Dec 4 – Memorial for St. John Damascene, priest, doctor of the Church
St. John Damascene was born in Damascus about 675. After holding public office for a time, he withdrew to the monastery of Sabas near Jerusalem. He wrote ‘The Fount of Wisdom’, in which he presented a comprehensive teaching on Christian doctrine, which had great influence on later theology. He died about 750.
- the Weekday Missal
Isa 25:6-10
Mt 15: 29-37
On this mountain, the Lord of hosts will prepare for all peoples a banquet of rich food, a banquet of fine wines, of food rich and juicy, of fine strained wines.
Advent is here, which means Christmas draws near. Christmas is a time of celebrating and feasting, as the many flyers from catering companies and supermarkets and Ikea keep telling me. Gotta book those buffets and hams and get those fresh pine trees! I have to admit, I do look forward to the Christmas festivities a lot. This is a spillover from my childhood, when Christmas was a time of gathering and fun and, of course, presents. My extended family on my dad’s side (the Catholic side) would descend upon Grandma’s house for lunch after Mass and we would, in turn, host a Christmas party for my mum’s non-Christian side of the extended family. These gatherings were huge because families back then were huge (I have over 30 first cousins, so it is a lot, a lot of people). The numbers have dwindled over the years as children grew up and grew out of parties and family gatherings. As grandparents passed on, there were no more anchors for all the separate families who now held their own smaller festive gatherings.
As I delved deeper into my faith as a young adult, I learned that Christmas didn’t actually start right after Deepavali. Certainly not when the “-ber” months started either! Before we launch into all the festivities, there is Advent. Advent was a time of preparation, not celebration, yet. Advent means an arrival, a coming. So during Advent, what are we waiting for? Obviously, we await the birth of Jesus, which actually already happened over 2000 years ago. So is there anything else we are awaiting? Yes, we are awaiting Jesus again, but not the newborn Jesus. We are awaiting, in joyful hope, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The last Sunday of the liturgical year was the Feast of Christ the King, and as the King of the whole world, we await his second coming.
Advent is a time of preparation, which means a time of deep reflection and of reconciliation because we are looking forward to something pure and true. I do not think it means Advent should be a time of feeling morose, because we do hold on to hope in our hearts. We are looking forward to something good, as promised to us. But we can certainly recognise the faults and shortcomings within ourselves, and strive to do better while anticipating Joy.
In today’s readings, we see the fulfillment of a promise that comes after a period of suffering. Perhaps in this day and age, where suffering and pain seem to be everywhere, Advent as a time of penitence and sorrow makes sense. We are always waiting now, for things to change for the better. We are constantly fighting to create better futures for our children. Everyone now is troubled. Everyone has something to worry about and to fret about. In addition to the usual strains of life, I for one, have at least 2 new things to stress over this year. And in true ‘kiasu’ (fear of losing out) Singaporean style, I am trying to get a headstart on dealing with these ‘problems’ so I can keep them under control and not let them take over.
As I read through today’s readings, one thing that stood out was God’s promise to look after us. He is the King of Kings, the Lord of all, and He has promised to save us. However, before that, there will be a period of suffering. I suppose that is what Life is like — it entails suffering; but because we believe, we can pull through until the glorious end. This is a hopeful message that we need to hear. The world now is fraught with hurt. There is an intense spiritual battle going on for our souls. We are tired and weary and swathed in darkness a lot of the time, and it looks like the suffering will never end. But it will end; and we have to keep on fighting until then. Basically, we have to live out the entire plot of CS Lewis’ “The Last Battle”. As long as we remember we have God on our side, and He has promised to look after us, we can fight on with faith and hope.
We are weeks away from Christmas. Many people, including ourselves, are suffering in many ways. This first week of Advent is when we light the first candle of Hope. As the readings stated, there is Hope. As we hold to it, we also bring Hope to others in need. In the darkness of the world, let us shine the light of Christ. God has made a promise to us. Advent is the time during which we wait for that promise to be fulfilled. In the meantime, Advent is also a penitential period during which we have the chance to make reparations, to reconcile our hearts with God. As we struggle through this time on earth, we keep in mind God’s promise and God’s Love for us.
Brothers and sisters, let us light one candle for Hope.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Felicia Zou)
Prayer: Dear Lord, as we wait in joyful hope for your coming, grant us the grace and strength to look carefully at our lives. We pray for the courage to change as we purify ourselves for you.
Thanksgiving: Dear Lord, we thank You for Your unending love and patience for us, even when we fall so many times.
OXYGEN 
Leave a comment