Cycle B - Year II:  

3 December 2023: First Sunday of Advent 

(Liturgical color: Violet)

Readings:

First Reading:        Isaiah 63:16-17, 19; 64:2-7

Second Reading:   1 Corinthians 1:3-9

Gospel:  Please read  Mark 13:33-37 

A new beginning: "Be watchful!"

We start a new liturgical year this Sunday in the Season of Advent. And today is the First Sunday of Advent.

Advent is a period of preparation, extending over four Sundays before Christmas Day. The word "advent" come from Latin "adventus", which means "arrival" or "coming". That is why it is a preparation for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ on Christmas Day. Today is also the New Year for the Church liturgical calendar, so we can greet each other "Happy New Year"!

During the Advent Season the Church invites us to reflect in three ways: First, and the most obvious,  as a time of preparation for the Solemnities of Christmas, in which we remember the First Coming of our Savior Jesus Christ to humanity; second, looking forward to Christ's Second Coming at the end of time; and also, we reflect on the coming of our Lord Jesus in our lives through grace and the Sacrament of the Eucharist.

On the first Sunday of Advent we are called to reflect on the need we have for God to save us and to ask Him to come and fill us with His grace. The theme of the Gospel proclamation is to be vigilant and alert. "Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come." (Mk 13:33)  We hear these words, or their equivalent, at the beginning of every Advent Season. These are words from the past that direct us to the future. This interplay of past and future nicely reveals the character of Advent itself, and of Catholic life in general. Because how we receive our Lord at His birth will determine how we respond to Him at His return, or second coming.

To help us understand better the urgency with which we should anticipate the Lord's return in glory, Jesus compares us to servants awaiting their master's return but not knowing exactly when it will occur. This uncertainty should not leave us dreading the future. Rather, it should impel us to live in such a way that whenever Jesus returns, we will be found ready and awaiting for Him. Our whole lives should be an ongoing preparation to meet the King of kings, and Lord of lords, whenever He should decide to return.

How can we make use of the Advent Season for our personal preparation for the Lord's coming?

Here are some practical suggestions: First, undertaking voluntary penances during the Season of Advent by availing of the Sacrament of Reconciliation; second, dedicating a portion of what we might spend on gifts toward charitable causes as a way of mortifying the secular tendency to overindulge during the Christmas season; finally, but not the last, we should dedicate ourselves to intensified prayer, for example, meditating on the Joyful Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. All these are among the most effective ways of being prepared and watchful during this Advent Season.

In the sense of Advent, we prepare ourselves to meet the Lord, who came, who is coming and who will come at the end of time. It is a time of joy and hope.

The authentic Christian is the person who lives the Gospel daily, in view of eternity, with and for love of God. The Christian cannot fall asleep. He has to be constantly alert and on watch.  The word "Watch!" in Mark 13:37 is a salutary reminder to us that life does not only have an earthly dimension but reaches toward a "beyond".

So we know: St. Mark is the main Evangelist during this new liturgical year, Cycle B - Year II. That means, the Gospel proclamation for this liturgical year is taken mostly from St. Mark.

St. Mark is the author of the Second Gospel. His Gospel was probably written between 60 and 70 A.D., and was based upon the teachings of St. Peter. It is believed Mark provided both St. Luke and St. Matthew with basic sources for their Gospels. St. Mark is the Patron Saint of Venice and his feast day is celebrated on April 25.

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

Ad Jesum per Mariam!