Advent Reflection for November 30 – The First Sunday of Advent
Readings: Isaiah 2:1-5, Psalm 122: 1-2, 3-4, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9,Romans 13:11-14, Matthew 24: 37-44

Today is the First Sunday of Advent… a new beginning.

In the coming weeks, the rhythm of nature around us will remind us of some important life lessons.

Each day, we’ll see the sun rise and set, with less light each day up until the winter solstice, teaching us to live in hope even as we enter into darkness at day’s end.

With the end of day and the onset of night, we will hold fast to the promise of the dawn and the beginning of a brand-new day.

As cold winter days begin to surround us, enveloping us in their darkness, we long for the light.

We know that light by the name of Jesus, so we will journey through these Advent days toward Christmas with the hope that Christ’s light might overcome our darkness.

May we keep our eyes open, looking to the horizon and believing that God’s light shall break through our darkness.  A new day will dawn.

Follow the sun… follow the Son.

Advent Reflection for December 1 – Monday of the First Week of Advent
Readings: Isaiah 4:2-6, Psalm 122:1-2, 3-4b, 4cd-5, 6-7, 8-9, Matthew 8:5-11

In today’s gospel reading we hear the centurion say to Jesus, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed.”  In that moment, Jesus does more than just “say the word,”  because Jesus is more than a word. Jesus is the Emmanuel, the God-with-us, who comes into our life to offer us an experience of the holy and healing presence of God.

God does not simply say to creation, “I love you,” from some far-off and distant heaven, but expresses that love through the incarnation. In the gift of Jesus, we find that divine presence born into creation. The Word Incarnate is not simply God speaking to our hearts; Jesus is in our midst. And, just like in his encounter with that centurion so long ago, Jesus comes to us this day to bring us hope and healing.

These days of Advent challenge us to transform our love from simply being something spoken as part of our everyday vocabulary to becoming something more- a sharing in the life-changing, love-perfecting work of God in the world.  Can we, like Jesus, make our love more than words and allow our encounters with one another to become experiences that reveal the holy and healing presence of God in our world?

Advent Reflection for December 2 – Tuesday of the First Week of Advent
Readings: Isaiah 11:1-10, Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17, Luke 10:21-24

So many in our world today struggle with loneliness.  As a human family, we are more connected than ever before in history.  Our laptops, phones, and watches, filled with their various apps and internet connections, constantly remind us that we are never alone.  In an instant, we can be in touch with someone on the other side of the world.

However, even with all those folks at our fingertips, a profound loneliness seems to pervade our society.  We find ourselves longing for true friendship and sincere love.  We are all too often left simply with our social media followers and friends and lacking any real connection, struggling to find our place in the world.

Advent invites us to consider where we call home and who it is we find there.  For Mary and Joseph, home would not be their familiar Nazareth streets; they’d first make a home in Bethlehem and then in Egypt.  Their family would become more than their blood relations; amidst shepherds and kings, Mary and Joseph would discover the gift true friendship and the expression of true love.

When we feel alone, find ourselves in unfamiliar places, and are lacking any real connection with those around us, Advent invites us to step back and take a moment to go into our hearts.  There, in the calm and quiet of our hearts, we will find God waiting for us.  And with God’s grace to guide us, we can then find our way home.

Just as God did with Mary and Joseph, we pray in these Advent days that our good and gracious God will open our eyes and reveal to us that home is where the heart is and that those unexpected companions around us may just become our truest friends.

Advent Reflection for December 3 – Wednesday of the First Week of Advent
Memorial of Saint Francis Xavier, Priest
Readings: Isaiah 25:6-10a, Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6, Matthew 15:29-37

Like Mary and Joseph, our Advent journey takes us down paths unknown and filled with surprises. As they arrived in Bethlehem and could not find room at any inn, their hearts must have been filled with worry. Tired from the long journey, they had to remind each other to keep moving forward, step by step, one foot in front of the other, following and trusting the Light that had not yet abandoned them to the darkness.

Each year, we make the same journey, repeating the routines, customs, and traditions of years past. We haul out of storage our many boxes and bins of decorations, and we deck the halls with boughs of holly. We dress ourselves in the festive colors of the season and gather with family and friends whom we may only visit once a year.

We call to mind a multitude of memories, visiting with the ghosts of Christmases past, present, and future.

