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December 4, 2023Advent 1 (2023)
‘Be on your guard, stay awake, because you never know when the time will come.’ These words of Jesus express the profound meaning of the liturgical season of Advent, which begins today. Last Sunday, we concluded the liturgical year, and today, we start a new one with this time of waiting, to come prepared for Christmas, ready to welcome Jesus who comes to live in our hearts.
The time of Advent reminds us that our God is known not through abstract speculation but because he comes among us. God makes himself known as the one who comes to live among us.
God came in Jesus, two thousand years ago. Every day, Jesus comes to us and will come at the end of time to complete everything. If Jesus comes, our task is to wait for him by preparing ourselves, preparing a place for him in our hearts.
To understand the meaning of Advent, imagine a situation where someone special is to visit our home. If we are distracted or if our heart is occupied by many worries or useless thoughts, then, while this person passes our home, we will not notice. Sometimes we say: Were you there at that meeting too? Why didn't I see you? The answer is simple: I was distracted. I wasn't paying attention, and I didn’t notice.
Each of us has, in his experience, the memory of having looked for and waited for someone we wanted to meet. When we long to meet a loved one, our life is transformed. The time of waiting becomes the time of desire and search.
This is how we understand Jesus' invitation to be ready, to be attentive to what is happening around us, to discover the face of our loved one among the faces passing by on the street.
Many times, we are not attentive to the things around us, and our spiritual life weakens. When we think we don't need God and are satisfied with ourselves then we no longer wait for anyone and remain closed to ourselves.
But if there is within us the ardent desire for an authentic life, if we feel the need to be loved, if we have in our heart the desire to be forgiven because we know we are sinners, then we open ourselves to life, we come out of ourselves, and we begin to look at life differently, we begin to be attentive to those whom we meet, searching for the one we are looking for, the one we love, to find his presence.
Our relationship with God is not like we look for a product in the supermarket. Jesus and his love are not something that we can buy in a shop as and when we like. We cannot enclose our relationship with God in our plan. Jesus constantly surprises us. His love amazes us. God is not an object. He is living. Jesus is God who comes to live among us and makes us his holy people. This is why the word of God invites us to be attentive so that we don’t miss the opportunity to meet the Lord who comes.
Dear people, I ask you to prepare well for Christmas in this time of Advent. First of all, I invite you to pray more. Spend more time in prayer. Pray simple prayers. Pray alone, pray together with your family, and pray with friends. Come to pass through the Holy Door and receive the plenary indulgence by fulfilling the pilgrimage to the Cathedral.
Prayer prepares us to welcome Jesus. You can express your desire to meet Jesus even with simple expressions: come, Lord Jesus. Repeat this simple phrase in your heart throughout the day. It will help you to be attentive and vigilant, ready to celebrate the Lord's birth with Joy.
We have an added reason to pray today as we celebrate the 52nd National Day of our country, the United Arab Emirates. Let us pray for this country, its rulers and all people who live here. May this country be a model of peace, and harmony to the whole world.
Finally, I let us remember our Holy Father Pope Francis. As you know he could not come to Dubai to participate in the COP28 meeting on climate change due to health reasons. However, the Holy Father made his voice heard through the Secretary of State, Cardinal Parolin, who is attending this meeting. Let us continue pray for our Holy Father, that his prophetic message be welcomed, by all nations to work together for greater care of creation. We pray for the success of COP28, for the protection of our common home and the good of all.
May Mary Mother of God, who knew how to be vigilant, help us prepare well for Christmas.
