Perhaps more than any other year in my lifetime, 2020 is one that I am glad to see coming to an end. This year we have contended with the COVID-19 pandemic and the death, illness and isolation it has caused, with political division and strife that tears at our country and divides friends and families, and with a renewed awareness of the pain and suffering and injustice caused by the sin of racism.
It doesn’t seem like there is much reason to celebrate and be joyful. But, there is. We are about to begin a new year, a new chapter and new opportunity to start over.
Although we are a little more than a month from the start of a new calendar year, now is the time for Catholics to pray for happiness and health and blessings for the year ahead. That is because on Sunday, Nov. 29, we will celebrate the start not of a new calendar year, but of a new liturgical year.
The Church begins her new year with Advent, the period of four Sundays preceding Christmas. We should use this time of anticipation to reflect on our relationship with God as we prepare for the Incarnation of Christ.
It is wise that the Church begins her new year with Advent. Advent is a time that not only looks back at the first coming of Christ, but also looks forward to His second coming. During this time of expectation (we await the advent of Christ), we not only reaffirm that “the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us,” but we remember that He promised to “come back again and take you to Myself, so that where I am, you also may be.” (John 14:3).
For me – and I would guess many other Catholics – Advent has always been a time to think about the birth of Christ. That is a good thing, of course. But, given the year we have been through, I am thinking that perhaps I should put more emphasis not on the looking back, but on the looking forward.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church notes in paragraph 524 that as we celebrate Advent we should not only recall “the Savior’s first coming,” but also show our “ardent desire for His second coming.”
Pope Francis once said that Advent is a time “to verify our desire for God, to look ahead and prepare ourselves for the return of Christ.” Our Holy Father said that during this holy season, we should “let go of the worldly distractions that take us away from God, and focus on growing closer to Him through prayer and concern for others.”
No one can deny that this year there has been a host of “worldly distractions” that perhaps took us away from God because of our anger or confusion or fear.
For many of us, lighting the candles of the Advent wreath marks the celebration of Advent in our homes.
Scholars say the tradition of lighting candles around a wreath dates back to the folk practices of the pre-Christian Eastern Europeans, who during the dark winter months would make wreaths of evergreen and light fires. Later, Christians would adapt these traditions – as well they should have. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)
The Advent wreath symbolizes an endless circle representing the endless love of God for His people. The candles represent Christ the everlasting Light of the World and evergreens represent eternal life with Jesus in Heaven.
As we light the candles, perhaps we will be prompted to light a fire under our own faithfulness and spark a renewed desire for Our Lord whose love for us is boundless.
It makes sense that Advent is celebrated with lights, whether the candles of the Advent wreath, or the lights with which we decorate our homes. These lights recall that a prophecy made thousands and thousands of years ago has indeed come true. The great prophet Isaiah told us many millennia ago that “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light. To them that dwelt in the region of the shadow of death, light is risen.” (Isaiah 9:2)
This year – marked by pandemic and political division and a renewed focus on the sin of racism – has truly seemed to be a year in which we have “walked in darkness” and “dwelt in the region of the shadow of death.”
So, this year I will celebrate Advent with a simple prayer: “Come, long-expected Jesus.” I learned that prayer many years ago, but it seems more appropriate than ever that it should be my constant prayer during this Advent.
I will also sing that beautiful and haunting Advent hymn, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.” There is one verse in particular that seems most appropriate to me this year:
“O come, O Lamb of God who was slain,
“You underwent our human pain,
“Dispel our fear of endless night
“And death’s dark shadow put to flight.”
We are walking in darkness right now, but Advent calls us to have holy hope that a new dawn will break. The lights we use today recall the great light that dawned more than 2,000 years ago in that little stable in Bethlehem. They sing out that, indeed, the darkness is broken by the light of truth brought to us by Jesus Christ, our King, our Savior, our Messiah.
