1st Sunday of Advent

The first Sunday of Advent sees the commencement of the new liturgical year. This new liturgical cycle is referred to as Year A and features the gospel of Matthew. (Year B features the gospel of Mark and Year C, that we have just completed, features the gospel of Luke.) Advent comes from the Latin word Adventus which literally means ‘coming’; it is also reflected in the Greek word Parousia, which is used to describe the second coming of Jesus. So Advent is a time of preparation and anticipation of the coming of Christ into the world that is celebrated in the Nativity at Christmas. The gospel passage chosen for today’s reading richly expresses that anticipation and need for preparation.

It may seem a little confusing that we begin our year-long exploration of the gospel of Matthew by taking a reading from chapter 24. However, the need for readiness and alertness that Jesus speaks about in relation to the coming of the Kingdom is equally suitable for a modern audience when preparing to celebrate once again the coming of Jesus into the world. Jesus is the best expression of the Kingdom that we have yet experienced and so rather than seeing the choice of this passage as a confusion, we should recognise the alignment that exists between the anticipation of the Kingdom and the anticipation of the Nativity.

The two great feasts of Christianity – the Nativity and Easter – are each preceded by a period of preparation: Advent and Lent. The emphasis of these seasons is on the mental and spiritual preparation to fully enter into one of the great mysteries of faith. In the Nativity, we celebrate God become human; God present in the world in a physical way. Advent is a time to remember the many and varied ways that God continues to be present in the world.

                                                             

 

 

2nd Sunday of Advent

When John the Baptist performed baptism it was for the forgiveness of sin. The baptism he gave was a mark of the desire to enter into a new life of right action. It was not a baptism of initiation into community that is the case today. John had two key words that he is recorded as preaching: repent and prepare. His call for repentance was a call to turn away from sin; a call to have a change of heart; a call to turn one’s life around and make a fresh start. His call for preparation is in the long line of prophets that includes the great prophet Isaiah from whom we take today’s first reading. All of the prophets urged the people towards hope in the future. Isaiah and others spoke specifically of a person – a Messiah – who would bring that hope to reality. But the tradition demanded a readiness for the Messiah and that was the call to preparation that John the Baptist echoed at the beginning of the public life of Jesus.

John’s taunting of the Pharisees and Sadducees is an indication of this need for preparation and readiness. He accuses them of being too confident of their own rightness. He demands proof from them of their honest repentance: ‘but if you are repentant, produce the appropriate fruit’. Rather, he suspects that they think that salvation is assured for them by virtue of being a Jew; a son of Abraham. He warns them that an axe hangs poised to cut down any part of the Jewish tradition that is failing to produce good fruit. This is a theme that is picked up later by Jesus himself; you can’t be complacent about your own position, you have to welcome the new truth revealed by Jesus and give yourself wholeheartedly to God.

 

 

 

 

 

3rd Sunday of Advent

Why would John the Baptist send messengers to question Jesus? We recall from last week’s gospel passage that John had a somewhat ‘fire and brimstone’ perception of what Jesus would be like. Perhaps as he sat in his prison cell John began to wonder whether Jesus was indeed the Messiah that John believed him to be. Perhaps the question was not for himself but rather for his disciples that he sent to Jesus. Given the answer that Jesus provided them, perhaps John’s intention was for the disciples to recognise that Jesus was in fact the one that John had proclaimed and that the disciples should switch their allegiance to Jesus. John probably guessed that he would not be leaving that prison alive and may have been leading his disciples to the next step in their discipleship by having them go and scrutinise Jesus. 

The indirect answer that Jesus provides to the query would have not sounded like such a roundabout response as it does to us. The picture Jesus describes of the blind seeing, the lame walking, lepers cleansed, and the deaf hearing would have been very familiar to those who were listening and the first audience of this gospel. These were signs of the coming of the Messiah that had been foretold by the prophets. In his answer, Jesus effectively says, ‘Well, all the things that are supposed to happen when the Messiah comes are happening now with me. There’s your answer!’ The reading continues to build on the Advent themes of anticipation, preparedness and hope. As we draw closer to the celebration of the Nativity, in this reading is confirmation that our hope is not misplaced. Today’s readings emphasise the joy that lies in the anticipation and expectation of what is coming.

 

 

 

4th Sunday of Advent

We will see throughout the coming liturgical year that the gospel of Matthew places a great deal of emphasis on the importance of the Law and upon its proper application. Indeed, the gospel writer casts Jesus in the role of the ‘new Moses’ – Moses was the great Law-giver of the Old Testament and Jesus is portrayed in this gospel as bringing a new Law to the people of Israel. In this gospel, the proper application of the Law is as important as the Law itself. In today’s passage, Joseph provides an example of the proper application of the Law. His betrothed wife was pregnant; she would have been subject to the Law against adultery and probably would have been stoned to death. Under the Law, Joseph was obliged to divorce her, and yet he determines that he will do so quietly and protect Mary from too much shame and possibly save her life. Joseph did not intend to ignore the Law, but he sought to carry it out in such a way as to bring the least shame and the least hurt to all involved. 

The role of Joseph is often overlooked. There is no mention of him during the public ministry of Jesus. In fact the latest mention in any of the gospels is the account of Jesus in the Temple at the age of 12. After that, Joseph disappears and we can only assume that he has passed away by the time Jesus takes up his ministry. Yet Joseph is truly a man of great faith. By rights he should have divorced Mary and walked away. But he trusts in the word of the God that is addressed to him in a dream and from that point on he goes to great lengths to protect and care for his family.

By Greg Sunter, Liturgy Help

Advent Prayer Path

This year’s Advent resource offered by the Archdiocese of Sydney is perfect for anyone who wants to invite fellow parishioners, friends or neighbours to pray and reflect with them over this powerful season in the Church’s year.

The Sydney Centre for Evangelisation will again offer simple online training sessions on how to lead an Advent group using Stay Awake! Prepare for the Coming of Christ.

A 45-minute session will run on Tuesday 8 November at 10am and be repeated on Thursday 10 November at 2pm, and Wednesday 16 November at 11am and 7.30pm (details below).

Contributors include Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP and Bishop Daniel Meagher, Parish Evangelisation and Formation Coordinator Tania Rimac, Sr Mary Julian Ekman RSM, Director of the PM Glynn Institute Dr Michael Casey, and St Jerome Punchbowl assistant priest Fr Benjamin Saliba.

Following a similar format to last year’s successful companion, it includes reflections on the Gospels for the four Sundays of Advent and Christmas Day, a guide for an examination of conscience, ideas for celebrating Christmas in parishes, and other resources for meditation.

“It’s our hope that individuals and communities in Sydney will take the opportunity to pray together in this season of expectation, and this companion is an offering to support that prayer,” said Daniel Ang, the Director of the Sydney Centre for Evangelisation.

“We’ve been blessed to have wise spiritual guides who have offered reflections for our parishes, homes and families, to help us approach the grace of Jesus Christ this Christmas with a new heart”.

“Unlike the Season of Lent – where the Church prescribes our means of preparation with prayer, fasting and almsgiving – we are encouraged during Advent to discover our own path of conversion,” she said.

Stay Awake! Prepare for the Coming of Christ is available online at gomakedisciples.com.au/resources and in hard copy form at parishes.

https://www.catholicweekly.com.au/new-resource-offers-an-advent-prayer-path/