Helping Catholics know & love the Lord and his Church
Advertisement

Category: Advent

1 min read
Advent

St. Andrew Christmas Novena

1 min read
2942 views
Comments Off on St. Andrew Christmas Novena
1 min read

The St. Andrew Christmas Novena, also known as the Christmas Anticipation Prayer, begins on the feast day of St. Andrew the Apostle on Nov. 30, and lasts until Dec. 24….

The St. Andrew Christmas Novena, also known as the Christmas Anticipation Prayer, begins on the feast day of St. Andrew the Apostle on Nov. 30, and lasts until Dec. 24. Tradition says the prayer should be recited 15 times each day. It is a beautiful, evocative and meditative Advent prayer.

Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, O my God, to hear my prayer and grant my desires (mention your intentions here), through the merits of Our Savior, Jesus Christ, and of His Blessed Mother. 
Amen.

Continue Reading
Comments Off on St. Andrew Christmas Novena
9 min read
Advent

What’s the Meaning of the Seasons’ Traditions?

9 min read
4670 views
No Comments on What’s the Meaning of the Seasons’ Traditions?
9 min read

C.S. Lewis, the great Christian writer who gave us Narnia, wrote a superb parody about Christmas, describing a baffled time traveler visiting Britain and finding people forced to buy squares…

C.S. Lewis, the great Christian writer who gave us Narnia, wrote a superb parody about Christmas, describing a baffled time traveler visiting Britain and finding people forced to buy squares of decorated cardboard and mail them to one another.

It is true that many semi-obligatory things, apparently belonging to Christmas in Western countries, bear very little relation to the awesome reality of the birth of Jesus Christ and the redemption of mankind. And it’s getting even sillier: in the Britain of the 1950s that Lewis knew, churchgoing was at least still a mainstream activity — it is not so now.

The commercial pressure attached to Christmas now starts in August — and, of course, manufacturers and marketers have been busy long before that. Recent additions to the “must have” of what is now regarded as a proper traditional Christmas include plastic reindeer antlers worn on the head, piped recordings of Santa Claus songs in supermarkets and battery-operated bow ties that light up.

Preparing for Christ’s Birth

For Christians, though, the glorious reality of Christmas starts with its real place in the calendar. An important date is March 25, the Annunciation — the old name is Lady Day, and it’s 40 weeks before Christmas. A baby is 40 weeks in the womb. That’s a significant number: It’s why it’s so important in the Scriptures. Think of Noah in the ark for 40 days, the Israelites traveling 40 years to the Promised Land, and Christ spending 40 days in prayer in the wilderness.

Christmas is linked to the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. The Annunciation is in the spring, linked to the vernal equinox, equal day and night.

The date of Christmas, Dec. 25, was set by Emperor Constantine in 336; Jesus’ birthday isn’t recorded in Scripture. Some say Dec. 25 was chosen as the date to celebrate Jesus’ birthday because of the ancient Roman midwinter pagan festivals coinciding with the winter solstice that occurred around this date — Christian citizens of the Roman Empire no longer worshiped the Sun God, but the Son of God.

We should relish our Christmas customs, even starting with Advent, the four weeks of preparation for the great feast. The tradition of an Advent wreath comes from the snowy parts of Europe, when, in winter, the wheels would be taken off the wagons and runners put on instead. A cartwheel makes a strong base for a great Advent wreath, with four candles, one for each week. Some traditions affirm red candles, but most use three purple and one pink, the latter signifying Gaudete Sunday, its name coming from the Latin word for joy. This is the Third Sunday of Advent, when the season of solemn preparation gives way to a note of joyful expectation. Prayers around the Advent wreath, with one candle alight during the first week, two in the second and so on, are something special on winter evenings. The great Advent hymn “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” dates back to the O antiphons of the eighth century.

The First Sunday of Advent is called “stir up Sunday” when Christmas puddings are made in Britain. With plenty of alcohol in it, the puddings will most certainly keep until Christmas. Everyone in the household should take a turn at stirring the mixture and making a wish. The pudding originated in Britain as plum porridge and seems to date from the 18th century. Mincemeat — chopped-up dried fruit, spices, lemon and orange peel, and shredded suet — is an older dish, originally containing minced meat, dried and preserved. Mince pies are traditionally oval in shape, representing the manger, with Christ the sweetness inside.