While it may be one more journey through Advent and Christmas, each year we find ourselves different than before, one year older and oftentimes facing something new and unexpected. Some years we may feel we are wiser, while other years we may find ourselves more confused or uncertain. Some years may find us filled with joy, while other years we may feel more sorrowful or empty.

Yet, no matter our circumstances, we must remind ourselves and each other that it’s going to be okay.

St. Teresa of Avila reminds us, “Every part of the journey is of importance to the whole.” With Mary and Joseph teaching us through their own journey, may we come to discover how to walk by faith and not by sight.

Advent Reflection for December 4 – Thursday of the First Week of Advent
Readings: Isaiah 26:1-6, Psalm 118:1 and 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a, Matthew 7:21, 24-27

It’s about presence and not presents.

Saint Augustine writes in his *Confessions*, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.” Nothing else will satisfy.  All of the stuff that we accumulate cannot bring us the peace, love, and joy that we long for. Our souls will only find their contentment when we are all made one in God. When we are finally reunited with all those we love who have crossed over to heavenly shores, and we find ourselves received into God’s eternal embrace, that will be when our souls truly find their rest.

This longing for presence can be heard in today’s song choice.  Listen to the plaintive sound of the violin.  Hear the desperate yearning of the male singer.  Take into your heart his heartbreaking realization that his hope will never be realized.  His love will not be present again; he must settle for presents.

Saint Paul’s letter to the Romans reminds us that “hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” God’s love will sustain us during our life here on earth, promising to reunite us with our loved ones in heaven, and forever keeping hope alive for us.

Each day, through simple signs and gestures, God gives us glimpses of what shall be.  We must pay attention to how God and our dearly departed loved ones make themselves seen and heard.

In these holy days of Advent and Christmas, we celebrate how heaven and earth unite. And while our souls may long desperately for a heavenly homecoming, we can already experience today, in our hearts and in our homes, the closeness of God and God’s angels and saints.

May we allow their presence to give us joy and stir up hope in our hearts.

It’s about presence and not presents.

Advent Reflection for December 5 – Friday of the First Week of Advent
Readings: Isaiah 29:17-24, Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14, Matthew 9: 27-31

There is so much to do.  There is not enough time.  It is all so overwhelming.

For many of us, this month of December and the build-up to Christmas can be exhausting.  Between the many commitments of family, friends, church, school, and work, we can hardly seem to catch our breath.

When life feels suffocating, we need to find some time to give ourselves over to Advent. These holy days can help us breathe.  Through finding moments of silence, stillness, and prayer, we can keep ourselves centered and calm amid all the Christmas chaos that surrounds us.

Breathe deep.  Focus on taking into your lungs the breath of God, filling you with renewed life and strength.

Breathe out.  Release the stress, the worries, and the weariness that seek to sap your strength.

Breathe deep.  Take into yourself the Holy Presence of God, experiencing the quiet peace of Holy Mary.

Breathe out. Surrender all uncertainties, experiencing the profound trust of Holy Joseph.

Advent Reflection for December 6 – Saturday of the First Week of Advent
Memorial of Saint Nicholas, Bishop
Readings: Isaiah 30:19-21, 23-26, Psalm 147:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, Matthew 9:35–10:1, 5a, 6-8

Advent comes from a Latin word that means “coming” or “arrival.” As we listen to songs like “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” and “Here Comes Santa Claus,” we prepare ourselves to welcome Christ and Jolly Old Saint Nicholas.

In this season, however, we not only prepare for their arrival, we prepare to welcome many others as well. Friends and neighbors will stop by with their greetings.  Cookies will be exchanged.  And we will find ourselves invited to various parties, pageants, and candlelit processions.

How do we become a welcoming people?  Will others come to know us through our hospitality? We need God’s inspiration to help us, that we may be sincere in our welcomes and generous in our hospitality.

There will surely be days ahead when our Christmas cheer is in short supply and our smiles and greetings don’t come so easily. First and foremost, let us give welcome to the Holy Spirit.  With the Holy Spirit’s assistance to direct our thoughts and actions, we can find our way to living more like the jolly, old saint whose feast day we celebrate today.

May Saint Nicholas intercede for us, helping us to follow his example and live our lives in a spirit of generous giving, and reveale to the world around us the presence of our good and gracious God.