HAPPY NEW LITURGICAL YEAR
Is 2:1-5; Rom
13:11-14; Mt 24:37-44
“Behold, the heavenly king will come
with power and great glory to save the nations.” Alleluia.
Today marks the first Sunday of Advent and
the beginning of a new liturgical year for the Church. The Advent season comprises
the four Sundays before Christmas. It is a time of preparation for the coming
of the Lord. In this season, we recall two central elements of our faith: the
final coming of the Lord in glory and the incarnation of the Lord in the birth
of Jesus. Key themes of the Advent season are watchful waiting, preparation,
and justice. In this new liturgical year, the Gospel of Matthew will be the
primary Gospel proclaimed (Cycle A). In today’s Gospel, we hear Jesus speaking
about the need for wakefulness, watchful waiting for the coming of the Son of
Man.
We must keep watch because, as Benedict XVI said,
“only those who are alert are not taken by surprise.” We must be prepared with
love burning in our hearts like the lamp of the wise virgins. That is precisely
the point: the moment will come when we hear, “Behold, the bridegroom! Come out
to meet him!” (Mt 25:6). His arrival is always a source of joy for the one who
keeps the torch lit in one’s own heart. Advent teaches us to wait with peace
and love for the Lord. Nothing of despair or impatience is characteristic of
today’s world. Saint Augustine gives us a rule in waiting: “Live your life as
you would like your death to be.” If we wait with love, God will fill our
hearts and our hope.
“Stay awake, for you do not know on which day your
Lord will come” (Mt 24:42). A clean house, a pure heart, thoughts, and
affections need to be formed in the style of Jesus. Benedict XVI explains: “To be
watchful means to follow the Lord, to choose what he has chosen, to love what he
has loved, to conform one’s own life to his.” Then the Son of Man will come…
and the Father will welcome us in his arms for resembling his Son.
“Wash
yourselves, make yourselves clean, remove your evil deeds from before my eyes” (Is 1:16)
Amen
ReplyDeleteFr. Dara is a wonderful man of God! He is inspirational in his teachings. God bless this wonderful
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