In the United States and Northern Europe, Christmas is synonymous with wintry things, but, for most of the world, it’s not like that. For instance, in India — where Catholic tradition goes back to St. Thomas, one of Christ’s own apostles — midnight Mass is celebrated on a warm summer night and is traditionally followed by visits to family and friends with feasting.

Feasts within Advent

St. Nicholas — from whence Santa Claus came — the saintly bishop of the early church who helped the poor, has his feast on Dec. 6, and so has become linked with Christmas. In much of Europe he arrives dressed as a bishop, mitred and robed, but in America and Britain his robes have become a red and fur-trimmed outfit. Stockings are associated with Christmas because of him. Known for his charity, he dropped money down the chimney discreetly for three poor girls — and it went into their stockings, hung by the fire to dry.

Dec. 12 is the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Coatlallope), the Patroness of the Americas. Mary appeared to the saintly Aztec Juan Diego, imprinting her picture on his tilma, or cloak. You can still see it in the great basilica in Mexico City, the most popular shrine in the Western Hemisphere, visited by millions every year. Mary is pregnant with the Savior and wears the traditional ribbon of an Aztec expectant mother. Coatlallope in Aztec dialect means “one who treads on snakes” — Mary crushed the serpent’s head as was prophesied of her in Genesis.

The date for the feast isn’t accidental — it’s God’s timing, linking with Christmas. Many celebrate the feast with a piñata, essentially a pineapple shape made out of papier-mâché, filled with toys and sweets, hung up over the heads of partygoers, who bash at it until it breaks, showering the gifts down on everyone.

Scandinavians especially celebrate St. Lucy — her name means “light” — on Dec. 13, the date for midwinter in the old Julian calendar. Girls dress in white robes, with red sashes to symbolize her martyrdom, and crowns bearing candles on their heads. They bring sugary pastries, fresh coffee and treats to hospitals and community groups.

Trees, Carols and More

Christmas trees began with the eighth-century St. Boniface, who converted the pagan Germans. They saw their great evergreens as sacred because the trees did not shed their needles or appear to die in winter like other trees. St. Boniface — his Latin name means “one doing good” — taught them to worship, not the evergreen tree, but Christ who died on a tree, and who thereby offers us eternal life. Eventually, he was martyred, but meanwhile an evergreen decorated with candles became the Christmas tree. Many centuries later Prince Albert, who was of German descent and married Britain’s Queen Victoria, brought the custom to England, and from there it went to other lands.

Many cultures celebrate the Christmas season until Feb. 2, which is Candlemas, the feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. Before the revisions of the liturgical calendar following the Second Vatican Council, that’s when the season ended. Many homes retain some Christmas decorations — certainly the manger — all through that time. Crib scenes, in churches and homes, are said to have begun with St. Francis of Assisi in 1223 (see sidebar). While the manger is empty all through Advent, many places are known to have faithful bring the Christ Child to be blessed at Mass on the Fourth Sunday of Advent — Bambino Sunday — before traditionally placing him in the manger on Christmas morning.

Many cultures traditionally mark Christmas Eve by abstaining from meat. Italian-Americans are known for celebrating the “Feast of Seven Fishes” on that day. Roast beef or pork used to be standard in English-speaking countries on Christmas Day, but now turkey or ham is commonplace.

Christmas games, quizzes and jokes all date back to medieval times as ways of making merry in the long dark evenings of winter. Even today, with television dominating our lives, Christmas is still a time for singalongs, special programs and games.

Many carols are medieval in origin, but the 17th century gave us “While Shepherds Watched” and the 19th gave us “Away in a Manger” and “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” Incidentally, a legend that the carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas” was a code used by Catholics in the days of persecution is untrue: that story only started in the 1970s.

Epiphany — remembering the arrival of the Three Kings — is a big celebration in Spain. Still fixed on Jan. 6, freshly polished shoes of Spanish children are left ready on the previous evening, wherein the kings will deposit presents. Meanwhile, the Three Kings arrive at household manger scenes around the world, often having traveled from room to room around the house. The French have given us the galette des rois — a delicious pastry with a small king embedded inside. Whoever gets him is king or queen for the evening, wears a golden paper crown and chooses the first game to be played. These are known today in the United States as king cakes in many regions claiming French ancestry, such as Louisiana, where they are eaten all the way through Mardi Gras.

