My beloved people of St. Scholastica,
Wish you all a fruitful season of Advent and a Blessed Christmas!
My beloved people of St. Scholastica,
Wish you all a fruitful season of Advent and a Blessed Christmas!
Waiting ,an inevitable and even necessary aspect of human life, is not something that most of us relish. We wait in lines: in order to purchase groceries; to be served at popular restaurants; to be attended to in a bank; at stop signs and traffic signals; at amusement parks; to see a play or film. We must also wait for flowers to grow and bloom; for babies to be born; for wounds to heal; for bread to rise and cheese to age; for children to mature; for friends to call; for love to deepen. Statisticians have estimated that in a lifetime of 70 years, the average person spends at least three years waiting! The season of Advent invites us to wait for the rebirth of the Lord in our lives with repentant hearts and renewed lives.
Advent is the perfect time to clear and prepare the way. Advent is a winter training camp for those who desire peace. By reflection and prayer, by reading and meditation, we can make our hearts a place where a blessing of peace would desire to abide and where the birth of the Prince of Peace might take place. Can I make use of this season to bring out the best version of myself? Daily we can make an advent examination. Are there any feelings of discrimination toward race, sex or religion? Is there a lingering resentment, an unforgiven injury living in our hearts? Do we look down upon others of lesser social standing or educational achievement? Are we generous with the gifts that have been given to us?
Jesus said, “I came so that you may have life; life in abundance”. We who accept Jesus as our God and saviour we need to become life and energy for others. We need to cultivate in our hearts lot of love, forgiveness and generosity and supply them to those who lack them. If we find that love is lacking in our family, neighbour, parish, places of work we shall be generous enough to provide them with love.
What shall be the best Christmas gifts that we can share with other? As Oren Arnold said, “To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect”.
Every morning when we get up, let us pray, “Lord, show me someone today with whom I may share your love, mercy and forgiveness.” Mother Teresa of Calcutta once said, “Whatever you do in your family, for your children, for your husband, for your wife, you do for Jesus.” Every night when we go to bed, let us ask ourselves, “Where have I found Christ today?” The answer will be God’s Advent gift to us that day. By being alert and watchful, we’ll be getting an extra gift: Christ himself. There is a saying about being saved which goes back to St. Thomas Aquinas: “Without God, I can’t. Without me, he won’t.”
When Jesus was born, all of heaven cried out, “Glory to God in the highest”(Lk2:14). Let us begin to lead a life of gratitude towards God. The human being who is fully alive is the glory of God. Gloria is the song of heaven so each human being can be God’s glory on the earth. “Let your light shine before others so that whoever sees your good works will glorify the heavenly father who is in heaven”.
Wish you all a Happy Christmas