The Universal Church invites us to celebrate Sunday, December 01, 2024, as the first Sunday of Advent in the liturgical year C. In the entrance antiphon, we pray: “To you, I lift my soul, O my God. In you, I have trusted; let me not be put to shame. Nor let my enemies exult over me; and let none who hope in you be put to shame. Amen.”
The first Sunday of Advent marks the beginning of a new liturgical year. The Advent season comes four weeks before Christmas, during which the Church concentrates her attention on our Lord’s coming, a central theme in the Church’s worship. Advent comes from the Latin adventus, meaning “coming”. It looks back to the first coming of Christ when he was born that first Christmas in Bethlehem over two thousand years ago, and it looks forward to his second coming at the end of time, the “Parousia” when we will meet Him and His Father face-to-face in the glory of the heavenly kingdom.
During this liturgical year C, the Gospel readings will come mostly, but not exclusively, from the Gospel of Saint Luke. Those of liturgical year B, the year that has just ended, came from the Gospel of Saint Mark, while those of liturgical year A are from the Gospel of Saint Matthew. These three Gospels are so similar that they can be placed side-by-side and viewed at a glance and the events will be very similar: for this reason, they are called ‘synoptic,’ meaning at a glance. The Gospel of John, commonly called the ‘Fourth Gospel,’ is mainly heard at Lent and Eastertide.
Today’s liturgy concentrates on our Lord’s second coming. The prophecy of Jeremiah, in the first reading, has many elements of hope for his people in exile, who are awaiting the promised salvation that God has made for them. He will send them a redeemer from the stock of David, who will practice honesty and integrity. This prophecy is fulfilled in Jesus Christ, whose second coming is the theme of this Advent season.
In his first letter to the Thessalonians, in the second reading, Saint Paul reminds us that we should use the time given us to grow in holiness and the works of love so that we may be blameless in the eyes of our Lord when he returns.
In the Gospel, Saint Luke gives us the last address of Jesus’ public ministry. He paints a bleak picture of the end of the world, showing nations in agony, and people dying of fear as disaster comes down on every living thing on the face of the earth. We must therefore be awake and ready for we know neither the day nor the hour the Lord will be coming.
First Reading: Jeremiah 33: 14-16.
The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: "The Lord is our righteousness."
Comment
In today’s first reading, we meet the prophet Jeremiah, the second of the Major Prophets, the first being Isaiah, the third Ezekiel, and the fourth Daniel. Jeremiah lived in the last decades of the kingdom of Judah – a very important period since it saw the collapse of the Assyrian empire, the rebirth of the Babylonian empire, and the complete disappearance of the kingdom of Judah with the deportation of its leading families to Babylon.
Jeremiah lived in Judah when the forces of King Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem in 587 BC and deported its inhabitants to Babylon. Jeremiah was well placed to see all these events, and he was familiar with the conditions in Judah after the deportation. He was born into a priestly family and received his prophetic mission from God around the year 626 BC while still a young man. During his long ministry that lasted over forty years, Jeremiah never tired of reminding his people of their covenant obligations and warning their incompetent leaders that their infidelity would bring down God’s anger and punishment on the whole land. Even though he was a peaceful man, Jeremiah was constantly in conflict with his people, kings, priests, and false prophets, but he was not afraid because he knew that this was the duty God expected him to fulfill.
His warning of impending doom for Judah went largely unheeded until King Nebuchadnezzar’s forces came storming into Jerusalem. They conquered the Holy City and exiled most of its population to Babylon. Some Church historians believe that Jeremiah stayed back in Jerusalem for a while before being taken to Egypt by force by some Jews, who fled after the assassination of the king the Babylonians had put in place. This tradition holds that Jeremiah was eventually assassinated by his fellow Jews and is therefore thought to be buried on the African continent.
