith or morals, it must be held definitely by the whole Church, and he must be acting as head of the Church. Throughout history, the Pope has exercised his infallibility twice: by declaring the dogma of the Immaculate Conception and the dogma of the Assumption. This doesn't mean that other papal teachings are insignificant. The faithful are to adhere to the ordinary teachings of the Pope and Magisterium with religious assent.
The College of Bishops acting in union with the Pope (called the supreme Magisterium) also enjoys the gift of infallibility. Therefore, at ecumenical councils, the Magisterium can define dogmas which are infallible truths of the faith. At Vatican I, the Magisterium defined papal infallibility as a dogma of the faith. This doesn't mean that the Church never believed in papal infallibility until Vatican I. All dogmas are contained in divine Revelation or have a necessary connection to it. Dogmas are not new Revelation. Dogmas clarify and more clearly define truths that are rooted in divine Revelation, which ended with the death of the last Apostle. Think about it this wayÑGod has always been a Trinity of Persons, but the dogma of the Trinity was not clearly defined until the Council of Nicea in 325.
