Advent Begins
An Advent song by Father John Foley, SJ, has this refrain: “Patience, people, till the Lord is come.” Patience is one of the Little Virtues of Saint Francis de Sales, the other virtues include gentleness, humility, patience, simplicity, good-naturedness, tenderness towards our neighbor, bearing their imperfections, etc.
We need patience because Advent is a time of waiting: to celebrate Christmas, to give birth to Christ this year by the way we live, and to deepen our relationship with Jesus Christ. Many of us have a hard time waiting. I lived with a priest who prayed, “Lord, give me patience and give it to me now.” His prayer defeated its purpose because patience is defined as “the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset” (Oxford Languages online). There was no tolerance for delay in my confrère’s prayer.
Our Liturgy gives us Advent to prepare to celebrate Christmas. It is a time of anticipation, a time to wait to celebrate the coming of Jesus Christ in time many years ago. Advent readings offer images of what will happen when the Christ, the Messiah, comes: valleys filled, hills made low, rough ways made smooth, the blind given sight, the deaf given hearing, the ill, mute and lame given healing, prisoners freed, debts forgiven, enemies made friends, and all peoples dwelling together on God’s holy mountain. What a vision! Especially when we consider the times in which we live where what divides and separates us seems more the focus than what unites us as God’s people. And so Advent is counter-cultural. We’re already celebrating Christmas with our trees, decorations, lights, music, shopping and more, but we’re called to wait with patience.
Blessed Louis Brisson, OSFS, tells us that, “Advent means ‘coming.’ This time is set aside to prepare for Christmas,” which is the first great Advent when Christ became a human being to reconcile us with God. He goes on to say, “The second advent of Our Lord is made in our hearts. Every time that we have a good thought, every time that we take the Good God with us…” (Cor ad Cor, p. 11). In other words, Advent is also about making Christ known today in clear and tangible ways. So our songs, decorations, shopping and partying need not take away from Advent waiting and patience.
While these things are expressions of our love and care for those in our lives, when Christ comes, we are able to express our oneness as children of God on God’s holy mountain. When we practice the love that God is and Christ made visible for us, we take the Good God with us and make God known today. When we gather to celebrate the goodness of life, faith and love-made-flesh, we make the “Little Virtues” known and they can make a big difference in how we view ourselves and others as precious in the sight of God. When we take time to be with those in need or take to give gifts of clothing, food, money, and presence to our sisters and brothers, we imitate Jesus’ care for all people. When we visit family, friends, neighbors, and strangers, Christ is with them because we take the Good God with us. And, in my experience, Christ comes to us in clear ways because of this welcome and gratitude. When we work for systemic change so that injustice and oppression are less and inclusivity and egalitarianism are more, we challenge ourselves and our world to live the promises we hear in our Advent readings and we make God’s ways known in practical and clear ways.
Living the second Advent which Blessed Louis speaks about requires that we take time out to pray, to be with the Lord whose coming we celebrate. We need to stop, be quiet, listen for God’s voice, share our hearts and minds with God in prayer, and wait for the response that will empower us to “Live Jesus” every Advent day and beyond.
So I invite you to consider this prayer exercise each Advent day. Make it your own 5-10 minute Advent calendar where you open the door of your mind and heart to discover how Christ can be known through you:
First, close your eyes and quiet yourself.
Second, breathe deeply and let your breath and God’s breath unite.
Third, ask Jesus “How can I make you known today?” Review your day and look for opportunities to do just that.
Fourth, choose one of those activities and do it. Take the Good God with you or pledge to see Jesus Christ in someone else.
Fifth, take a deep breath and say, “Thank you for being with me. Give me the patience to do your will.”
Then, not only will you see Advent as the time to celebrate Christ’s first coming years ago. You will also see Christ coming to you and through you each day until Christmas and beyond.
Father Paul Colloton, OSFS
Superior, De Sales Centre Oblate Residence
Childs, MD
