Second Week of Advent Reflection
Welcome to the Second Week of "A Journey through Advent and Christmas." In order to facilitate access to the Advent bundle including the reflections and audio for this Advent Program, information from the Companion Guide and links to the audio are included in this post. If you have already downloaded the content based upon our prior email, this is the same information contained in the download for the Second Week of Advent.
Seeing Things Familiar
Like many others, your family may have familiar preparations that fill the holiday season with activity. Maybe it’s taking down from the attic the same ornaments you’ve used for decades, hanging holiday lights, baking special cookies, shopping for gifts, or getting your home ready for gatherings and guests.
Like many others, your family may have familiar preparations that fill the holiday season with activity. Maybe it’s taking down from the attic the same ornaments you’ve used for decades, hanging holiday lights, baking special cookies, shopping for gifts, or getting your home ready for gatherings and guests.
Unfamiliar Again
The preparations for Christmas are often about adding more—more errands, more gifts, more food, more social occasions. Sometimes we carry this “adding more” tendency into our Advent experience. But perhaps the heart of preparing for Jesus isn’t adding more, but clearing away. In our homes, we often prepare to receive guests by clearing away excess clutter so there is more space to receive others. Perhaps the best way for us to truly prepare to receive Jesus in a new and impactful way is to do the same: clear away the spiritual clutter that occupies space in our hearts. Repentance draws us closer to God precisely by creating space to receive Him. His love is constant and steadfast, always available, but our hearts are often cluttered with things that displace Him. Repentance clears away the junk of fear, insecurity, and sin so that our hearts can be as open as possible to receive the Lord.
Read: Mark 1:1-8
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.
As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;
he will prepare your way.
A voice of one crying out in the desert:
“Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.”
John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. People of the whole Judean countryside and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins. John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. He fed on locusts and wild honey. And this is what he proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
Listen:
- #5 - Prepare (Fr. Dave's Talk)
- #6 - Prepare Him Room (song by the Vigil Project)
- #3 - Savior of the World (song by the Vigil Project)
Reflect:
- What are some of your usual preparations for Christmas? Which ones do you genuinely enjoy and which ones contribute to a stressful sense of “adding more”? What do you think is the difference, and what spiritual significance can be found in that difference?
- What are some fears or attachments that may be cluttering your heart and reducing the space available for God’s grace?
- Who is someone in your life you may be called to make more space for—maybe a family member who has hurt you, a coworker who annoys you, or a friend who is needy?
Pray:
Sometime during the weeks of Advent, go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The grace of confession literally wipes away all sin and offers us a totally fresh start. Because it clears away sin, confession makes space for Jesus and is one of the best ways to truly prepare for Christmas.