Advent 1

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It seems that because of the way that we live our lives at such a pace that we have become less patient. Let us look at the reasons why I say this. Have you ever stood waiting at the Bus stop and it has not come exactly on time and you start to tut or you a train is slightly late leaving the platform we start to wonder why. It seems that the world has speeded up and we get caught up in this rat race and we find it very difficult to slow down and therefore I think that we lose patients.  

Sometimes we have to be patient. Things do not come to us straight away. We have to prepare and get ready. This is another danger in this Advent season to think that we are already emerged in Christmas. Instead of waiting and preparing for the birth of Christ: Often we are all Christmased out by the time it comes to the 25th December.
So we need to learn to wait patiently and prepare well for the coming of Christ so that the coming of Christ at Christmas does not end in an anti climax.
The clues on who to wait patiently come in the Gospel today.  The Gospel tells us to stay awake. What does this mean? Surely if we stay awake we will surely fall asleep. But there is a deeper meaning. Sometimes we can be spiritually asleep and this is because we have not managed to slow down and stop and listen to what is happening around us.  Like allowing and looking around us at the beauty of the world. The image in the psalm is to allow God rest upon us like the Sun resting upon our faces on a warm day. But do not worry if it takes a bit of time to slow down. Sometimes it can take us a few days in order to slow down.

But can I suggest something that we might do to help with this slowing down in order to listen. And here I am going to be very controversial and some of you won’t like. So I am going to say this quickly “Turn of your Mobile phones for one day.”  We don’t have to be available 24 hours of the day.  Before you do this make sure you know how to turn it on again. Turn it off and maybe we can do some way forward to slowing down and having that little bit of patience

Comments

janet holmes said…
sometimes I hate the commercial build up to Christmas ! I really try to avoid the t.v adverts telling me i need 'filo pastry king prawns' and 3 dozen sausage rolls ! But I do love looking forward to Christmas day, its lovely to have the family together and share our time together and giving each other presents, and best of all is Christmas morning Mass, I just love it. So I do love advent really, its getting ready for such a wonderful day !
27 November 2011 at 12:08
Sue VZ said…
Fr. Peter,

I just told my daughter all about my trip and meeting you. During the conversation I told her how much I enjoyed not having my phone with me and that I was thinking I was going to carry it less now. Your words have confirmed that I need to do that.

Thank you,
In HIM,
Sue VanZomeren
28 November 2011 at 02:05
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