Cycle A - Year I:

27 November 2016: First Sunday of Advent

(Liturgical color: Violet)

Gospel: Please read Matthew 24:37-44

Let us prepare!

The cool breeze in the morning heralds the coming of the month of December very soon. And it is likely that our thoughts are on the Christmas holidays already.

But not so fast though. For today in the Christian world we greet each other a "Happy New Year!" That is not a joke, because this Sunday the Church begins a new liturgical year, a new year's day in our life within the Church, as we welcome the Advent Season.

[A note on the new liturgical year: The start of a new liturgical year also marks the transition from one lectionary cycle (A, B, and C) to the next. These cycles are the results of the Second Vatican Council which ordered a change in the Sunday readings at Mass so that Catholics would become more familiar with the text of the Bible. Thus, we have a three-year cycle of readings built around readings from three synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Today we go back to Cycle A, and thus Sunday readings will be taken from the Gospel of Matthew.]

What is the meaning of "Advent"? The Advent Season is a period of preparation, extending over 4 Sundays before Christmas. The word "advent" comes from the Latin "ad-venio", which means "to come to", and it refers to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The liturgical color for the season of Advent is violet, the bluer hues of violet.

The Church wants us to make use of the Advent Season as a period of spiritual preparation in three ways: the first and most obvious, in celebration of Christ's birth on Christmas day; second, the coming of Christ in our lives through grace and the Sacrament of the Eucharist or Holy Communion; and finally, the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ at the end of time.

Advent Season, therefore, is the start of a new stage in our worldly pilgrimage to the house of our Father in heaven.

The theme of the Gospel reading from Matthew is being ready and prepared. Jesus tells His disciples, "So, too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come." (Mt 24:44). He says the same thing to each one of us now: be ready and be prepared!

As members of the Church, our preparation includes taking the opportunity to focus on the great event of the Incarnation, Jesus' own choice to take on our human flesh by being born of the Virgin. It is an event that demonstrates God's amazing humility and His incredible care for us, His children.

As Christians, we hope for the Lord's coming, because we are sure that He is coming again; there is no doubt about that. The Season of Advent provides us the opportunity to deepen our waiting in hope for the realization of God's saving promise in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

When we encounter the living Jesus today, the same Lord who crashed into our world to become an Infant Child, we come to trust that He cares for us radically, that He is constantly looking for ways to draw near to us. So that we become able to see Him and His loving hand in our daily lives.

In sum, Advent is a time to wake up from the daze, to focus on what is more important in life, and to live in hope. Let us start the new liturgical year with positive disposition. The best time for new beginnings is now.

So, let us prepare now and always. For our Lord Jesus warns us: "Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come!" (Mt. 24:42)

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!