First Sunday of Advent November 28, 2021
Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 3:12-4:2; Luke 21:25-28,
34-36
The Roman Catholic Church year, begins with the season of
Advent. It is also called as the Christian year or the liturgical year. The
Roman Catholic Church year, sets out to attune the life of Christians to the
life of Jesus. ‘Adventus’ from Latin means, ‘coming’. The season of Advent
starts four weeks before Christmas. Advent is so closely related to Christmas,
it can scarcely be understood apart from that feast.
Originally, the term Advent was applied to the feast itself.
Gradually, it came to designate the time before Christmas. One of the prayers
for the second Sunday of Advent, proclaims the central theme of the Advent
season:
“Stir us up O Lord to make ready for your only-begotten Son.
May we be able to serve you with purity of soul through the coming of Him. Who
lives and reigns…”
Here the word ‘coming’ refers to the feast of Christmas. On
the feast of Epiphany, the proclamation, “Behold the Lord has come…” is made.
Advent, then, is first of all the comprehensive name for the incarnation (God
becoming human) and all that the incarnation accomplishes.
Waiting is difficult. Advent is about waiting. Waiting is
part of our life, whether waiting in traffic, or waiting for the results of a
competitive exam. Life is all about waiting. Think for a moment about the
meaningfulness of some of your own experiences of waiting. What have you waited
for? What has been worth the wait? Some of our most vivid memories of the
soulful nature of waiting may come from our childhood. Childhood is full of
these “not yet” promises. There is a real joy when the waiting ends and what we
waited for becomes a reality.
In the gospel Jesus gives us the warning: Watch at all times
and to pray. He does not want us to be caught unawares. On his part Jesus gives
us an eminently positive admonition and the guiding step for our salvation. The
Christian who listens to the words of Jesus lives in permanent expectation of
his coming and will welcome him. He tells us that is the occasion to take
things seriously with a positive attitude to life. Secondly, to be on the watch is to be aware
each day, through prayer and reflection that the ‘today’ of salvation is here and
now. It is to adopt every measure to live always in the grace of friendship
with God, so that was the final call to present itself today. We today can thank God for all that Jesus has
brought and continues to bring into our lives, the countless helps he gives us
to lead a good life, and as the Gospel tells us to escape all tribulations. We
do that best by constantly being aware of his presence and action in the people
around us. We are helped in our journey of life by so many people, most of whom
we do not know, have never seen. Our waiting for Jesus is a moment of joy and
expectation and not a tension-filled situation. Therefore here in the season of
Advent let us live by faith, walk in hope, and are renewed in love so that when
Jesus comes at the end time to be our judge, we shall not merely know him, but
come to him as a friend.
(You are most welcome to add your thoughts and reflections in the comment section below)
Happy Season of Advent
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