When Christmas comes, are you ready?

(Updated version of column for church bulletin)

I enjoy reading, so much that I remember having to be told not to bring books to the dinner table when I was a child. Today my reading interest varies depending on the mood I am in. Subjects can range from history, religious and biographies to best selling fiction.  Sometimes I will let the book I read effect my mood. I remember the first time I read the Lord of the Rings trilogy, I was so sad when I finished the last book. The characters of the books had entered my imagination and become real. We shared grand adventure, become friends; protected each other and now all at once and very quickly they were gone, never to live again unless I read the books again.

Our holidays can be like that sometimes. The memories become alive just like the characters in the books we have read. We may feel that with each passing Advent and Christmas season something has been lost. Memories and feeling have been made that we may never have again. Luckily the unique sights and smells of the holidays draw us back to our own memories. The sweets that are baked and the scented candles we burn all help us remember our own family memories. We recall our childhood and the excitement we felt at this time of the year. We want to remember our past but also create new memories with our own family and friends. We recall the past and use those memories to build on the future.

This is what Advent should be for all of us. We should be looking back at the birth of Jesus, recalling all the events surrounding it and also looking forward to the opportunity the birth of Jesus will bring to us. It is fitting that today’s Collect helps us to look both in the past and to the future. We pray that through the Incarnation of the Son of God, made known to us through the message of the Angel, God’s grace may be poured forth into our hearts. This grace will help us prepare for our own eternal salvation that is shown to us by the passion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The Gospel tells us that the child Elizabeth was carrying leaped for joy when hearing the voice of Mary, causing Elizabeth to cry out: “And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” We too must be ready to leap for joy when the birth of Christ comes. Our savior wants us to say “Yes” to the salvation he will one day offer to us which begins with his birth. This is not just something from the past, a memory that only lives when we read or think about but an offer of a future eternal life. Advent has helped us to recall the past and to prepare for the future. When Christmas comes may you too be blessed for having believed the message spoken to Mary “the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”

Advent: a Time for Traditions

(Updated version of column for church bulletin)

Each family has their own traditions for the holidays. Think back a few weeks ago to the Thanksgiving holiday. You probably ate the same food and did the same things you do every year. Maybe after dinner you played games together, shared family stories or just stood around in the kitchen visiting with each other as everyone helped to clean the dishes. There is nothing wrong with tradition especially if it brings us together in love and comfort. Our hectic lives could be causing us to slowly lose some of our traditions, especially during the Advent season. Our schedules have become so busy and diverse it is hard to find the time for family traditions. Traditions can build up the family through love and sharing so they are worth keeping despite the effort they require.

My wife and I both had the same tradition when growing up.  Each of our families would gather around the television to watch some of the Christmas shows such as The Charlie Brown Christmas Special, Frosty the Snowman or Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer. It was a time before DVDs, video recorders and multiple playing of the same show. If you did not plan to watch a Christmas show, you could miss it and would have to wait another year for the chance to see it again. There was comfort in the knowledge that you, your mom, dad, brothers and sisters took the time to come together to enjoy the same show and share laughter, comments and jokes. Though it was not spoken at the time there was a love felt by all by just being together.

Today we should be lighting the second candle of our Advent wreath. I know that not everyone has or uses a wreath during the Advent season but it is a tradition my wife and I have always liked. When our children were young, it was very easy to bring them together for the lighting of the advent wreath. There is something about the lighting of the candles, praying together and anticipating the birth of Christ that they all seemed to enjoy. The Advent wreath was also a countdown clock to Christmas for our children so I will admit that the anticipation of a visit by St. Nick probably played a role in my children’s enjoyment of this daily advent tradition.

One thing my wife and I would do each night when we gathered to light the Advent wreath was to make sure not as many lights were on around the kitchen table. Our children would notice this darkness around the kitchen table.  It was their visual reminder of not just how close Christmas was but also of the darkness the world was in before the birth of Christ. The lighting of an additional candle each week would make the room brighter. Each week we knew it was a little closer to the light of Christ coming into our earthly world.

There are many other Advent traditions that can be done; the blessing of your Christmas tree and nativity scene, Advent countdown calendars, the Jesse tree, fasting, attending daily Masses and meditating on the great "O Antiphons" of Advent are just a few. Advent offers us many traditions for preparing for the birth of Christ. Find that special Advent tradition for your family or for yourself and start it today.

Preparing for the Birth of Christ

(Updated version of column for church bulletin)

Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God, the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ with righteous deeds at his coming, so that, gathered at his right hand, they may be worthy to possess the heavenly Kingdom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

This is the Collect for the today’s Mass; the First Sunday of Advent. We are called to run to forth to meet Christ with righteous deeds. Advent is a time of preparation. We are to prepare for the coming birth of Christ by our righteous deeds. How well we prepared can be shown by how well we wait.

When I was younger, there were three types of waiting I did for a parent. The first was with trepidation. There was a feeling of apprehension; I knew something was wrong. The problem was this feeling was brought about by my own mistakes. I had probably disobeyed either a parent or teacher and did not want to face the consequences. I hoped my mistake was forgotten or not known. Neither was usually the case.

The second type of waiting is with indifference. I just did not think about when my mother or father would be home. I may not have done anything wrong but neither had I done anything outstanding. There was no reason to anticipate their arrival. I was too wrapped up in my own thoughts, plans and desires.

The third type of waiting is one of joyful anticipation. The anticipation is not in an opportunistic way as if waiting to proclaim personal accomplishments but one of joy as one waits to see a loved one. It is the joy that comes from knowing that you wait for someone who desires to see you as much as you desire their presence.

The Advent season gives us a time to prepare for the coming birth of Jesus. We must decide now how we will prepare during this time. Is it with indifference; not giving any thought to how the birth of Christ effected us? Will it be with the trepidation of knowing that we could have done more to better appreciate what the birth of Jesus means to our salvation? Will it be with joyful anticipation that comes from the knowledge that we have truly taken the time to prepare for the birth of Christ?

There will be a multitude of deeds you can do to be ready for the joyous birth we celebrate at Christmas. Participate in the opportunities your Church will offer. Journey through the Advent season using one of the many spiritual Advent books being offered. Budget your time wisely so you will be able to reflect on scripture. Visit the home-bound and those in nursing homes. Donate your time, talent and treasure to those in need. These good deeds will have you prepared and waiting for the birth of Christ with joyful anticipation.