Readings For First Sunday of Adent (Year C)
“It is not by change of place that we can come nearer to Him who is in every place, but by the cultivation of pure desires and virtuous habits.”-St. Augustine
My Dearest Children of God,
We are so privileged to be here on this first Sunday of Advent ushering us into a new year (Year C) of the Church’s liturgical life. I welcome you with joy as we embark on these few weeks of spiritual rejuvenation in preparation for the coming of our Savior at Christmas. Advent is a time of waiting for Christ, allowing Jesus to be reborn in our lives. It is also a time for purifying our hearts through acts of mercy, mortification, and repentance. It is a time of renewing our lives by reflecting on and experiencing the several comings (advents) of Christ into our lives. This is a time of spiritual preparation to experience anew the blessings of Christmas.
In the first reading, the Prophet Jeremiah waits and hopes for an ideal descendant of King David who will bring security, peace, and justice to God’s people. Christians believe that Jeremiah’s waiting and hoping were fulfilled in Jesus. Security, peace, and justice are the highlights of this first reading. These are the blessings that Christ is coming to restore in our broken world of insecurity, war, insurrections, and injustices. The restoration of security, peace, and justice in the world begins from our hearts. Christ is coming to renew our hearts if we are disposed to hearken to His voice. This is a time to make peace, a time of reconciliation, a time to seek the triumph of justice.
In the second reading, Paul gives instructions about how Christians should conduct themselves as they wait for “the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His holy ones.” We are advised to “strengthen our hearts in holiness” (3:13) and “abound in love for one another” (3:12).
In today’s Gospel, Jesus prophesies the signs and portents that will accompany His Second Coming and encourages us to be expectant, optimistic, vigilant, and well-prepared. “When these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.” (Luke 21:28). The Gospel emphasizes our need to be very vigilant as we prepare for Christmas. The many concerns of the human heart put men and women in a situation of unrest in the pursuit of worldly ambitions. We feel unsatisfied and disappointed in ourselves and in God when these pursuits yield undesirable outcomes. We are in a world where people measure their progress in terms of material achievements. Are you unsatisfied and worried that 2021 has not been a favorable year for you? Is it your worst year ever? Come to think of it, no year ever comes and goes wasted, no matter the tragedies or vicissitudes of life that punctuated the existential realities surrounding us. Your marriage or relationship may have broken up; you might have lost your job; you might have been diagnosed with a life-threatening ailment; your house, shops, and means of livelihood might have been burnt down or destroyed by natural disasters or terrorist activities. Were you scammed or have lost money in business investments? In all these negative situations, we often feel depressed and count our lives as having no meaning. Yet that’s not true. When all these happen Jesus says, “Stand up, raise your heads because your salvation is near”. It is never the end of your life. The best days are yet to come.
When we reflect inwardly, we can discover in all the tragedies, God’s unbounded favors and His Grace that has sustained us through all the struggles. The gift of life is remarkable. It is a thing to give thanks for if we think we have nothing for which to give thanks. This is why this Advent is not a time to calculate how much we have achieved, but a time of taking stock of what we were not able to achieve despite the privileges, opportunities, and graces at our disposal. This is a time to plan how we can better our lives if we are given another opportunity in the coming year. “A man may lose the good things of this life against his will; but if he loses the eternal blessings, he does so with his consent.” – St. Augustine
We must raise our heads in hope and anticipation, knowing that the Lord is coming again. This season is a special moment of interior reflection and renewal, disposing ourselves to experience newer blessings and favors that’ll be our opening stock for the coming year.
The Gospel encourages us to be vigilant and prayerful. The year is coming to an end. Do not let material preoccupations and worldly anxieties lead you into sin. Whatever you could not achieve this year, can still be achieved in the coming year. Just allow Providence to lead the way. Surrender your life to God and allow Him to decide your fate. Be vigilant, for your enemy, the devil, is searching for souls to lure into sin. Resist him, be strong in the faith.
To be vigilantly prayerful is to be living in conscious contact with God. It is to have our heart and mind focused on the one thing necessary (cf Lk 10:42) and thus to have our life ordered. With this order properly established, our excesses fall away, and the many associated anxieties depart.
May we continue to live in righteousness anticipating the second coming of Christ at Christmas. “It is not by change of place that we can come nearer to Him who is in every place, but by the cultivation of pure desires and virtuous habits.” -St. Augustine. Jesus comes to us daily, if we welcome Him today with pure hearts . He comes to us in the sacraments, in our daily routines of life and the community and people around us. We should be hopeful that His coming will never take us unawares and that our salvation is surely near.
May you and your family remain blessed and protected as we prepare for Christmas. I keep you all always in my prayers.
I keep you and your family always in my prayers this Advent season. © Clems
