I recognize that my bulletin articles over the last few weeks have been challenging, but there is a reason for that. It’s not because I have some vendetta against this world or want to suck the fun out of life. While God created this world and all that is in it–including us humans–as good, sin has entered the world. This is a problem, because sin is a turning away from God, and much of this world is used in a way that does not lead people to God. The things in this world that are good, on the other hand, are good when they are part of the kingdom of God or contribute to building it up. So, while there is much goodness here in this world, this world also needs to continue to be redeemed. That is where we come in. Christ came to this world to save us, and then he called us to bring this good news to not just all of humanity, but to all of creation!
Of course this is the hard part, isn’t it? Or at least, this sounds like the hard part.
But it is not as hard as you might think. Most of us are not called to get a megaphone and preach the Gospel on street corners. Most of us are not called to go and get fancy degrees in theology so that we can argue subtle points about God’s grace or, as sometimes Catholic theology is caricatured, to argue how many angels can dance on the tip of a needle. No, most of us are called to preach the Gospel by living our Catholic faith proudly and allowing that faith in God to guide all that we do.
So, over the last few weeks, I’ve been trying to challenge us all to do exactly this. We must strive, every day, to live our life one step closer to Christ. We must not be afraid to be boldly Catholic in public, and we must sometimes go against the easy and prevailing tides of the culture around us.
Of course this is hard, and not even I am all the way to where I need to be. I was talking to some people this week who said to me, “Father, we put up our Christmas tree last Sunday and then read your bulletin article…” After a little joking back and forth I said to them, “look, don’t stress about it, and certainly don’t take it down!” I said just remember it for next time and maybe wait to turn on the lights until Gaudete Sunday or something. I love having real Christmas trees, but to get a decent one you have to get it early, put it inside, let it hydrate and spread. So sometimes I put the tree up early and wait several weeks to decorate it and light it, and honestly, that’s sometimes even a better witness to Advent then not putting it up at all, because people ask me why it isn’t decorated yet and I can talk about Advent.
I’ll wrap this up now, but my final point today is this: as Catholic Christians, we should strive to be closer to Christ every day and every moment. If we do this, we will find peace and joy in this world, and we will bring God’s grace to all around us. And if we do that, then we’re often giving the exact witness God that has called us to give.