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The Christmas Cycle
The liturgy of Advent sets before us the picture of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ,
preaching penance in the wilderness, and of the Virgin Mother at Nazareth. During Advent we
are to imitate John the Baptist and the Blessed Virgin.
“Do penance.” In this holy season we acknowledge that we are sinners. We are aware of our
weakness, of our sinfulness, of our unworthiness, and we feel unable to free ourselves from the
misery of our present state. Of ourselves we cannot avoid sin, we cannot master our passions
or control our evil impulses. We need a Savior and we cry out when we realize how great is our
need of redemption. “Stir up Thy might, O Lord, and come to our aid.” We go to meet the Savior
and, like other Johns, we prepare the way for Him in our souls. John is our guide and model.
We are to imitate him in penance, renunciation, vigilance, and prayer.
Behold the Virgin who spoke her fiat in humility and faith, and with complete resignation
to the will of the Almighty. “And the Word was made flesh.” How marvelous was the state of the
Virgin at Nazareth! She became the instrument of salvation, the cause of our joy, the Mother of
God, and the means of our redemption. In her purity and her union with God, in her obedience
and love, Mary sums up perfectly the spirit of Advent. Behold the Virgin. She is the symbol and
model of the Christian soul.
Thus Advent opens to our mind a rich field of mysteries, provides us with food for thought
and motives for action. These thoughts and motives should plant the spirit of Advent in our
heart, and deepen and nourish that spirit in us.
First Sunday of Advent
The Mass
“Stir up the wills of Thy faithful people, O Lord.” Thus we prayed on the last Sunday of the ecclesiastical
year. With the same words on our lips we begin the new liturgical year. “Stir up Thy
might, we beseech Thee, O Lord, and come.” The last days of the Church year which has just
passed were marked by an intense longing for the coming of Christ. This same intense longing
accompanies us across the threshold of the new year and becomes a mighty prayer: “Come, O
Lord, come.” During Advent we expect His coming in grace. We need a Redeemer; we need
additional strength and help; no one can supply this strength but He in whom alone the world
may find salvation and redemption. We practice piety during Advent not merely to provide
for our own personal needs; we feel also the need for redemption on the part of our brethren
in Christ. We share their spiritual needs and unite their petitions to our own when we call out
to heaven for a Redeemer.
We have already pointed out the similarity between the Collect of the last Sunday after Pentecost
and that of the first Sunday of Advent. There is also a remarkable similarity between the Gospels
of the two Sundays. Both speak of the terror that is to accompany the last days. But in the
midst of the darkness and the catastrophe threatening all humanity, the light of redemption
breaks through. “But when these things begin to come to pass, look up and lift up your heads,
because your redemption is at hand.” Full of faith and confidence, we look forward to the day
of redemption which is now approaching.
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