This weekend marks the end of one liturgical year and the beginning of another. We move into the wonderful season of Advent which provides a peaceful and meaningful oasis in the midst of the hustle and bustle of Christmas preparations.
Each year we begin to hear in the media predictions about what kind of holiday season this will be for retailers – both in stores and more and more online. The focus all around us is buying and spending money and making this the “best Christmas” ever!!!
But as we enter our churches, we find a very different feel. There is a certain wintry ambiance about our décor. We wear more somber blue/purple vestments; flowers are absent; and of course the Advent Wreath has a prominent place in the sanctuary.
We know that these winter months are really a time when we await the rebirth of nature in springtime. But waiting in Advent also provides us with the opportunity to make preparations. AS these weeks progress, we begin to light more candles and heighten our yearning and longing for God to come into our lives.
Advent is that time for us to step back, to relish the warmth of the hearth and the flickering candle light. It is that time to anticipate all that God has in store for us when He is born anew into our heats.
It is easy to get caught up in all the things we have to do during these days. But Advent helps us to take some time to reflect and to remember who we are as a people of faith and how that faith truly is the greatest gift of the season.
I hope to spend some days this coming week on retreat and I ask that you keep me in your prayers as I will certainly remember you!