Generally, Jeremiah is noted for his threats of impending doom. However, the passage of our meditation comes from chapter 33, which has many elements of hope because God, who had turned his face from the city of Jerusalem as Israel’s enemies ransacked the holy city, now says that he will “treat and assuage the city’s wounds; (…) heal them, and reveal to them an abundance of peace” (Jer. 33: 6). He further promises to “cleanse [Judah and Israel] of all the guilt they incurred by sinning against me; all their offences by which they sinned and rebelled against me, I will forgive” (Jer. 33:8). Our God, brothers and sisters, is a God of abundance, compassion, and mercy, slow to anger, quick to forgive and to forget. As he was compassionate and forgiving to the Israelites of old, so is he to you and me today. No matter how great we think our offences have been, God forgives them as soon as we turn to him in a good confession. The prophet Jeremiah looks forward to the horizons of the future when God’s final promise of a Redeemer will be fulfilled. The Redeemer, whose birth is four weeks away, will come through the line of David. The New Testament shows that all these promises find fulfillment in Jesus Christ, son of David and eternal high priest of the New Covenant (Heb 8: 1-13).
Let us pray that this season of Advent may see true justice and peace return to our country, Cameroon, which has seen so much violence and bloodshed, especially in the northwest, southwest, and northern regions. We make our supplication through Christ the Lord. Amen.
Second Reading: Thessalonians 3: 12 – 4:2.
Brothers and sisters: May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we have for you, so as to strengthen your hearts, to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen. Finally, brothers and sisters, we earnestly ask and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that, as you received from us how you should conduct yourselves to please God and as you are conducting yourselves you do so even more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
Comment
Accompanied by Silas, Saint Paul arrived in Thessalonica in the course of his second apostolic journey (AD 49-52) after leaving Philippi around the summer of the year 50 (Acts 17:1). The city of Thessalonica was a flourishing center of trade in Saint Paul’s days. Originally a Greek city, it came under the Romans in 186 BC and became one of the most important cities in Macedonia in Saint Paul’s days.
Some Jews lived in Thessalonica and Saint Paul, true to his tradition, first went to the Synagogue to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. He told them that the Old Testament prophecies had found fulfillment in Jesus Christ and his preaching brought many converts. It also attracted much hostility from certain Jews, who organized demonstrations against Paul and Silas, who were forced to leave the city in a hurry (Acts 17: 5-10).
The Apostle wrote this first letter, which he sent through Timothy, to complete his interrupted preaching. It had the effect, among other things, of reassuring the Thessalonians about the fate of those who had already died in the Lord.
In the passage of our meditation, Paul prays that his new converts, whom he cannot see because of the hostility of others against him, should intensify their love towards one another and for all men and women which he, Paul, in imitation of his Lord and Master, shows towards them. He urges them to be constant in their faith to make sure that devotion to Christ is not in vain when the Lord returns in glory with his angels and faithful at the end of time.
He urges his converts and us listening to this broadcast to use God’s given time to learn to grow in our faith and holiness through works of love and mercy. This message is very relevant to us living in the city of Douala today. The city is teeming with refugees from this senseless war being prosecuted against our people in the northwest and southwest regions of our country. How many of these homeless people have we assisted in one way or another? How many of the children from these two regions of our country have we helped to go back to school in the city of Douala? Saint Paul would no doubt agree that when we stretch out a hand of love and support to them, our act will enable us to stand blameless in the sight of our Lord when he comes in glory. We pray to the Holy Spirit to strengthen our faith so that we can await the second coming of our Lord not just in prayers but also in acts of charity towards the poor and the marginalized living in our midst. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Gospel acclamation: “Alleluia, alleluia. Show us, Lord, your love; and grant us your salvation. Alleluia.”
Gospel: Luke 21: 25-28. 34-36.
