May Christ be Our Light

“Savior of The Nations Come”, “See How the Virgin Waits”, and “On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist’s Cry” are some of the Advent songs that have now largely been forgotten.  “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” is still popular, thankfully, in the Church today.

Yet, even if the readings are said and the colors are worn, the “feel” of Advent has most certainly taken a back seat in our lives in the Church and society because the hurry to get Christmas going in a commercial manner starts around Halloween in many stores.

Advent Traditions

Some of us may have had an Advent calendar or a Jesse tree in addition to our Advent wreath, all tangible reminders of Christ’s coming. The Advent calendar taught us to focus on each day, as we peeled the days back.  The Jesse tree did the same with scripture quotes and pictures we either created or purchased, representing those scripture quotes. Sadly many of these traditions are long forgotten.

As we journey through the fourth week of Advent, we step the deepest into the preparation for Christmas that some of us have already commenced this year following Thanksgiving, likely by placing a Christmas tree.  There is a certain joy to be found in gift hunting that is difficult to put into words.

The cramming of shopping malls still takes place, despite the rise in online shopping during these two years of the global pandemic.  People still want that feel, the endeavor to look for gifts physically and tangibly.  We are a people that are not satisfied with only using one of our senses (sight) in acquiring gifts on a computer, and for good reason.  God gave us five senses: taste, touch, smell, hearing, and sight for good use.  That is one element in God’s gifting of sacramentals to His Church and humankind in general, such as holy water, icons, blessed salt, a crucifix, incense.

Now the last week of Advent, the wreath is lit each Sunday at our parishes and for some of us, in our homes.  God knows our desire for the tangible: the home we need for warmth and safety, the spouse we long for – be us a single young person or sadly missing a spouse as a widow or widower, the clothes we need, the food we hunger for…the Greatest of Food being Christ Himself, Who is the Bread of Life (cf John 6:54).

John the Baptist

John the Baptist reminds us this Advent to “reform our lives!”(cf Luke 3:7-14 ). One small way of doing that is to practice the Advent traditions, that point us to Jesus.

Some of you may have had the Advent wreath tradition when growing up in your homes.  Many people put this great meditation in their dining room, or kitchen for those less fortunate.  In fact, oftentimes the poor man’s kitchen has more love and affection in it than the wealthy dining room where the table is large, but the people may be few.  A family may huddle around the candles on the wreath in order to stay warm, for the thermostat is down to 55° to save for the new bike that their son or daughter had wanted so desperately all year.  The poor that Christ speaks of we will always have with us… but Him? Jesus? We will not always have Him with us physically (cf Matt 26:11).

Just as Our Lord was taken away from the apostles and disciples upon his crucifixion and death, so too, do we experience the separation, such as during the pandemic when we couldn’t even attend Sunday Mass. You see, we share, just like the disciples of old the same agonies, but in different ways, hence there is “no excuse” for not repenting as John exhorts us to do during this Advent but let’s not forget that Jesus promised the Advocate, The Holy Spirit to console us in the absence of Him in the Blessed Sacrament (cf John 14:16).

Four Candles: Four Events in Christ’s Life

When was the last time you recall gazing into the flame of an Advent wreath candle flickering in a dark room, as you thought of all the good people and things you met and received this past year?  Or how about a loved one you miss that passed years ago?  The Advent wreath’s candles represent four pivotal events in the life of Christ. The first candle lit signifies the prophecy of Christ fulfilled, the second candle being representative of the journey of Joseph and Mary with Child from Judea to Nazareth.

By the way, the journey of Joseph and Mary with Child is another great reflection, when we think of Joseph obeying the law of his times, and obeying the Roman census, despite any unhappiness he obviously felt to see his people under the oppression of an invading Roman government, yet he still obeyed and kept peace within his home in so doing.

As this Year of St Joseph had recently come to a close, as commissioned by Pope Francis last year, we meditate on how it is “just”(cf Rom 13:6 & Matt 1:19) to pay taxes and fill out yearly return forms, despite the oppression we feel at the hands of any corrupt lawmakers that may be involved. Let us be humble like Joseph and offer up any indignation to God.

The third candle represents the shepherds, who came to the manger, being alerted by angels.  Lastly, the fourth candle represents the Gloria of the angels of the Messiah now present among men and women.  The four candles represent the 4,000 years between the dawn of time to the coming of Christ. Sometimes, a fifth candle is lit in honor of Christ Himself.

Reform Your Life

Speaking of reforming our lives as John exhorts us, how about watching a video of an impoverished family in our own nation, or an international one seeing how they “get by” daily with only a pound of rice and a can of beans in their home for the next week?  Some countries only have broth and a starving Haitian mother is forced to make a “mud cake” which is nothing more than baked mud itself, to allay the hunger of her child?  Or at least thinking of the situation, using your imagination to commensurate as the gospels exhort us to (cf 1 Peter 5:9).  If this is too steep, how about going on social media only once three times this week, instead of every day?

O men, how about at the end of this Advent and into Christmas doing some pro-life work for those forgotten little ones who die in the womb in addition to the many coronavirus victims?  How about teaching the irresponsible fathers for a change, and like a good gentleman, deflecting some of the incredible number of accusations away from the women regarding abortion?

When one is away on a business trip, be it the husband or wife, perhaps they could skype long distance each night with a small Advent wreath, lighting it thanking God for one another.  In a world that is a sea of infidelity, albeit mostly due to online accessibility, let a bridge of faithfulness be a light in the darkness to the rest of humankind, no matter how small that light is in the darkness.

How about praying to St John the Baptist during the end of Advent?  He is, after all, a “relative” in Christ!  The late Archbishop Sheen referred to him as a sort of “best man” since Christ is the Bridegroom of our souls. During the end of this season, invite John into your thoughts, for example, when struggling with a temptation, invite him into the situation on your mind.  Why not?

We oftentimes gladly invite our enemy the devil in our thoughts by long discourses of gossip on the phone at night, long hours on social media, etc.  Stir up some silence for yourselves; shut off the TV, quiet the radio, power down the phone, and ask John to help you prepare the way for The King who he knew so well!

John asks us to reform our lives and Jesus backed him up 100%.  John, I suppose, we could view as a type of good uncle, being that Jesus is Our Brother and Son of Our Father.  John reaches out on our behalf with Christ to The Father to make sure we are doing the right thing daily.  John confronted Herod, the corrupt leader of his people during that time.  People asked John when he was down at the Jordan baptizing, “what must we do?” when he warned them to amend their ways to get to heaven (cf Luke 3:7-14 ) John told the laity of his day to share a tunic if you have two and give food to the hungry. Soldiers and police of his day to be “content with their wages” and refrain from bullying anyone. And John also told the tax collectors to not play into extortion but how about you and me?

John Speaks to Us Today

How is John speaking to us today?  Why not ask him?  Oh, and expect an answer, as Padre Pio was wont to say, “to doubt is the greatest insult to The Divinity.”  During this dark time of increased crime and despair, may Advent-into-Christmas hope beam forth and reach out by our evangelistic efforts, “baptized” with the prayer of our great predecessor and the ultimate evangelist, John the Baptizer.  He is Christ’s right-hand man in this battle for souls that He undertook on Calvary.  The King has come unto His Own,  May Christ be Our Light this Advent!