For centuries, we have become accustomed to Advent being “that time of year that gets us ready for Christmas.” This isn’t wrong, but it can become confusing when we look at the selections from Scripture that we hear at Mass today. They are about preparation for the second coming of Christ and about cleansing ourselves in preparation for judgment. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t exactly help me remember the birth of Christ in a manger. So, what is the Church doing here?
As Roman Catholics, our liturgies are based on the liturgy as it was once celebrated in Rome. Many of the Masses are based off of a Mass celebrated by the Pope (or his representative) in a particular Church in Rome on a particular day. The First Sunday of Advent, for example, was traditionally celebrated in the Basilica of St. Mary Major, where there is the relic of the Holy Crib–the manger of our Lord. This Mass would be celebrated in a Church dedicated to Mary, in the presence of the Lord’s manger. If we look to Mary to guide us, this Mass and the scriptures we hear in it flow very beautifully. So let us walk through the scriptures and allow our Mother to show us the way to her Son.
We begin with the [Entrance Antiphon/Introit] from the Psalms “To you, I lift up my soul, O my God. In you, I have trusted.” This must have been Mary’s constant prayer. From the moment of the Annunciation until the moment of her Assumption, Mary placed her trust completely in God and constantly lifted her soul up to him. We should strive to imitate this incredible trust, and let us strive to lift our souls to God during this Mass. [OF: This sentiment is echoed in the first reading from the prophet Isaiah, who calls us to climb the mountain of the Lord.]
In our lesson from St. Paul, see how these words could be from our Blessed Mother instructing us as her children! Mary desires for us to be united with her Son, “it is the hour now for you to awaken from sleep!” The moment of salvation is at hand! We must imitate Mary in our preparations! We must “throw off the words of darkness and put on the armor of light!” We must live properly: not in orgies and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and lust, not in rivalry and jealousy. There is no room for our worldly and fleshly desires as we put on Christ, just as our Blessed Mother put him on!
But now we might ask our guide through this Mass, “Why must we do this? Why must we prepare with such urgency?” Her response? “Because Christ is coming.” Our Lord himself tells us in the Gospel of the great and terrible things that will happen in this world at his second coming, called the coming of the Son of Man. There will be redemption and judgment. It will be at an hour we do not know. In the time between his return to the Father at the Ascension and his coming in glory and power, we need not fear: his words will not pass away. Christ is still present with us through his Church, through his Holy Spirit, and through his Eucharist. The celebration of Christmas reminds us of his presence with us to strengthen us as we prepare for his second coming in glory and power.
After the call to reform our lives in Christ and the revelation of his second coming, the offertory antiphon reminds us to imitate our Blessed Mother. “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I have trusted; let me not be put to shame. Do not let my enemies gloat over me!” Not only does this antiphon remind us of our guide and example, but it also instructs us on the best way to prepare for the coming of our Lord and to put on the armor of light. If we lift our souls to God and trust in him, then he will not allow our enemies–the demons and the forces of evil, sin and death they have rallied to their cause–to prevail and gloat over us. This is confirmed in the psalm we sing for the Communion Antiphon: “The Lord will bestow his bounty [on us], and our earth shall yield its increase.” That is: trust in the Lord is never misplaced, for he is always faithful to his children. This is also a beautiful reflection on the Eucharist: we have asked for God to assist us in lifting our souls to him, so he has come down to us and given himself to us as food to strengthen us as we strive to lift our souls to him. This parallels exactly what happened to our Blessed Mother in the Christmas mystery: God visited her and gave himself not only to her, but to all of us, through her motherhood. Just as Mary received Christ and gave him to all of us, so should we turn and give his grace after we receive the Eucharist.
I know that this is getting a little long, but I want to share one last lesson from our Mother. The Alma Redemptoris Mater, the proper Marian hymn for Advent, expresses the same longing of our hearts as the scriptures do today. It begins:
Alma Redemptóris Mater – Loving Mother of the Redeemer,
quæ pérvia cæli Porta manes, et stella maris, – who remains the accessible Gateway of Heaven, and Star of the Sea,
succúrre cadénti, Súrgere qui curat pópulo – run to the help of a falling people that strives to rise
So, this Advent, may we ask our Blessed Mother to assist us in returning to her Son, and today let us make the prayer of the psalmist our own: “To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul: in You, O my God, I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies gloat over me. No one who waits for You shall be disgraced. Your ways, O Lord, make known to me; teach me Your paths.”