By Bob Sullivan
What is Advent to you? If you are anything like me, most Advents of late have been a little different than previous Advents. As I get older, more attentive to the Church’s readings and the priests’ homilies as Advent approaches, I have a much different thought process than I did 10, 20, and 30 years ago.
First of all, I don’t overlook Advent anymore. I still call it Lent when I’m speaking about it though! That is a bit frustrating and maybe a Freudian slip too. While Advent and Lent are related, they are two distinct periods of time with two distinct meanings.
Advent is certainly a time to reflect on Christ’s incarnation, and to meditate and contemplate that event in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. However, it doesn’t stop there. Advent is significantly about Christ’s second coming, as well as the many ways He comes to us each day, especially in the sacraments, such as in the Eucharist, in the Mass, in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, in confession and the other sacraments, in prayer, and in the people we share our time with each day. No one is as relentless as Jesus Christ.
Yet I would propose that the most overlooked aspect of Advent is about Christ’s second coming at the end of time:
There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. Luke 21:25-28
Given all of the calamities and atrocities in history, as well as the turmoil and catastrophes we are witnessing today, how are we to discern precisely when we need to stand up and raise our heads? How will we know that our redemption is drawing near, and that what is before our eyes is more than another enormous natural disaster or conflict? Jesus tells us:
Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day does not catch you unexpectedly, like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man. Luke 21:34-36
A great way to spend your time in Advent is to avoid the dissipation and worries of life, and to remain sober, watchful, and prayerful. In a sense, Advent is like an annual practice run for the second coming of Christ, which as you can see, is not going to be a cakewalk. In fact, it is going to be unlike anything the world has ever seen. Fear and foreboding will confuse and disorient people who have not adequately prepared. These will be caught unexpectedly, as though in a trap.
For these reasons, I have come to believe that Advent is a very important season for men in particular, as well as heads of households. We must be alert, prepared to stand before the Son of Man at the second coming. On that day, many will be looking to us for help, especially our own family members. But those with no faith and those from other faiths will also seek our help.
With this in mind, Advent is not a time for excess at Christmas parties or other events. It is a time when we should all consider abstaining from alcohol or at least cutting back significantly, working out, keeping our heads clear, praying, learning, and availing ourselves of the sacraments. We should pray with our family members and spend time talking with them and encouraging them in the ways of Christ. That’s why I say that Advent isn’t just for Catholics.
Advent is an excellent time for a silent retreat and visits to nursing homes and the homes of those who are not able to get out like they used to, as well as other acts of mercy. It is also a time for fasting and making other offerings to God.
Some say Advent is like a “little Lent.” I would say it is more like a time to detach ourselves from the unnecessary things in our lives, so we can more easily identify the necessary things. As we see in paragraph 524 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and John 3:30, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
It is these necessary things which we would protect and to which we would grant safe passage when we stand and see the Son of Man coming in a cloud. While the detachment is penitential, just as we practice in Lent, the purpose is a little different. In Lent, we prepare to participate in Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection, as the sinners who made it all necessary. In Advent we prepare for our own redemption, which is totally unnecessary. It is purely a gift from the Father, an act of love for us. Because of that, Advent is more joyous than Lent.
What necessary things would need safe passage when the powers of Heaven are shaken and we see the Son of Man coming in a cloud? The more we prepare during Advent, the clearer we will know fully, even as we have been fully known, as St. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 13:12.
