Light the first candle, Advent has begun and it’s time to prepare the way. Prepare for what? Or prepare for whom? During Advent, we prepare ourselves for Christmas when we celebrate the birth of Jesus, the incarnation of God. Just like Lent is a time to prepare for Easter, Advent is a period of time to spiritually get ready for Christmas.
As Christmas is getting closer, we see lots of Christmas sales. Many are rushing to get their shopping done and getting caught up in the consumerism of presents. As the culture is telling us to hurry, we actually need to slow down; slow down to reflect and pray.
During Advent, we are awaiting the coming of Jesus, the Messiah. We celebrate His first coming (His birth) but also anticipate His second coming. That is why we “prepare” ourselves. The color we use during this liturgical season is purple. It symbolizes our repentance in preparing our hearts.
The readings from the First Sunday of Advent really set the stage for what we are doing during this season. The first reading from Jeremiah says “The days are coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and Judah.” Next, in the Responsorial Psalm, we pray “Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior, and for you I will wait all the day.”
St. Paul teaches us in the second reading from 1 Thessalonians, “to strengthen your hearts, to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones” and also to “conduct yourselves to please God”. Jesus said in the Gospel, “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy” and to “be vigilant at all times”. We await the coming of Jesus and prepare ourselves accordingly for it.
“That’s what Advent is all about Charlie Brown!”