Advent 1 (year A)

Many people know that the word Advent is derived from a Latin root that means "to come." The readings for the First Sunday in Advent all share the Advent theme of the coming kingdom. Each selection develops this theme in a slightly different way.

In Isaiah 2:1-5, the prophet looks forward to a day when all the world will acknowledge the God of Israel. In this messianic age, swords and spears will be transformed into agricultural tools. In other words, peace will reign and all will worship the one true God.

Psalm 122 is a joyful hymn that has a similar theme to the prophecy from Isaiah. It looks to a time when all will come to the house of the Lord and gladly worship in peace.

In Romans 13:8-14, the Apostle Paul speaks of the law of love and relates loving behavior among believers to the approaching day of the Lord when Christ shall judge all people.

The Gospel from Matthew 24:29-44 looks to Christ's future return for the last judgment. Since no one knows exactly when this will take place, our Lord exhorts us to be ready always. Advent is a special time to emphasize our preparations to meet Christ both in our present life and at the end of history.

Easter- Christ's Resurrection (year C)

This year, the principal Resurrection Gospel is Luke 24:1-12. The account shows remarkable agreement with other accounts, but Luke has a unique way of telling the story. He simply says "they" came to the tomb and does not indicate their gender until late in the passage. Only in verse 10 are we told that they are women. The women find the tomb open with Jesus' body missing, and they are perplexed. This perplexity turns to amazement when two angelic beings tell them that Jesus has risen from the dead as He predicted. The women accept this message and return to share it with the eleven apostles and others. However, the men hesitate to believe the women's report. Peter has to go see for himself, and even then, his initial response to the empty tomb is merely wonderment or surprise.

Luke's account has a special emphasis on two points about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. First, the events of Holy Week had traumatized the disciples. At first, they do not really understand or appreciate the divine plan for salvation in Jesus Christ. Although they loved Him and expected great things from Him, they had not really expected His crucifixion or His resurrection. They are shocked and depressed, and they understand the meaning of the empty tomb slowly.

Secondly, as this passage starts to show and other accounts develop, Christ's disciples did slowly and convincingly come to believe firmly in His resurrection. If anything, the initial discouragement, perplexity, and surprise of the disciples make their later witness to the resurrection more powerful. The disciples were not confident plotters trying to mislead others. They were humble people transformed by divine revelation and miraculous grace. They developed faith and confidence through divine inspiration. They became joyful witnesses. Let us pray that the same divine revelation and grace may transform us into joyful witnesses for the risen Lord Jesus!