Christmas is a time for storytelling, family reminiscences, tales of Christmases past. Some are bittersweet, such as the World War I Christmas 1914 truce in the trenches — where soldiers on both sides put down their arms in observance of the Lord’s birth. It really happened and is a symbol of the whole heartbreaking tragedy of that war.

And Christmas is indeed bittersweet: after Christmas Day comes the feasts of the first martyr, St. Stephen (Dec. 26), and the Holy Innocents (Dec. 28).

Christ’s birth is joyful, but our redemption was won through his suffering — and through that, all suffering is redeemed and is redemptive. Christmas for some is a time of loneliness, poignant memories or mild regrets.

But Christ knows about all of that, for He came to bear our sins and bring us new life. As a British folk carol says: “For the holly bears a berry, as red as any blood / And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ, to do poor sinners good.”

Joanna Bogle is a British Catholic journalist, writer and broadcaster. In 2013, she became a Dame of the Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great. She has authored several books, including “Book of Feasts & Seasons” and blogs at joannabogle.blogspot.com.

Continue Reading
No Comments on What’s the Meaning of the Seasons’ Traditions?
14 min read
Advent

The branches of Jesus’ family tree

14 min read
3466 views
Comments Off on The branches of Jesus’ family tree
14 min read

In recent decades, genealogy has found a wider audience through technological developments that enable one to trace his or her ancestry down through the centuries without leaving the comfort of…

In recent decades, genealogy has found a wider audience through technological developments that enable one to trace his or her ancestry down through the centuries without leaving the comfort of home. Beyond being a hobby for the historically intrigued, anyone engaged in family history research will tell you that they likely learned something about him- or herself in the process of researching the family tree. Human genetics are amazing, and many of our characteristics and traits are passed on to us by those from whom we descend.

Of course, throughout history, lineage has always been important, and it remains so in certain societies and cultures. From whom we descend or to whom we are related can greatly influence how we live our lives. Even from medieval times, family trees have been a significant aspect of familial culture.

The relationships in our family are often bonds that we have no choice about, but the reality is that as human beings we are immersed into relationships that define us. We are born as someone’s son or daughter, and perhaps brother or sister or niece or nephew.

The same is true in our own spiritual lives. As Catholics we are bound by a pattern of relationships with each other and those who have gone before us. This is the biblical image of the Body of Christ — under his headship we are all interrelated members of his body.

In the Middle Ages, when in many ways the importance of family lineage reached a widespread high point throughout the world’s societies, and much of the Western mind was defined by Christianity, the family tree of Jesus Christ became a frequent artistic foil. It remains today as a popular means for prayer and reflection, particularly in the season of Advent, during which the Church recalls the coming of Christ two millennia ago in Bethlehem and prepares for his coming again in glory.

Today many find it helpful to pray with the Jesse Tree, which takes its name from the father of King David in the Old Testament. The prophet Isaiah foretold that Israel’s long-awaited messiah would descend from this noble and all-important Jewish lineage.

The Messiah was promised to come from the line of David, according to the prophet Isaiah. The Latin text of the significant passage (Is 11: 1), uses the word “virga” for the “twig” or “shoot,” which will arise from Jesse’s stem. This presents an interesting etymology, drawing correlation between the familial image of Christ’s ancestry and his own virgin birth.

The Jesse Tree is best described as a prayer device for the home, the domestic church. While it is not liturgical in nature, it can be used beyond the home in places likes schools or religious education programs. Expressions of the Jesse Tree can take a variety of forms, but most typically it involves some artistic representation of the various ancestors of the Lord and an associated reflection or meditation.

The Jesse Tree’s relevance is multifaceted. It enables us to get a full survey of salvation history. We are connected to the central themes of Christian faith: that we have been made by an all-loving God and pursued by him in love when we have so often strayed and cut ourselves off from him. It becomes a perfect means to reflect on Christ’s coming as a man, that he descended from human beings, many of whom are not very much different from us and needed the salvation he brings as much as anyone. A reflection on Christ’s first coming in Bethlehem some 2,000 years ago is incomplete if we do not focus also on his coming again at the end of time. Christians remain in contact with our need for a savior when we study the purpose of his coming. But that requires us to live accordingly and be ready when he comes again.