Jesus said to his disciples: “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on earth nations will be in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand. “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. For that day will assault everyone who lives on the face of the earth. Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Comment
As mentioned earlier, we are beginning the reading from the Third Gospel, the Gospel of Saint Luke. A short background information on this evangelist is in order. Tradition tells us that Saint Luke was born in Antioch in Syria and was of Gentile origin. He was a physician and Saint Paul refers to him as “Luke, the beloved physician” (Col 4: 12).
He was not an Apostle of Christ, nor was he a direct witness of the life of our Lord, because in the prologue to his Gospel, he explicitly says that he was not an eyewitness of Christ’s preaching. In addition to his Gospel, Saint Luke also wrote the Acts of Apostles, which he addressed to a man called Theophilus (Acts 1:1). Luke was a disciple and a companion of Saint Paul, traveling with him to Macedonia to preach the Gospel (Acts 16: 10ff). In his Second Letter to Timothy, Saint Paul refers to Luke as being the only company he had during his second imprisonment in Rome ( 2 Tim 4: 11).
That is that for history. Why does the Church give us a new liturgical year? It reminds us of a new beginning in our lifestyle as Christians. It also reminds us to start anew, renew our faith, and give our Christian lives a new spiritual direction. This new liturgical year is a way of reminding us to take a fresh look at ourselves and to mold our lives according to the teachings of the Gospel. Advent is the time to prepare ourselves for the coming of Christ.
However, according to Cameroonian Jesuit Priest, Father Kizito Forbi, more often than not, once we hear Advent our minds tend to immediately go to preparation for Christmas. Parents start to think of what they are going to buy for their children; how much they are going to spend and where they are going to get the money from.
But should we, asks Father Kizito, spend the four weeks of the Advent season worrying about material things? Advent is about preparation for the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. It is about his coming to judge the living and the dead, as we profess in our Creed. Advent should, therefore, not be dedicated to preparation in terms of material acquisition but rather to preparation for welcoming our Saviour.
The Gospel exhorts us to stay awake. What does staying awake mean? In the Christian sense, staying awake means to pray. Pray to be loved by God. Staying awake is a call to communicate with God. Advent is a challenge to compare the amount of time we spend on activities that do not prepare our souls to welcome Christ and the amount of time we spend on what really matters.
Be on your guard is another call of Advent. It is a call on us, Father Kizito continues, not to put off for tomorrow what we should be doing today. It is a call for us to clean our hearts before our guest arrives. How can this done? By going to confession, of course. We must search in our lives and find those obstacles that hinder us from welcoming Christ into our souls. Are we not ready for Christ, Father Kizito wonders, because we haven’t blessed our marriage in Church? And what is stopping us from doing so? Are we not ready for him because we haven’t been to confession for the past ten years? And what is stopping us from going to confession?
Advent is a time to find those obstacles to our Christian faith and remove them. Advent is a time for Christians to correct what is wrong in their lives, to be sorry for their wrong-doings, and to confess them.
Father Kizito then concludes that at Christmas, the world will know we are Christians not by the number of new clothes and shoes we will be wearing, but rather by how much we have improved in our prayer life during Advent. They will know we are Christians not by the number of people we invite to our homes and drink and make merry with them, but rather by how much effort we have made to attend Mass more frequently and not only on Sundays. They will know we are Christians not by how extensively we shop during Advent, but rather by how much we have learnt to love one another and forgive one another’s trespasses, difficult though this may sound.
Let us pray to the Holy Spirit to help us this Advent season so that it should not just be business as usual. We all have four weeks to make our prayer life better. We have four weeks to give our spiritual life a new look through penance. Advent is a time to build our spiritual capital. We shall calculate the spiritual returns at Christmas.
Let us remember that our brothers and sisters of the northwest and southwest regions of this country have not celebrated Advent or Christmas in peace for the past nearly eight years now. During this time, our children have been prevented from going to school in peace. May the prosecutors of this senseless war listen to the supplications of our people and bring an end to it through meaningful and inclusive dialogue. We make our prayer through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with the Father in union with the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.
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