Nov 28th Mass Rdgs & Reflection

November 28, 2010 ~ 1st Sunday of Advent ~ Liturgical Year A, Cycle II

First Reading: Isaiah 2:1-5

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 122:1-9

Second Reading: Romans 13:11-14

Gospel: Matthew 24:37-44

Reflection Questions

1. Looking at the text of the Gospel, make a list of the words Jesus uses to describe His coming and how we should prepare for it. If possible, have different Bible translations available to look at which words are used.
2. Do you ever feel like your relationship with Christ is on ‘auto-pilot’? Describe.
3. What is Christ calling you to do, to become or to give up this Advent so you can prepare to meet Him in your life?

Summary of the Gospel

Many times people say ‘expect the unexpected’, and when it comes to our time of death, nothing can be truer. God calls us to be ready to leave this world at any time. This Sunday marks the first Sunday of Advent (from the Latin to come), when the Church calls all followers of Christ to focus their attention on preparing for Christ’s coming, which is celebrated at Christmas. 


It is important to realize that Advent actually celebrates three different types of Christ’s coming. The first is obviously Christ’s coming at Christmas; next is His Second coming at the end of time; the third is Christ’s coming in each of our individual lives. 


In this Gospel passage, Jesus prepares us for both His Second Coming and for a better relationship with Him each and every day of our lives. The Lord makes two key points for us. The first is to realize that God (not you and I) is in control of everything. He has a plan that is beyond us and He informs us of that plan on a ‘need to know’ basis. Christ emphasizes to us in this reading that we do not know God’s timing, and that lack of knowledge should keep us on our toes. The second point to realize is that we must prepare for God’s coming: It is guaranteed He will come for us, not only every day but ultimately with our death, and so it is important for us to be diligent in our relationship with Him. 


Our lives are to be singularly focused on His love. Many times we struggle with keeping God’s presence real in our lives to the point that we choose sin: Jesus reminds us that we are to always stay focused on Him, to guard and protect that relationship, and to not place anything above it. God’s presence in our lives is a treasure to be valued beyond anything else. His love will lead to an outpouring of peace in our lives: The great thing to realize is that with God in control, we can trust Him completely with our future. Many will read this passage and think that God is waiting to catch us unexpectantly off-guard, and to allow us to die right at the moment of sin, with no chance of repentance. This notion is wrong, for with God there is no ‘chance’ to His timing, and in no way does God want to ‘catch’ us so we go to hell. 


The truth is that God is constantly trying to communicate His love to us. What Christ is calling us to is all about developing the holy habit of listening to Him and following Him. It is not a habit we can afford to put off, for like all habits, it takes time to develop. God’s call to us comes right now, this moment. May we have the grace to hear God’s call and follow it with all our being.