Michael R. Heinlein is editor of Simply Catholic. Follow him on Twitter @HeinleinMichael. 

How to Make a Jesse Tree

Find out how to make your own Jesse Tree: osv.com/jessetree

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 2 — Creation

Creation of Adam by Michaelangelo (detail) Public domain

No reflection on salvation history can begin without recognizing our origin from God. God made us in his own image, declaring us “very good.” We know our calling is to dwell in his love, and yet we so often stray from him. Even then his love is unbounded, that he would send his only Son to bring us back to him. It is only then we can truly be “very good.”

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 3 — Adam and Eve

Sin became part of the human condition through our first parents. Eating the apple was part disobedience and part wanting to be equal to God. While God made us to be like him, our incorporation into the divine life happens on his terms, not ours. Humanity’s sinfulness results from skewed perspectives of creation, an inability to submit to the will of the One who made all things and to respect our proper role in the relationship we have with him. The result is God’s plan of redemption, whereby he sends us his Son to show us the true way to be human.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 4 — Noah

The story of Noah and his ark illustrates the corruptive and insidious nature of sin. Even the most personal of sins affect others, in ways we will often never recognize in this life. While God’s action in this story offers an opportunity for a “new creation” through his covenant with Noah, we can rightfully understand this as foreshadowing the new life to be found in Christ, which requires us to leave sin behind and follow Christ’s way.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

December 5 — Abraham

Abraham’s Journey from Ur to Canaan by Josef Molnar Public domain

All mankind has been created for a relationship with God. When God established his covenant with Abraham, he entered into a relationship with a people that will be particularly his own. This solidifies the relationship God has intended for his people from the beginning. Abraham’s story reiterates that we must reject anything that keeps us from faithfulness to God.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

December 6 — Isaac

Those who worship the true God learn through Abraham’s ordeal that sacrifice is essential. When God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac — the one through whom all of the promises God made would come true — he was willing to give God everything. This foreshadowed the offering of God’s Son in the new and everlasting covenant.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 7 — Jacob

Jacob Wresting with the Angel by Rembrandt van Rijn Public domain

Jacob (or Israel) is a complex figure. He became the inheritor of God’s covenant with Abraham despite having lied to achieve the birthright that made it possible. Nonetheless, God remained faithful in the context of Jacob’s situation. God’s love is indestructible.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 8 — Tamar

Tamar’s story represents how God’s gifts can be misused, illustrating how God’s love and generosity can even be exploited. Tamar was maligned after her first two husbands died, and she deceived their father, Judah, in order to secure a position of esteem in the line of Abraham. And she did, giving birth to twins and becoming one of only five women named in the genealogy of Jesus according to Matthew’s Gospel.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

December 9 — Joseph

The favor showed to Joseph by his father, Jacob, mirrors the favor God showed to his own Son. But this favor included rejection and suffering. As members of Christ’s body through our baptism, we should see ourselves no different than him and Joseph. But we also know that God’s love triumphs through their suffering and results in exaltation.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

December 10 — Moses

Fresco of Moses by Joseph Schonman in Altlerchenfelder church Shutterstock

Because of their sins, God’s chosen people ended up in Egyptian slavery. But God didn’t abandon them. Moses, despite his weaknesses, was chosen by God to lead his people from their bondage. God led them from slavery to freedom, yet they resisted, grumbled and even turned away from him — all an abuse of their freedom. So that his people would no longer be enslaved by sin, he gave them the Law as a means to true freedom.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

December 11 — Joshua

Faithfulness to God was seen in Joshua’s repeated success and conquests on the battlefield on behalf of God’s people. He led God’s people into Canaan, which God had promised them. Jesus’ ancestors gave God thanks for this victory and offered to him their loot as a sacrifice. Jesus descends from these as the one who makes the true and final sacrifice to God.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

