Dear friends,
Several thoughts cross my mind on this weekend, the 1st Sunday of Advent. As I mentioned in the Today’s Readings column on the last page, which I also do and I hope you get a chance to read and reflect on, the Church begins choosing the Sunday readings from the Gospel of Luke, also called Cycle C in the Lectionary. We are offered this cycle of readings, over a three-year period, so that we can become more familiar with Sacred Scripture, the foundation of our faith. This coming year we are offered the opportunity to understand and appreciate more deeply the themes that are evident in Luke’s Gospel.
Luke’s Gospel is often called the Gospel of the poor, because he seems to have special concern for the poor, the outcasts and the needy, not surprising for one who is believed to have been a physician. It is also called the Gospel of prayer, often showing Jesus at prayer and the Gospel of women because of their involvement in so much of the Gospel narrative and the Gospel of the Holy Spirit because of the many references in it, along with its companion piece, The Acts of the Apostles, to the action of the Holy Spirit. It has also been called the Gospel of compassion and the Gospel of forgiveness. Look for all of these themes as we journey through the Gospel of Luke from today through November of 2010.
Advent is the season of hope. It remembers the time when Israel waited from the coming of the Messiah. During Israel’s most difficult days, of defeat and exile, prophets arose who preached a word of hope, of expectation for God’s deliverance and of a better future than the past. So too, in Advent, we celebrate a coming, a future. It is an expectant waiting for the 2nd Coming of Jesus, albeit wrapped in a remembrance of His first coming in Bethlehem. We celebrate, in a word – hope. How much do we need hope in our lives and in our world today? Hope for an end to two foreign wars. Hope for the safety of our sons and daughters. Hope for our security. Hope for a cure for so many diseases. Hope for all those unemployed and for an economic recovery for everyone. Hope for a more peaceful world and a better world for our children and grandchildren. Surely, Advent is that time that stirs our hope that a future, enlightened and enlivened by the Eternal Word is still possible.
Before we jump into the usual hectic activities that mark this season, the shopping, the cards, the partying (all amply captured in the frenzy of Black Friday), maybe we could make a decision to spend a little more time reflecting on the hope the coming of Jesus offers us for our daily living. As usual, Advent Books, for daily reflection are available at the doors of the church. This year, we have gone with a different book. I invite you to take one, per family please to use together, perhaps before dinner, or after homework is done or the children have returned from practice or dance or piano. Let’s let hope make a spectacular comeback this Advent and let’s make it happen in our own lives.
God Bless,
Fr. Ron
PS. I should have mentioned this last week, as part of their journey in the Neocatechumenal Way, some of our parishioners are going door-to-door announcing God’s love to everyone they encounter, as they have done in the past. They have my permission and that of the Ridgewood Police Department. They’re not asking for anything, collecting for anything, not even trying to get people to go back to church or change their religion – just reminding everyone that God loves them. Not a bad reason for hope in this Advent season.
