Dear friends in Christ

We begin Advent with the image above of Christ in Majesty (the Baptistry in Florence). The first part of Advent directs our thoughts and desires to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. This will happen at the end of time when He will gather everyone to Him for the final judgement. We profess this truth every week at Mass when we pray the Creed: He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead; and His kingdom will have no end. As we hasten towards the celebration of the Nativity at the end of Advent, it is wise for us to remember that the Christian is called to live in joyful hope for the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. All of these words we hear weekly at Mass, but like so much that is over-familiar, they cease to make an impact on our lives. Advent is the call—made from the heart of the wilderness—for us to change our lives; to be ready and vigilant; and to live always in hope of the moment when God will come to judge the world and our lives. The first Christians would pray: Come, Lord Jesus with great expectation. Let these days not distract us from the things of God, but serve to call us, and focus our gaze, on Jesus.

May God help each of us to prepare, by inner purification, to celebrate His coming again, and His birth in time.

Msgr Kevin Hale