December 12 — Rahab

The story of Rahab, the second woman mentioned in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus, identifies how God’s purposes are at work even outside the community of believers. Rahab betrayed her own people and aided the Israelites to achieve God’s will. For this she was remembered as an example of great faith. Her family was incorporated into the Jewish people, a sign that God’s truth and his plans are open to all people.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

December 13 — Ruth

Ruth in Boaz’s Field by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld Public domain

God instilled in his people an intense respect for familial relationships, which is at the heart of the story of Ruth. She chose to work to support her mother-in-law, who lost her husband and sons to death. Ruth offered her life for Naomi, and in return she fell in love with Boaz, whose heart she won by her kindness. They married and together became ancestors of their long-awaited Messiah, the Lord Jesus.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

December 14 — Samuel

To help his people gain freedom from the Philistines, God instructed the wise and holy prophet Samuel to help establish the monarchy. This arose from the need for unity among God’s people. Samuel first anointed Saul to be king, but his weakness prohibited any effective leadership. Rather than be captured, he ended his own life. God’s people remained further divided until the kingdom unified again under David.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

December 15 — David

King David in Prayer by Pieter de Grebber Public domain

Jesus is tied to David’s lineage, which is crucial to be acknowledged as Messiah. David brought unity to God’s people, establishing a capital and announcing his plans to build a temple for God to dwell among his people. God’s favor for David earned him the title of God’s son. Despite David’s moral failures, God remained true to their covenant, but David was deprived from building the temple. And yet, God’s son descends from his line.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

December 16 — Bathsheba

King David’s greatest moral failing was the extramarital affair with Bathsheba and the murder he arranged of her husband so to acquire her as his own. When her son Solomon became king and built the temple in Jerusalem, Bathsheba was an advocate for the people with her son. She is the fourth woman mentioned in Jesus’ genealogy, and in some ways prefigures the intercessory role of Mary with her divine Son.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

December 17 — Elijah

Relief of Tree of Jesse, Cathedral St. Peter, Worms, Germany. Public domain

The chosen people fell away from God yet again and were even led by their king into the worship of pagan gods. Elijah did not fear sharing in the fate of many of Israel’s prophets, who had been killed. He challenged those who led worship of the pagan gods to a contest with the true God.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 18 – Hezekiah

The Jesse Tree by Absolon Stumme, from The Dome Altar in Hamburg, Germany, 1499 Public domain

The corrupt king Ahaz was replaced by his son Hezekiah. He was regarded as a faithful son of God and in many ways tried to make amends for his father’s waywardness. He directed God’s people toward reform of true worship. It was unnecessary that he needed to remind them to worship God alone.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

December 19 — Isaiah

Isaiah responded positively and generously to God’s call: that he deliver God’s word to a troubled Israel destined for captivity among the Babylonians on account of their wickedness. He gave a word of consolation and hope in the midst of their darkness and despair, reminding them that God’s love would see them through their suffering. And he prophesied how in God there must be hope even when there is no sign for hope.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 20 — Jeremiah

Jeremiah, as depicted by Michelangelo from the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Public domain

Jeremiah endured much suffering on account of his prophetic call to Israel. Jeremiah called out the Israelites for their hypocritical behavior, especially ignoring the needs of the marginalized and underprivileged. He spoke a message of hope to God’s people as they awaited a redeemer.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

December 21 — Sts. Anne and Joachim

Although unnamed in the Scriptures, Sts. Anne and Joachim are known through Christian tradition as the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary. They embody Israel’s hopeful expectation of the messiah through their joyful acceptance of God’s plan. Since Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit’s power in Mary’s womb, the very flesh and blood of the Lord came from his mother’s parents.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 22 — St. John the Baptist

Sometimes discipleship means that we must be a sign of contradiction. St. John the Baptist dedicated his life to calling people to repentance and conversion through his ascetic life. He willingly personified Israel’s hope for the Messiah. A cousin of the savior, St. John lived as an icon of his coming and our need to prepare.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

December 23 — St. Joseph

St. Joseph’s great faith kept him from serving as an obstacle to God’s plan. When faced with marrying a pregnant Mary, he was instructed by an angel that the child came from God. Joseph knew life would become burdensome and hardship was certain. And yet he obeyed and poured out his life in service of God through his care for the Holy Family.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

December 24 — Blessed Virgin Mary

In the holy mother of God we find the antidote to what ails humanity. When, through sin, mankind rejected God time and again, Mary responded to his will with a “yes” heard through the ages. God’s word found a fertile home in her, the first disciple of her son and the one who leads us to her son always

Interior decor of Saint-Sulpice Church in Paris, France Shutterstock

 

*This story first appeared in Our Sunday Visitor.

