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| At the Ordination of Father Jim |
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Bishop's Message for Advent 2009
Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Jesus, the promised One of God. But what sort of coming? After all, Jesus has already come to us, lived among us, and died and rose for us. (I get so confused. I don't know if I should run out and get a gift) Is our Advent preparation and celebration just a pleasant shuffle down memory lane?
Absolutely not. Rather, we declare that 2000 years after his birth, Jesus is still Emmanuel, God-with-us, still present among us in our everyday history and life. Advent prepares us to celebrate a present reality, the enduring incarnation of Jesus.
Advent also urges us to prepare for another coming, the coming of Christ at the end of time. We believe all time is in God's hands. The evolution of the cosmos continues in our interaction withal that is. We invite transformation in ourselves every time we leave the celebration of the Mass. What we ultimately shall become in Christ is ours to imagine every Christmas.
Advent turns up the pressure to embody the spirit of Christmas. We find ourselves hurried and harried as we seek gifts for those we love most, for those who give us gifts those our society leaves out. This Advent we invite you to daily prayer, to the practice of keeping our hearts steady in the cross-currents of this season and set on welcoming Jesus among us. The third Advent Jesus in the people we see everyday in family, neighbor, friend, an stranger.
Spend these days reading your hearts and homes for he Divine Guest Jesus and every guest. As St. Benedict said, welcome everyone as Christ.
In His Peace and Love,
The Most Reverend William A. Wettingfeld
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