I love the Advent Season. I love it not just for what it leads to – the joyful celebration of Christ’s birth at Bethlehem. I love Advent for itself: a season of longing, expectation, and hope. I think that, in a way, the entirety of life is like Advent.
There is, deep within us, a longing for God and, as Saint Augustine says, our hearts are restless until they rest in God. That longing and restlessness will not be entirely satisfied until we reach Heaven. Until then, in this life, many things compete for our attention. Those things variously attract us, distract us, and clamor for our attention. It is helpful to remember Elijah’s experience in searching for God (1 Kings 19:9–13). At the end of his rope and fleeing peril, Elijah found God not in the raging wind, the blazing fire, or the powerful earthquake. Elijah found God in a still, small whisper.
Life’s legitimate demands, its rightful joys, and its alluring distractions can make us forget or drown out the more subtle voice of God calling us. But deep down, all those things—responsibilities well met, joys rightly celebrated, or pleasures not so appropriately pursued or indulged—cannot satisfy the need we have for a deep relationship with God. What we think will satisfy us commands our pursuit, but the joy of their achievement does not long endure. Our longings soon pine for something else, something more.
Advent recognizes the longings of our nature. It focuses us on the ultimate object of those longings and provides us with a means to deepen our satisfactions in God by a greater awareness of His goodness and closeness to us even now in this life.
As a word, Advent derives from the Latin verb advenire, meaning “to come to.” As a season, Advent prepares us for the commemoration of Jesus’ first coming at Bethlehem. It also prepares us for His Second Coming at the end of time. The Mass readings of the early part of Advent urge us to be alert, stay awake, prepare the way of the Lord, and make straight His paths. John the Baptist, the last of the prophets and the forerunner of the Lord, figures prominently in the early part of Advent, as does Isaiah, the great Old Testament prophet whose book is considered a compendium of the Gospel because of his prophecies about the coming Messiah.
Advent’s sense of anticipation and forward-looking outlook is evident from the weekday Mass readings in the first week: “The branch of the Lord will be luster and gold” (Monday), “A shoot shall sprout” (Tuesday), “The Lord…will provide for all peoples” (Wednesday), “On that day, they will sing” (Thursday), “But a very little while” (Friday), and “No more will you weep” (Saturday). Those readings recall the longing of the Jews for the promised Messiah. They also connect to our longings for His promised return and to be prepared for it.
The Fourth Sunday of Advent and the readings from December 17 until December 24 prepare us to celebrate Christ’s birth by focusing on Mary, Joseph, the Annunciation, the Visitation, and the journey to Bethlehem.
A good Advent Season of preparation leads us to celebrate not only Christmas Day, but the Christmas Season. Liturgically speaking, the Christmas Season this year runs from December 25 to January 11, the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. It takes discipline, prudence, and discretion not to jump the gun on Christmas celebrations. The prevalence of Christmas music, ads, parties, and decorations from the day after Thanksgiving can leave us saturated and weary by the time the Christmas Season and its celebration arrive.
Please try to maintain Advent as a season of anticipation and preparation. In Church, Advent music is subdued, and the organ should be less prominent. Our hymns and chants convey a sense of longing: O Come, O Come, Emmanuel; Come, O Long-Expected Jesus; O Come, Divine Messiah; People, Look East; and Lo! How a Rose E’er Blooming.
Try to make use of an Advent wreath and an Advent calendar, lighting the candles of the wreath (and saying the prayers) each day and opening the doors of the calendar as you progress through Advent. Try to get to weekday Mass more often, or at least read reflectively the weekday Mass readings as part of your daily prayer. Certainly, we should all make a confession during the Advent Season.
There are many excellent books that give fine materials for prayerful reflection and activities for families. Some of them include:
In Conversation with God: Daily Meditations, Volume One — Advent and Christmastide, by Francis Fernandez
The Essential Advent and Christmas Handbook: A Daily Companion (A Redemptorist Pastoral Publication)
Christmas with the Holy Fathers, compiled by Peter Celano, foreword by Thomas Howard
Behold, He Comes: Meditations on the Incarnation, by Rev. Benedict Groeschel, CFR
Monastery Journey to Christmas: Meditations Begin November 15, by Brother Victor-Antoine D’Avila-LaTourrette
The Catholic All Year Compendium: Liturgical Living for Real Life, by Kendra Tierney
The Book of Advent and Christmas Prayers, by William G. Storey (Loyola Press)
With prayerful wishes for a blessed Advent Season,
Most Reverend Richard F. Reidy
Bishop of Norwich
To help you with this preparation, we will be gathering various Advent resources into one convenient location. Please bookmark the link below and visit it often as you prepare for the wonderful season of Christmas.
Bookmark and visit NorwichDiocese.org/Advent for additional resources this Advent season.
To Prepare Your Heart for the Coming of the Lord