 

Continue Reading
Comments Off on The branches of Jesus’ family tree
2 min read
Advent

Since Mary was Ever-Virgin, Did She Deliver Her Son in the Normal Way?

2 min read
6892 views
Comments Off on Since Mary was Ever-Virgin, Did She Deliver Her Son in the Normal Way?
2 min read

One rather delicate question sometimes raised by Catholics concerns the physical nature of Jesus’ birth: Given that Mary was a virgin, did she deliver her Son in the normal way?…

One rather delicate question sometimes raised by Catholics concerns the physical nature of Jesus’ birth: Given that Mary was a virgin, did she deliver her Son in the normal way? Or was it through a miracle that left her body physically intact?

All faithful Catholics are agreed on Mary’s perpetual virginity. The debate centers on what exactly is meant by “virginity.” Does it consist simply in never having had sexual relations? If so, Mary can rightly be called “ever-virgin” without our assuming that Jesus’ birth was miraculous.

But what if a woman must also be physically intact to be considered a virgin? This understanding, at least with regard to Mary, has probably been the “majority position” throughout much of Church history, represented by many figures who carry considerable weight.

For example, nearly all the Fathers and Doctors of the Church who have addressed the issue seem to believe that Jesus was delivered miraculously, exiting her womb without injuring her flesh in any way. The Lateran Synod of 649, which was a regional rather than an ecumenical council, said specifically that Mary “generated without injury”; several popes spoke in a similar way.

Some have argued that such pronouncements should be considered infallible teachings of the Church’s ordinary and universal Magisterium. But in light of the conditions necessary for infallibility, that is by no means an assured conclusion. Perhaps it’s best to say that in this matter, a solemn clarification or confirmation by a pope or ecumenical council would be most welcome.

In the meantime, let’s pray that pondering these mysteries will deepen our faith.

Paul Thigpen is a former editor of The Catholic Answer.

Continue Reading
Comments Off on Since Mary was Ever-Virgin, Did She Deliver Her Son in the Normal Way?
8 min read
Advent

Singing the joys of Advent

8 min read
3318 views
Comments Off on Singing the joys of Advent
8 min read

The hymns of Advent often are rooted in biblical faith and filled with varied symbols and imagery pertinent to salvation history’s central themes — primarily focused on when our savior…

The hymns of Advent often are rooted in biblical faith and filled with varied symbols and imagery pertinent to salvation history’s central themes — primarily focused on when our savior came and expressive of our hope that he will come again. Advent’s hymns provide an opportunity for us to enrich our experience of the season. Take, for instance, the classic French Advent hymn “O Come Divine Messiah,” which gets to the heart of the season by expressing the urgency with which Christians should yearn for the Lord’s coming. It is a reminder that our lives must be defined by joyful expectation of that day when the Lord will come, a day “when hope shall sing its triumph and sadness flee away.”

While it is often the case that the readings from Mass are used for meditation and deeper prayer, it also can be advantageous spiritually to meditate on Advent’s hymnody as an opportunity to deepen our understanding of the season’s themes.

‘On Jordan’s Bank’

The main theme of Advent is awaiting the coming of Christ. The season gets its name from the Latin word meaning “to come.” When Christ came among us many did not recognize him. The Messiah awaited by the Israelites was expected to be a great warrior king, much like his ancestor King David. It was believed by many that the Messiah’s truest victory would be the advancement and successes of the Chosen People’s worldly kingdom. The most accurate description of the Messiah and his mission was foretold, however, by St. John the Baptist. And for that reason the Church gives focus on his ministry each Advent, especially toward the beginning of the season.

Hymns like “On Jordan’s Bank” reiterate the centrality of St. John’s mission to prepare God’s people for the Messiah’s coming. St. John was a man of the wilderness who called people to conversion and repentance so that, in turn, they would be ready and able, without hesitation, to greet the Messiah when he came.

