For the first part of Advent, the emphasis is on the Second Coming of the Lord. The first Advent preface, used during the first part of Advent, recalls our Lord's first coming at His birth over two millennia ago, but more heavily stresses His Second Coming. We are told that the Son of God humbled Himself to come among us as a man (Advent Preface I). But as quickly as we remember the Christ who has already come, this first preface points to the Christ who will come again. For, we watch for the day, hoping that the salvation promised us will be ours when Christ our Lord will come again in His glory (Advent Preface I). By recalling the first coming of Christ, the coming that we will joyfully celebrate at Christmas, we gain confidence that Christ has not abandoned us but will come again.
From the earliest days, followers of Christ, like St. Paul, have watched for the Lord's Second Coming (see 1 Thes 1:10). We know that the Lord did not come in glory during the lifetime of St. Paul. Were St. Paul's preparations in vain? Advent's first preface says that we are to watch for the day of Christ's coming in glory. Will our preparations for the Second Coming be in vain? Our efforts would not be in vain if we realize that in order to prepare our hearts to welcome the Lord . . . we must learn to recognize His presence in the events of daily life (JP II). The first part of Advent calls us to watch for the coming of our Lord at every moment of our lives. It is by recognizing Him who continuously comes in every aspect of our lives that we are drawn into deeper communion with our Lord who will come in glory.
The readings for this First Sunday of Advent show us the way to recognize Him who continuously comes. The Gospel of the First Sunday implores us: Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. For at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come (Mt 24:42, 44). We do not know the day or the hour, but the only way to watch for the Lord is by staying awake. To be awake and watchful for the One who is to come means to be awake and watchful for the One who continuously comes. In order to stay awake, we cannot live in darkness. If we live in darkness, we will fall asleep and not recognize the Christ who continuously comes. This darkness can only be dispelled with the Light of Christ which enables us to stay awake and recognize Him who continuously comes. It is in this way that, in the second reading, St. Paul tells the Romans and us tothrow 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, not in promiscuity and lust, not in rivalry and jealousy (Rom 13:12-13). The Light of Christ becomes our armor with which we are able to throw off whatever works of darkness are in our lives so that we may live in the light. By living in the light, we will be able to stay awake and see Him who continuously comes and be prepared to receive Him who will come again.
My spiritual director gave me an interesting little "job" to do at the beginning of this Advent season which I invite my readers to try as well. Today, I am to write a letter to God stating all the intentions I have in my heart and then place that in a sealed envelope only to be opened at the end of the liturgical year, Christ the King, in 2011. This will allow me to see the "marvels the Lord has done for me" over the course of the year. I had better get started because I have a lot of things to say to the Lord!!! Happy Advent Season!
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