This coming weekend, we once again turn a page. We will enter the season of Advent and so begin yet another liturgical year. Both humanly and in faith it’s one of those moments to realize that another year of the days and graces given to us is now behind us. Each of us is one year closer than last Advent to our death and meeting with the Lord. And the world itself is a year closer to His return.

 

For us, as the baptized who love and follow the teaching of Jesus, these are not negative thoughts. Our soul, damaged by original sin does tremble at the thought of death which entered the world because of sin. But our minds and hearts are confident of Jesus’s love for us and the graces and help we have received each time we have worthily received the sacraments.

 

Advent will be short this year. Just 22 days. But the message of this important season and the need for our response remains the same. Each Advent we are urged by the Church to focus on waiting and preparing.

 

Spiritually, we are called to use Advent to return to a moment of union with the world of 2,000 years ago. We reflect on the waiting carried out by the people of the Old Testament who longed for the fulfilment of God’s promise of salvation. We also join John the Baptist and Mary for the final days 

of preparation as God reveals the coming of His Son among us.

 

At the same time each of us is called to reflect upon the waiting and preparing that is at the heart of our own time in this life. We will meet the Lord and render to Him an accounting of our love and faithfulness as friends and servants of the Master. Understood that way, we recognize that every hour of every day is an opportunity to prepare our souls for that moment.

 

How might we use the Advent season to accomplish these goals? Here are several suggestions.

 

First, as we are in a year dedicated to renewing and deepening our faith in the Eucharist, make sure to attend Mass each Sunday this Advent. Of course, we are obliged to do so by the law and practice of the Church. But still, Mass attendance has not fully recovered post-COVID. We need to overcome any excuses. At the same time, why not attend weekday Mass during Advent? 

 

Second, if daily Mass is not possible, commit to privately following the daily Mass readings. They can be found online or in booklets such as those put out by Word on Fire or Magnificat. Those readings stir our hearts by reminding us of the prophecies of old and the events leading up to Christmas night in Bethlehem. 

 

Third, preparation for meeting the Lord always has a component of penance and conversion. That points us to the sacrament of confession. Please don’t let Advent slide by without a good confession. And if there is some spiritual struggle that you are dealing with, a full and honest presentation of our soul to the Lord in confession is especially helpful to get ready for Christmas.

 

Fourth, do something concrete to aid the needy. Mary, after being told by the Archangel Gabriel that she is to be the mother of the Savior, immediately went to assist her cousin Elizabeth. Charity and self-giving are a sign that we are living our faith in imitation of Christ.

 

Finally, Advent can help us to live simply. During this season we are bombarded with efforts to entice us to focus on material things. While Christmas gifts have their place, to be like the Holy Family is to live simply and to focus on God and family, the things that really matter.

 

Only 22 days of Advent. Let’s make each of them count!