Waiting for the Lord

On November 30, 2025 we begin another liturgical year with the First Sunday of Advent.  Each year the first Sunday of the new liturgical year falls on the Sunday that is closest to the Feast of St. Andrew, the first-called Apostle. 

As we begin this new year a few things change immediately.  The liturgical color changes from the green of Ordinary Time and the white of the last solemnity to purple or sarum blue to denote the themes of preparation and hope in Advent.  We have also changed the gospel of our primary focus.  Last year, Cycle C, was primarily focused on the Gospel of St. Luke, but this new year, Cycle A, will have gospel readings from St. Matthew.

But there are also things which have not changed.  During the last few weeks of the past Ordinary Time and finally with the Solemnity of Christ the King we were intently focused on the teaching of Jesus regarding the end times in the Gospel of St. Luke.  Although we have changed to St. Matthew, we begin Advent with a Gospel reading from the end of Matthew’s Gospel as Jesus speaks of the end of all things.  During His time in Jerusalem before His Passion, Jesus teaches regarding the end.  “For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” (Matthew 24:37)  Jesus tells His followers that even though there were warnings, there was still a number of people who were not prepared. “For as in the days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away.” (Matthew 24:38-39)

In the season of Advent, we are waiting for the Lord to come to us.  The season begins with a focus on the fact that Jesus will return to the earth in glory.  It is something we confess each and every Sunday when we recite the Creed.  We say, “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and His kingdom will have no end.” But Advent is also the season in which we start to reorient ourselves.  We begin to realize that this final return in glory is only possible  because there was a first appearance of our Lord which took place two thousand years ago. 

Again, it is something we confess in the Creed, “For us and for our salvation, He came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit, He was born of the Virgin Mary, and became Man.” The Season of Advent is where we connect these two events together.  God so loved the world that He sent His Son for our salvation.  In the person of Jesus, God gives to us His ultimate revelation.  “Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by a Son, Whom He appointed heir of all things, through Who He also created the worlds.” (Hebrews 1:1-2)

We experience this shift as well when we consider the individuals that we encounter during this Advent season.  At the beginning of Advent, a primary focus will be on Isaiah the Prophet.  In the later weeks we will focus on John the Baptist and the Blessed Virgin Mary.  Isaiah was one who spoke of God’s ways, but also he was one who remotely pointed to the Messiah, who would be a Savior.  The Blessed Virgin Mary and John the Baptist are more immediate preparations.  We will encounter the “yes” of Mary to the announcement by the Archangel Gabriel that the Messiah would be born of her.  And this is something that we will especially celebrate in the Advent Rorate Masses in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  We will also encounter the preparations for the ministry of our Lord in the person of John the Baptist.  He will point to Jesus as the “Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the World.” 

But in this time of transition from the last appearance of our Lord when He comes in power and glory, to the first appearance of our Lord as the infant Child of Bethlehem, during this season of Advent, we also must acknowledge that there is a third intermediate coming of Christ into the world.  And it happens in the present day.

Each and every time we come to Church, the Lord comes to us and He does so in a variety of ways.  We must especially acknowledge that He is truly present to us in the Holy Eucharist.  It is the true Body and Blood of Christ that comes to us upon our altars.  And even more so, this presence of Jesus is communicated to us when we receive Him in Holy Communion.  Jesus is also present to us in the proclamation of the Gospel and the expounding upon it in the Sacrament of the Word of God.  We had said above in the Letter to the Hebrews that “in these last days He [God] has spoken to us by a Son.” (Hebrews 1:2)  This speaking is extended in the Church today in the proclamation of the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ, and then through the homiletic ministry of the Church, the Sacrament of the Word of God.  Similar to the Holy Eucharist, this I especially true when we receive the Gospel and the Sacrament of the Word of God with hearts and minds open to allowing ourselves to be changed and grow closer to Jesus.

So, my brothers and sisters, we have only a short time in this season of Advent, which lasts only four weeks, to get ourselves ready.  Saint Paul says it in the Second Reading from the First Sunday of Advent, “For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near.  Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.” (Romans 13:11b-12) 

Use the time in the Advent season to prepare our hearts and minds and lives for the coming of the Lord.  The Season gives us a number of ways to do so.  Participate fully in the Masses during the Advent season.  Consider having an Advent Wreath with candles in your home where you can light the candles during dinner time and allow the themes of Advent preparation to be with you.  Attend the Advent Retreats or Penitential Services that are held throughout the Church. And if you are unable to do so, then make a more concerted effort during the celebration of the Sacrament of Penance during Holy Mass.  Show up to church a few minutes early and put in some effort in reviewing the Examination of Conscience at the beginning of the Mass Book.  Pray the prayers given there with some intention.  Review the questions given to examine your conscience.  If we would spend just 10 seconds on each question given there, then we can spend 25 minutes in preparation for the Sacrament of Penance.

Ultimately allow all of these practices of the Advent season to begin to change you for the better.  We desire to put aside any darkness and to see in the light our Lord Jesus Christ Who is coming to us.  Yes, be prepared for the Lord when He will come for you at the end, to judge us in power and in glory.  Yes, be prepared for the Lord Who will come as the Child of Bethlehem to bring to the world His peace and love.  But also be prepared to welcome the Lord at every moment, in the celebration of the Holy Mass and the Sacraments, in our Advent sacrifices of moments of extra prayers and penances, and especially in quiet hope as we wait for the Lord Who is coming.