Prepare Him Room

Second Sunday of Advent
December 4, 2022 — Year A
Readings: Is 11:1-10 / Ps 72 / Rom 15:4-9 / Mt 3:1-12
by Rev. Nixon Negparanon, Pastor

When big events are approaching, people start to worry about a lot of things and how to prepare for them, not the least of which is what they will wear.  Many of us are already engrossed in the preparation for Christmas; a good number have sent out their Christmas cards; and Christmas shopping is already in full swing.  Malls are filled with Christmas stuff.  Others are engrossed in deciding what gifts to give, while children are busy deciding what they want to get from their parents or from Santa. 

Many of us are excited as we look forward to the big day.  The trouble, it seems, is that our modern society has commercialized Christmas, so that we have mistaken the icing for the cake.  Somebody once made this strange proposal:  Christmas should be abolished because it only makes the poor suffer more.  The season only dramatizes the sharp contrast between those who can go on shopping sprees and those who have virtually nothing.  We should not, however, be too strict about brushing aside the external trappings – the decorations, gifts, food and drinks – if we brush them out, the spirit surrounding Christmas would be lost. 

But let us remain aware that there is always the danger of losing the right perspective.  Hence, we need to constantly remind ourselves to keep Christ in Christmas. 

Another truth is that Christmas is a religious event.  We are celebrating the birth of our Savior who came down centuries ago.  Think about it:  The child whose birth we are all celebrating and rejoicing in came as the least of men.  Poor and simple.  He would never be able to afford our glittery and incredibly extravagant celebrations.  In this case, we overlook, in the flurry of preparations, the internal preparations in our heart.  Let us be ready to share some of our blessings this Christmas that would cheer somehow, or somehow alleviate the harsh condition of our less fortunate brothers and sisters. 

That is why in today’s gospel it instructs us to prepare in the true spirit — that is, inwardly – by which John the Baptist beautifully announces, “Reform your lives; for the Kingdom of God is at hand.”  The Christmas carol Joy to the World puts it beautifully: “Let every heart prepare Him room.”

This is a big event, the coming of God’s Kingdom.  Indeed, it is a big event in world history.  But John does not worry about his outfit, or what he will eat, or even his popularity with the leaders of the Jews.  John does not worry at all.  He simply gets ready for the coming of the Lord, and, as God’s messenger, he wants the rest of the people to get ready, too.  He wants them to prepare for the very Son of God who will enter human history, not dressed in silken clothes nor sleeping in an air-conditioned or heated room, nor sleeping on a mattress, but dressed in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. 

Advent is a time for preparation.  It is also a season of conversion and repentance, a time to live out the message that John proclaims: “Reform your lives, for the Kingdom of God is at hand.”

The kingdom does not appear out of the blue.  It will not come automatically. God will bring about the realization of this via people.  This will come only when certain conditions are met:  where people are converted to a new style of life; where they are willing to commit to banish injustice, either personal or societal; and ready to stand for one another.  In this, the kingdom is at hand.  But whether it will materialize depends on each one of us.  Our Church reminds us that repentance and conversion will not only happen during Advent.  It should be forever, but the question is: “In what way?”

It is by begging pardon for our sins, because sin is like a poison in the body, which it slowly kills.  Penance is the way to detoxify our souls.  Many of us collect sins and, before we know it, our souls are cluttered, like attics filled with junk.  To prepare for God’s coming, we need to do some housecleaning.  We must make room for Him by getting rid of sin.  Sacramental confession is a great help.  We are not only looking for Christ, but we are looking for His coming at the end of time.  We are so very thankful for His continual presence in us.  But He can only enter a heart that is contrite and pure: a changed heart.

As Mother Teresa of Calcutta said, “Change your hearts.  Unless we change our hearts, we are not converted.”  The Greek word metanoia means “change of heart.”  Metanoia is a biblical term for repentance or “complete change of heart.”  It turns one away from sin, to serve the living God.  In the Old Testament, the prophets called for a conversion that would turn the people away from idolatry, and from a merely superficial practice of religion to live in fidelity to God’s law and their social responsibilities. 

In the gospel of today, John the Baptist, and then later Jesus, preach a radical change of heart, as demanded by the coming of God’s kingdom.  That is why the baptism of St. John the Baptist is a baptism for repentance.  During apostolic times, in the name of Jesus, the apostles invited people to be converted and baptized, and so begin a new life in the spirit.    So today let us reform and repent.  Let us turn away from sin and say we are sorry.  And we must do it now, for tomorrow may be too late.  Now is the acceptable time because the kingdom of God is at hand. 

