I
have had my treatment appointments this week but they came after the bulletin
was released. I will let you know what they are next week in my column. Please
keep me in your prayers.
Thank-you
to the dream team and all those who helped to make the Pasta Dinner so
successful. A good time was had by all.
The
lighting of the tree and evening with Santa is this week. I will very much miss
this event as it is one of the highlights of the year for me. I hope you have a
good time singing, eating, playing games and socializing with one another.
The
decorating Sunday will be on December 23rd at 1:30pm in the church. Please come
out and join your fellow parishioners in beatifying the church for Christmas.
The
giving cards from the giving trees will be returned by Dec. 15. Please make
sure all cards are returned by then.
First Sunday of Advent
How
good are you at reading signs, especially signs which God sends our way? The people
of Jesus' time expected that the coming of the Messiah would be accompanied by
extraordinary signs and wonders. Jesus' first coming was clouded in mystery and
surprising wonderment. Even though he was the rightful heir to the throne of
King David, he was born in obscurity in a cave at Bethlehem, near the place
where David had watched over his father's sheep some 1000 years before. A choir
of mighty angels chose to announce the good news to a small band of lowly
shepherds keeping their night watch nearby. Learned magi from the East, who
recognized a great omen in the heavenly sky, followed the star until it led
them to Bethlehem. They alone found the child with his mother and paid him
homage as the newborn king of Israel. When Jesus humbly submitted to baptism at
the River Jordan, the heavenly Father spoke audibly for those nearby who were
willing to listen, "This is my beloved Son with whom I am well
pleased."
Jesus
told his disciples that his final great sign would be his return in glory at
the end of the age. He would come this second time as Judge and Merciful
Redeemer to vindicate those who accepted him as Lord and Savior and to punish
those who rejected him. Jesus declared that this last sign at the end of the
world would be unmistakable. All would recognize and "see the Son of man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory" (Luke 21:27). The title
which Jesus most often used to describe his Messianic role was the expression
"Son of Man". This title comes from the Book of the prophet Daniel,
chapter 7. The image of a "Son of man coming in a cloud with power and
great glory" was given in a vision where the prophet Daniel saw heaven
opened before the throne of God (Daniel 7:13-14). In this vision God showed
Daniel a royal investiture of a human king before God's throne. This king was
invested with God's authority and was given power to judge and rule over the
whole earth. His reign would last for all ages.
The
prophet Jeremiah foretold the day when God would send his Messiah King to
"execute justice and righteousness in the land" (Jeremiah 33:15).
Jesus is the fulfillment of this promise and every promise which God has made.
The Lord Jesus, through the gift and working of the Holy Spirit who dwells
within us, assures us of his abiding presence and the promise that he will
return again. His Holy Spirit gives us supernatural hope, and the strength to
persevere with joyful confidence until the Lord comes again. What kind of hope
does the Lord offer us? He gives us the hope of heaven, seeing God face to face,
sharing in the fullness of his glory and everlasting life. When the Lord comes
again as our Judge and merciful Redeemer he will right every wrong, vindicate
every person who has accepted him as Lord and Savior, and remove all sorrow,
pain, and death itself (Revelations 21:4). The world around us is plagued with
greed, envy, strife, and uncertainty. It has lost hope in God and in his
promise to restore the human race and all of creation when the Lord Jesus comes
again.
Jesus'
prophetic description of the end of time and the day of judgment was not new to
the people of Israel. The prophets had foretold these events many centuries
before. "Behold the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce
anger to make the earth a desolation and to destroy its sinners from it"
(Isaiah 13:9-13; see also Joel 2:1-2;
Amos 5:18-20; Zephaniah 1:14-18). Jesus speaks of the second coming as a known
fact, a for certain event we can expect to take place. This coming will be
marked by signs that all will recognize; signs which will strike terror in
those unprepared and wonder in those who are ready to meet the Lord. When the
Lord returns he will establish final justice and righteousness over the earth
by overthrowing his enemies and by vindicating those who have been faithful to
him. The anticipation of his final judgment is a sign of hope for all who trust
in him.
What
can keep us from recognizing the signs of the Lord's presence and his action
today? Indifference and the temptation to slacken off – to become passive and
lethargic or to fall asleep spiritually. It is very easy to get caught up in
the things of the present moment or to be weighed down with troubles. The Lord
knows our shortcomings and struggles and he gives us the strength to bear our
burdens and to walk in his way of holiness. But there is one thing he doesn't
tolerate: an attitude of indifference, being passive, not caring, and doing
nothing when we could be actively seeking God and his kingdom! God is ready to
give us
fresh
vision, hope, and grace to walk in his ways. He wants to work in and through us
for his glory. That is why he expects more of us than we can do by ourselves.
His grace enables us to actively watch for his action in our lives, and to
actively pray for perseverance and endurance when we face trials and
difficulties. The Lord gives us his strength to overcome temptation, especially
from apostasy - the denial of the Lord Jesus out of fear or pride. God is ever
ready to fill us with his strength and divine power. Is your heart hungry for
God or is it weighed down by other things?
Many
churches in the East and West, since the early first centuries of the Christian
era, have marked special seasons to celebrate the central truths of the
Christian faith. The Advent season which precedes Christmas and Epiphany
reminds us that we are a pilgrim people, aliens and exiles in this age who long
for our true home with God in his heavenly kingdom, and who await with joyful
hope the return of the Lord Jesus at the end of the age. When will the Lord Jesus
come again? No one but the Father in heaven knows the day. But it is a certain
fact that we are living in the end times, the close of this present age! The
end times begin with the first coming of Jesus Christ (his Incarnation which we
celebrate at Christmas and Epiphany) and culminates in his final return on the
Day of Judgment.
I hope you have a prayerful
Advent Season.Fr. Phil
