Ps 122:1-2, 3-4, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
Rm 13:11-14
Mt 24:37-44
In a sense, I’m really giving up here because from the pulpit you hear it time and time again from protestant pastors and priests alike. Stop the commercialism, stop the materialism, stop the buying frantic frenetic frenzy of running around the city finding the perfect gift for that special someone, and to put “CHRIST BACK INTO CHRISTMAS.” I knew I was facing a losing a battle; the inertia is too great. I can’t fight it. So, I am hoping that if you don’t listen to the “don’ts,” MAYBE you will listen to the “do’s.”
Our second reading comes from Paul’s Letter to the Romans. This is one of my favorite passages because it is literally a wake-up call: You know the time; it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep…. The night is advanced, the day is at hand. It is time to wake up! and realize that you will one day die, the world will one day end. There should be no surprises here… I don’t need a medical degree to know that and let you know that. The only thing that is certain is that we are uncertain when that it is, but it will certainly come to pass. Therefore, let us then throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; …let us conduct ourselves properly as in the day, not in orgies and drunkenness, …promiscuity and lust, rivalry and jealousy. Our Lord says in the Gospel that we do not know on which day the Lord will come. Therefore everyday should be lived as our last; we should not be caught off guard, but spiritually awake and ready.
Yes, this season is saturated with consumerism and materialism, but it does not mean that your heart has to sell out too. Imagine what would happen if you were to take time out of your busyness and call somebody whom you have not spoken to for a while? What would it mean for them? The act becomes that much more valuable. What does it mean to yourself and to God to take time out of your busy-ness to come to daily Mass, to adoration, to sit in the chapel in silence, to go to the sacrament of Reconciliation and Confession, to participate in some of our Advent meetings and classes?
These next four weeks is an intense period of preparation. If life is already busy, it will get busier; that’s life. But do not squeeze out what is the single most important thing in your life: our Lord Jesus Christ. I have said it time and time again: “If you truly want to do something, you will make time to do it.” Only when this happens is the prophecy of Isaiah fulfilled, All nations shall stream toward [the LORD’s house] ‘Come, let us climb the LORD’s mountain, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may instruct us in his ways and we may walk in his paths….’ and ‘Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.’ The LORD will reveal Himself to us if we set our hearts to Him.
There are countless ways to prepare in Advent, the Church is not chaining up the Bible, she is not chaining up or holding back any resources – it is there for the taking. If you don’t take it, it simply means you don’t want it bad enough and that is unfortunate, because I won’t force you and you will continue your empty somnambulant life. I will always be inviting and welcoming you, but it is up to you to respond!
Preparing for the End of the World is synonymous with the Second Coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ. It is liturgically synonymous with the celebration of Christ the King and the celebration of Christmas reminds us that He will indeed come again. We are reminded of the many comings of Christ; all linked together in a mystical way: the Incarnation of Christ at Christmas, the Second Coming of Christ at the End of the World, and finally, the coming of Christ into our very hearts. This is what we are preparing for ultimately. If you are preparing for the End of the World, then you will be already be preparing for Christ’s other comings. Saying that it is the End of the World, however true it may be, just seems a little more urgent. =)
Therefore my dear Brothers and Sisters, when I said to “Prepare for the end of the world” on your to-do list it was not some dark morbid fear-mongering tactic. I meant it. How are you going to prepare for the End of the World? It is not about building your bomb shelter and stocking a bunker with canned goods and aluminum foil hats. It is definitely not getting ready for the Zombie Apocalypse. “Preparing for the End of the World” is about preparing your complete heart for Him who comes to us in the dead of winter night; at the darkest time of the year to bring us His magnificent Light. It is about scheduling times of prayer throughout your day where you shut off your phone, your television, and everything else and focus on Him. It is about filling your heart with the Love that He desires to give you so that you may give yourself freely to others. It is about quitting those fleshly vices and sins. It is about forgiving people in the malls or parking lots and forgiving your family, friends, coworker, and neighbor. It is about doing that extra act of kindness and charity in the midst of your life, especially when you are busy. Each time you set about those tasks of throwing off the works of darkness and putting on the armor of light, you are preparing for the End of the World. Let us bear this in mind as we go rejoicing to the house of the Lord, the altar of God in the Eucharist.
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