​Embracing Jesus

Advent liturgy is all about waiting and preparing - waiting for Christ and preparing for his return. It is something the Israelites did for several hundred years. The early Christians recognized Jesus as the promised Messiah and waited for his return.

What are we waiting for?

But we don’t need to wait for Jesus to be born at Christmas. Jesus is right here, among us - we hear him in the words he proclaimed, we see him in the faces of each other and we meet him in the Eucharist. But if we have found Jesus then what is there to wait for? In our Memorial Acclamation we proclaim the Mystery of Faith: “until you come again”. Before we can celebrate the birth of our Savior we should celebrate that he is alive and we must prepare ourselves for his return!

Picture this!

For Christmas I would like to give you an image: the Messiah who came to us as an innocent baby. God, Incarnate conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. Mary carried our Savior and felt him grow. Jesus moved inside her and she embraced him. Mary nurtured Christ and watched him grow. And us? If you are not carrying Jesus inside of you, feeling him move, if you are not embracing our Savior and helping him grow then you need to activate it and energize it. What did Mary do after the Angel Gabriel left her? She didn’t sit in the chapel praying, she went with haste into the hill country to the home of Elizabeth. Why? Because she needed her! Elizabeth was six months pregnant with John the Baptist. John leaped inside of her at the presence of the unborn Savior.

Homework

Friends, mirror this image of Mary, carry the Christ child that lives inside you and bring him to someone who needs your help. Touch a broken brother or sister and let them be moved by the Christ that grows inside of you. Let the Christ in you come out and be born into the world around you. May God Bless you at Christmas and in the New Year!