Known as the Lord’s great forerunner for his pivotal role in announcing Christ’s coming, the themes of St. John the Baptist’s preparatory work for the Messiah’s arrival remain useful for our own preparation to greet the Lord when he comes again — both at the end of our lives and at the end of time.

In the desert, along the riverbank, St. John invites us all to be cleansed from sin, so that as we “make straight the way of God within” and be prepared to welcome and invite Christ to dwell therein. St. John’s pivotal role reminds us that the Lord has come to win our freedom and transform us so that we may allow his grace and blessing to “fill the world with love divine.”

‘Creator of the Stars of Night’

St. John the Baptist was not the first prophetic biblical figure to announce the coming of the Lord, but he was the last in a long line of Old Testament prophets who heralded his coming.

Sin demanded the need of a Messiah, as was manifested time and again in the Old Testament. Over and over God would extend his love to his Chosen People by inviting them to renew their relationship with their creator. The Israelites continually faced the harsh reality that God’s blessing is lost when anything other than him is chosen. Humanity is at its worst when it deviates from his divine plan.

One of the oldest hymns associated with the Advent season, “Creator of the Stars of Night,” reminds us of “the ancient curse” that “doom(ed) to death a universe.” Our celebration of Advent always should recall why we needed a redeemer in the first place. Our celebration of Christmas is worthless sentimentality if we do not recognize our need for and dependence on the Messiah.

Each of us is plagued by Adam and Eve’s original sin, an act marked by disobedience and distrust of God. Ultimately our first parents chose to believe that they knew better than God who created them. In so doing, they led humanity on the trajectory to find it easier to defy God’s will than to do it. This is manifested anew each time we sin by following in their dark footsteps. And yet, Advent is our opportunity to recognize our desire to return to Eden, yearning for freedom given by God, “Thy people’s everlasting light.”

“The medicine,” referenced in the hymn, needed to restore humanity’s freedom will relieve humanity from the slavery to sin and death brought on by our first parents. God announced his plan to send a redeemer immediately after the Fall, in Genesis 3:15 — a verse known as the protoevangelium, meaning “the first Gospel,” or first Good News of Jesus Christ. In that passage, God says the serpent will receive his comeuppance for leading the woman of Eden astray. Part of our focus each Advent — and, indeed, throughout all our days — should be to invoke God’s help to “preserve us, while we dwell below, from every insult of the foe.”

‘The Angel Gabriel from Heaven Came’

As evidenced in Eve’s temptation, Satan’s sole desire — as the one who “will not serve” God — is to lead all other creatures to follow down his path. His success with humanity began with our first parents’ first sin. But God announces that, even if Satan might think he won the day’s battle, he would lose the war. Ultimately, good would triumph when the woman and her offspring would triumph and deal a death blow to Satan.

The tradition of the Church has come to understand this verse in light of Christ’s paschal mystery, when on the cross he redeemed humanity and bought us back for God by the price of his own blood. Christ’s is the story of total obedience and total trust in God, even when the Father’s plan is not fully understood or known. He is the reversal of Adam’s sin, expressed in his traditional title as the “New Adam.”

But from where did Christ learn this? From his mother Mary, who is known similarly as the “New Eve.” Mary untied the knot of Eve’s sin by clearing the way of her Son and his work of redemption. At the Annunciation, when she was addressed by the angel Gabriel as “full of grace,” she became the icon of complete trust and confidence in God’s ways, responding with her “fiat” despite not knowing how it could unfold for a pregnant, unwed teen. This reality is the backdrop to the popular Marian hymns of Advent like the Basque carol “The Angel Gabriel from Heaven Came,” which repeatedly refers to Mary as “most highly favored lady.” As the one who is “full of grace” — the New Eve — no one yearned for the Messiah more than Mary. This alone earns her veneration by “Christian folk throughout the world” as someone from whom we must learn to be Christ’s disciples.

‘O Come, O Come, Emmanuel’

One of the most well-known and beloved hymns of Advent is “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.” No other tune might express the season’s sentiments more than its traditional setting. There is even a Mass setting composed to echo the hymn’s famous, widely-used 1851 tune.

