Dear Christ Our King and Savior Parish Family,
Firstly, HAPPY FEAST DAY!
This weekend, as the Church Universal is celebrating Christ the King of the Universe on this last Sunday in Ordinary Time, we certainly join in with them, and with all the more vigor and excitement, as this is the Feast Day of our parish.
Secondly, with a wonderful Thanksgiving now behind us, we set our gaze on the next major celebration of the Church...Advent and Christmas! And with the dawning of these holy seasons, I want to give you an challenge...KEEP CHRISTMAS IN CHRISTMAS.
You've no doubt seen Christmas trees, lights, and decorations for sale in Home Depot, Costco, and the like, for well over a month. In my family, it was always tradition to start decorating the house for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. Many companies an organizations have their Christmas parties in late November and early December (including us!). This all works to get the excitement of the coming holiday revved up to fever pitch.
The sad part of it is that by the time Christmas actually comes, people are "Christmased-out"...trees and lights come down mere days after Christ's birth!
Yet the Church beckons us to approach the birth of the Savior through a different lens...the lens of preparation and then HUGE celebration.
Advent is a time of eager anticipation and waiting. We often despise waiting. We know what we want and we want it now. But the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, aka the birth of Jesus Christ, aka Christmas, is a celebration that calls for some serious reflection and preparation. The eternal Word of God became man, and dwelt among us. God took on humanity. The Creator chose to become one with Creation. It's kind of a big deal. It's the fulcrum of all history and time!
The four weeks of Advent give us scriptural lessons and reflections to prepare our hearts for the arrival of so great a mystery...that God loves us so much as to become one of us. The way we prepare our homes will aid the spiritual journey of our hearts.
Personally, I put up a Nativity scene (without the baby Jesus) and a tree on the first Sunday of Advent, leaving it bare for a week. Then, on the second Sunday of Advent, I add lights to the tree but do plug them in, and put up the garlands and wreaths around the house. Then on the third Sunday of Advent, "Gaudete Sunday," I add my tree decorations and lights outside. Then the fourth Sunday of Advent brings the tree topper...an angel heralding the coming of Christ. Finally, on Christmas Eve, with my first playing of Christmas carols, it all gets plugged in and radiates with joy for the whole Christmas Season, which ends the Baptism of the Lord in mid-January. The carols, the celebratory spirit continue all through the Christmas season, and only end once we get back in the rhythm of Ordinary Time.
I'm not saying everyone must or should do as I choose to do...BUT, I do highly encourage everyone try to keep Christmas in Christmas...finding creative ways in your house and with your family to "prepare the way of the Lord" so that when He comes, we're ready to celebrate with Him and His Church. As I heard somewhere a long time ago, patience is a virtue, and that good things come to those who wait.
A blessed final week of the liturgical year 2018 to all of you, Happy Feast of Christ the King, and may your Advent preparations create beautiful room in your heart to welcome Christ Our Lord when He comes.
Peace in Christ,
Fr. Michael
