Advent - awaiting the double Coming of Christ

Today is the 1st Sunday of Advent - the liturgical time that the Church gives us to prepare to celebrate Christmas, whilst also focusing on preparing for the Coming of Christ. The Church gives us this somber warning from the Gospel of Luke where Jesus tells us to be aware, be ready, remain vigilant for his coming so that when he returns we will be ready to stand before him. 

I love the open prayer for today where the imagery the Church gives us of running forth to meet and welcome Christ. As we begin this time of preparation for the Coming of the Lord - Advent, let’s us prepare ourselves through prayer, being vigilant, taking time to read scripture, perform the corporal & spiritual works of mercy so that with pure hearts we can be gathered together and welcome Jesus in the crib, in our hearts, and at his Coming on the clouds 

——————-

Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God,

the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ

with righteous deeds at his coming,

so that, gathered at his right hand,

they may be worthy to possess the heavenly kingdom.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God, for ever and ever.

– Amen.

Christ the King of the Universe and King of our hearts

I always find the direct bluntness of St Josemaria refreshing and challenging. 

If Jesus is not King in our heart then what is the point of trying to preach him or convert others? If Jesus reigns in our heart so much that his kingdom is present within us (Luke 17:21) then the reign of Christ will naturally start to overflow and bring other people under his sweet yoke. 

As the concluding prayer for Mass today teaches us - when we take glory in being obedient to Christ and his commandments then we are already sharing in his kingdom now. 

May Christ the King, reign in my heart and yours!              ,  

———-

Having received the food of immortality,

we ask, O Lord,

that, glorying in obedience

to the commands of Christ, the King of the universe,

we may live with him eternally in his heavenly kingdom.

Who lives and reigns for ever and ever.

Trusting in Divine Providence - the patience of the Lord is salvation

This was the scripture verse for Morning Prayer in the Divine Office today. 

We can often get frustrated, hurt, angry, upset and loose our peace of soul when witnessing all the injustice in the world. This is a challenge for all of us who care and especially for us as Christians. It can make us doubt our faith or the goodness of God. 

But as Christians we also have the privilege of Divine Revelation given to us in scripture. What can often from our limited perspective look like allowing injustice or God “turning a blind eye” - can often be God giving time to situations or people to allow a greater good to come out of the evil (Romans 8:28). As it says below “consider the Lord’s patience is directed toward salvation”. 

We believe in Divine Providence - that God is the Creator of Heaven & Earth, he knows everything that is happening and because God is a Good Father, he is Goodness itself. Therefore anything God allows will ultimately be revealed as having a greater purpose. This requires an act of faith in our part - to trust in God & leave it in his hands. 

Ultimately God’s justice will prevail one day - on the great final day, the “Day of the Lord” - Judgement Day. On that day everything will be revealed and we will understand God’s plan of salvation. But in the meantime, while we wait for this we need to remain at peace with God. We need to continue to pray for ourselves and others, participate in the sacraments and read the Bible regularly so we understand what God has revealed to us. In this way we can remain in the hope that saves us (Romans 8:24) so we can at all times say with confidence- Jesus, I trust in you 

Don’t lose hope, focus on working out your salvation in fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12) so that without stain or blemish we who seek after the Lord can rejoice in the midst of tribulation (Matt 5:12) as we find our joy in Him (Psalm 40:16)

Never give up on prayer - Jesus thirsts for you

Prayer is a war, it’s a daily struggle. 

If you’re struggling with sin or not praying, you can always turn back to God at anytime. Just say “Jesus I love you, help me”. As St Alphonsus Ligouri teaches, he who prays is saved. 

Never give up on prayer 🙏 

As the Catechism teaches us: 

2560 "If you knew the gift of God!" The wonder of prayer is revealed beside the well where we come seeking water: there, Christ comes to meet every human being. It is he who first seeks us and asks us for a drink. Jesus thirsts; his asking arises from the depths of God's desire for us. Whether we realize it or not, prayer is the encounter of God's thirst with ours. God thirsts that we may thirst for him.

The hope of the pure in heart

Happy & Blessed Solemnity of All Saints. May the fellowship we share here in Christ through the Church be brought to the joy and glory of the Communion of Saints in heaven! 

In the 2nd Reading for Mass today we have this beautiful passage from the 1st letter of St John where he talks about us being the Children of God. What better way to emphasise who and what the saints are than this - God’s beloved children! 

All of us who are baptised have been reborn as Children of God, having our relationship to the Father restored through Jesus. We are all saints in the making if we persevere in the faith, loving God, following him as best as we can through the power of the Sacraments and living lives of purity. The purity we are called to is the ascetical life - denying ourselves to take up our cross to follow Jesus. Just as Jesus was just and righteous, so we too are called to be just and righteous in Jesus’ name. This is the great calling and mission we all have, the universal call to holiness. 

The word “saint” means Holy one. We know through our faith that the Saints in heaven have already been purified and see God face to face in the Beatific Vision. We too are called to this. That is why the reading says “what we will be has not been revealed” - because we are all still saints in the making! 

In the Creed we profess in believing in the “Communion of Saints” - this refers to the Saints glorified in heaven, those suffering in purgatory and those of us here still on earth, the Church Militant on its pilgrimage back to the Father. This is the totality of the Mystical Body of Christ - The Church. 

Our hope is to rejoice in heaven with all the Saints in the presence of the Holy & Undivided Trinity, sharing eternal life, bliss and happiness as we see God face to face. This has been the hope of all the saints and it is the glory of the currents saints already in heaven. 

Let us strive for the purity of heart that Jesus calls us to the in the Beatitudes that was proclaimed in the Gospel today at Mass, for the pure of heart shall see God. 

As the prayer after Communion for today says:

As we adore you, O God, who alone are holy
and wonderful in all your Saints,
we implore your grace,
so that, coming to perfect holiness in the fullness of your love,
we may pass from this pilgrim table
to the banquet of our heavenly homeland.
Through Christ our Lord