Advent: The Season of Hope for the Culture of Life


Advent reminds us that God took flesh in Jesus Christ through Mary's "Yes" and He came to live among us as one of us on this earth. He was like us in all ways but for one -- He was without sin. He dealt with the sinfulness of the people He encountered in the marketplace -- the hypocrisy and judgmental nature of the Pharisees, the adulterous behavior of Mary Magdalene and those who wanted her stoned for her sins, while they most likely were the ones who were her accomplices in serious sin. Like us, He dealt with people who refused to believe the truth when it hit them in the face. And what did He do to convert them? He continued to speak the truth to them and above all, He loved them. Can we do the same? Can we love fallen away Catholics like John Kerry, Senator Durbin, and Senator Ted Kennedy enough to pray for them daily? Can we love them enough to do penance for them? Our Lord died for them. Let us unite our prayers and sacrifices with His this Advent as we prepare for His coming. This Advent, let us wait in eager anticipation with hope-filled hearts for the coming of a new day -- a new time when there will be no tears shed for aborted babies, for grief-stricken families, for the sick and elderly who are killed by their relatives.

More than just being a fact in history that is celebrated year after year, Christ's birth is a way of salvation meant to realize God's dream for us and the world.

This Advent is a time when the hope the coming of the Savior brings is rekindled in our hearts. We wait and welcome God's offer of salvation to us by preparing a room for our Savior in our hearts where the change from darkness to light begins.

During Advent, Jesus is reborn and alive in our hearts and it is that inner transformation that transform us into a people of light. Enlightened by Jesus Christ, we will reconcile with God and neighbor, restore peace and rebuild this culture of darkness into a new culture of life.
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