Gospel: Mark
13:33-37
Jesus said to his
disciples: "Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will
come. It is like a man traveling abroad. He leaves home and places his servants
in charge, each with his own work, and orders the gatekeeper to be on the
watch. Watch, therefore; you do not know when the Lord of the house is coming, whether
in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning. May he not
come suddenly and find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to all: 'Watch!'
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Reflection:
During the middle
ages kingdoms and royalties were the ruling power. Whenever there is a threat
of invasion the kingdom who is under threat would position soldiers’ miles away
from its kingdom to spot the incoming enemy.
The moment they see
the incoming enemy they would blow their horns or they would shout loudly to
alert their kingdom’s soldiers about the coming invaders. Therefore, the
soldiers would be able to prepare their war equipment to properly defend their
kingdom.
Today is the first
Sunday of Advent which means coming, this is a time of expectation for the
coming birth of Jesus. Unlike the soldiers in the middle ages who prepared for
the coming of their invaders. Advent
reminds us that we need to prepare for the coming of the savior who gave His
life for our sake.
How are we preparing
for His coming? Is it a preparation that involves material things? If this is
so, then this is not the proper preparation. Jesus wants us to dig deeper into our
spiritual lives by focusing more our attention on Him and our relationship with
Him.
We need no material
things to prepare we just need to be sacramentally prepared by humbly
submitting ourselves to the Sacrament of Confession. We need no material things
we just need to do Corporal and Spiritual acts of mercy and this is already
enough preparation for His coming.
The true meaning of
Christmas is slowly being battered by materialism; try talking to children and
ask them about Christmas. Chances are that they may talk about gifts and other
material expectations. Try asking adults who are feeble in their faith they may
not be able to identify the true meaning of Christmas. We must be watchful, alert
and do something to highlight the coming birth of our savior which is slowly being
eroded by commercialism and consumerism.
How are you
preparing yourself for the coming birth of Jesus? - Marino J. Dasmarinas
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