The words of the hymn are much older, dating to the eighth century. There are seven verses, each constructed around an ancient title of God. These are based on scriptural references, constructed for use in the Liturgy of the Hours. These “O Antiphons” originally were written in Latin, the first letters of each divine title are taken to form an acronym, also in Latin — namely, “Ero cras” — which means, “Tomorrow I will come.” In many ways the “O Antiphons” and “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” tie together all the varied themes of Advent — presenting the image of a season that conjures up what it must have been like for Israel to await the long-awaited Messiah who would come and die to make men free and whose coming is awaited still by those who pattern their thoughts, words and deeds on his example for humanity.

Michael R. Heinlein is editor of Simply Catholic. Follow him on Twitter @HeinleinMichael.

This article originally appeared in Our Sunday Visitor.

Continue Reading
Comments Off on Singing the joys of Advent
4 min read
Advent

Abodes for the Redeemer

4 min read
1961 views
Comments Off on Abodes for the Redeemer
4 min read

The Catholic Encyclopedia states that Advent is the time in which Catholics are admonished “to prepare themselves worthily to celebrate the anniversary of the Lord’s coming into the world… make…

The Catholic Encyclopedia states that Advent is the time in which Catholics are admonished “to prepare themselves worthily to celebrate the anniversary of the Lord’s coming into the world… make their souls fitting abodes for the Redeemer…and make themselves ready for His final coming.”

The first and third of these admonitions are familiar: to prepare ourselves for the birthday of our Lord Jesus Christ and for His second coming. The second admonition, however, too often takes a back seat in our thinking and practice. That’s unfortunate, because in a practical sense, it’s the more important admonition: without it, we cannot accomplish the other two.

Our Lord Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary and laid in a manger some 2,000 years ago. Nothing we do or fail to do can change this fact. If we fail to “prepare ourselves worthily” — if we refuse, as Ebenezer Scrooge did, to celebrate Christmas at all — we only hurt ourselves.

Nevertheless, we cannot “prepare ourselves worthily” on our own, through our own efforts, without His gracious help. When He told His apostles, “without me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:5), He did so in the context of an important exhortation: “Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me” (Jn 15:4). For this to happen we must make our souls “fitting abodes for the Redeemer.”

Jesus will come again. Either He will come again in glory to inaugurate the Last Judgment, as the creed affirms, or He will come again for each of us at the moment we die. Either of these events could take place tonight! Only God knows when, and for this coming we are to make ourselves ready.

But, again, we cannot do this on our own. We are all sinners deserving judgment, and without the help of the graces we receive in the sacraments, we cannot be certain that we will be ready to face Him when He comes. Scripture says clearly: “Who will repay everyone according to his works: eternal life to those who seek glory, honor, and immortality through perseverance in good works, but wrath and fury to those who selfishly disobey the truth and obey wickedness” (Rom 2:6-8). Having patience in well-doing is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (see Gal 5:22), a fruit we cannot bear unless we abide in him.

So, how do we “make” our “souls fitting abodes for the Redeemer”? One of the first steps is the self-examination that is such a crucial part of our Advent preparation — examination not only of our sinfulness, but to discern whether “what you heard from the beginning” continues to “remain in you” (1 Jn 2:24). So many voices from the world, the flesh and the devil bombard us every day, mostly to discourage us from holding fast to the fullness of our Catholic faith. Doubt and ridicule rise up on every side, and as we face yet another Advent, our own hearts may “condemn” us (see 1 Jn 3:19) for the number of previous Advents we’ve let slip by without adequate preparation.

The apostle John, however, gives a clear indicator of how we can: “We shall know that we belong to the truth and reassure our hearts before him in whatever our hearts condemn, for God is greater than our hearts and knows everything” (1 Jn 3:19-20). The reassurance comes if, having been changed by grace, we are able to love, not merely “in word or speech but in deed and truth” (1 Jn 3:18).

What is the best way to fulfill the three admonitions of Advent? To examine our love for one another, for as John wrote: “We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ but hates his brother, he is a liar; for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen” (1 Jn 4:19-20).

Marcus C. Grodi is host of the popular EWTN program “The Journey Home” and president of the Coming Home Network International. 

Continue Reading
Comments Off on Abodes for the Redeemer
Advertisement

Instagram

Type on the field below and hit Enter/Return to search

Bitnami