Today is the first Sunday of Advent, the beginning of four weeks of Christian preparation for Christmas.
Most Catholics I know have some sort of wreath, with purple, pink, and white candles. (Today we lit a purple candle.) Those with kids usually have an Advent calendar as well.
The US Bishops have some online Advent prayers and resources. This year, with barely any time between Thanksgiving travels and Advent, we improvised a bit more than usual, and used an Advent “psalm” from a book that was handy, Fr. Edward Hays’s Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim.
Advent is one of those times, like Lent, when we laypeople are especially encouraged to receive the sacrament of Reconciliation; my Advents are usually not heavy on penitence, but I’m considering making that a focus this year. For the first Advent in many years, I was a lector in my parish, and the Second Reading (Rom 13:11-14) got me examining my conscience.
. . . not in orgies and drunkenness . . .
Doing good on these counts.
. . . not in rivalry and jealousy . . .
Here, not so much.
Msgr. Scollen, in his homily, noted that the First Reading was about “nonviolence,” the second, “personal lifestyle.” I’ll be meditating on them more this week and discerning the steps I should take this Advent.