He Comes to Meet Us

First Sunday of Advent
November 27, 2022 — Year A
Readings: Is 2:1-5 / Ps 122 / Rom 13:11-14 / Mt 24:37-44
by Rev. Nixon Negparanon, Pastor

According to Tryon Edwards, an American theologian, “Death has nothing terrible that life has not made so.  A faithful Christian life in this world is the best preparation for life in the next.” This statement of Mr. Edwards has something to do with preparation for our death.  It also has to do with the coming of Jesus Christ into our lives, especially now that we are in the season of Advent.

During the first Sunday of Advent, which begins the new liturgical year in the Church, there is an invitation for Christians to stay spiritually awake and to prepare for the Lord’s coming.  Advent, which means, “coming,” is a time of preparation for Christmas, but it is more than that.  Today’s gospel speaks of the coming of the Son of Man at the end of the age.  In this sense, Advent then also points to the unknown time that will mark the end of human history.

According to Father R. H. Lesser, an English priest and author, in his book entitled Like Honey in the Rock, Jesus Christ has six comings.  We have to get ready for Him by decorating our house, preparing sweets, and perhaps buying a new dress.  The first coming of Jesus happened in a village in a remote province of the Roman Empire.  In this sense, God is kind and merciful, since He sent us a savior, His son, to give us salvation.  This mercy of God cannot be stopped even by man’s stupidity and malice.  He saves us because He loves us.

The second coming, as I already mentioned is the mercy and kindness of God.  The third coming, referred to by the fathers of the Church as the parousia, will be a different matter.  As Saint Matthew said, “When the Son of Man comes as king, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His royal throne and the people of all nations will be gathered before Him, and He will proceed to judgment.”  Our main sins, most of them least remembered in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, are sins of omission, especially disobeying the positive commandment of the New Testament, the commandment to love.

The fourth coming of Jesus is in the sacraments.  The Lord comes in four different ways in the Eucharist:  through the meeting of the people of God, through the priest who in a special way represents Christ, through the Word of God, and through the Eucharistic species.  His real presence in the Eucharist is a real coming.  Of this Eucharistic presence, most people are aware.  We tend to neglect and forget the fact that He comes really and truly in every other Sacrament as well.  For example, we can really and intimately meet Him in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, as a forgiving God.  Why not take advantage of this Sacrament?

The fifth coming is through the wind, the cries of children, the song of the birds, the rain.  The problem is that our eyes are not open to see Him.  Our ears are not alert to hear Him.

The sixth coming is an even more intimate one, mentioned by the Lord Himself when He said, “If you love Me, you will obey My commandments.  My Father will love you, and we will come and make our permanent home within you.”  Most of us know something about this internal coming, but do we actually experience it?  If we have to prepare for the glorious coming of the Lord, then we must live our life in the spirit of the Lord, to actively involve ourselves in human interactions, to see in the face of everyone the face of a loving God, to believe that God is Emmanuel, God is with us, a God who is a father, friend, and companion.  This is what it means to be spiritually awake.

As we begin today a new cycle of the Church year of grace, let us resolve to shun doomsday paranoia, on the one hand, and reckless complacency on the other.  Let us resolve to be always awake in the Spirit by living a life of faith and love in service to the Lord, so that whenever He comes, we shall be ready to follow Him into the glory of eternity.

Christ continues to be present in the Church and in the world.  His presence will remain until the end of time, but His presence is not fully manifested.  There are still many people in the world who have not heard the Gospel message and have not met Jesus Christ.  The world has not been fully reconciled with the Father yet.  It is true that everything has been reconciled in Christ, but the grace of reconciliation has not been received by everyone.  It is important for us to have this longing for the Lord’s return, but in His fullness.  Therefore, we continue to pray constantly saying, “Your kingdom come.”

Not only at Christmastime, but in every celebration of this Eucharistic banquet, the joyful mystery of the coming and presence of Christ among us is made visible.  This is the reason to repeat and insist over and over the need to experience Jesus’ coming. It is through this persistent waiting and continuous experience year after year that this image of God in which we were created by love in Jesus Christ will come to full maturity.  He comes in so many ways to meet us.  Let us go to meet Him.

Most Blessed By Obedience

Fourth Sunday of Advent
December 19, 2021 — Year C
Readings: Mi 5:1-4a / Ps 80 / Heb 10:5-10 / Lk 1:39-45
by Rev. Nixon Negparanon, Pastor

Today is the last Sunday of Advent.  This season is about to end, and we are closer to the Christmas holidays.

By the power of the Holy Spirit, the Lord took flesh in the Virgin Mary, and He remains with us in the Blessed Sacrament.  And every Christmas we commemorate His birth.

During these four weeks of Advent, we have been listening to and meditating on the readings from the Holy Scriptures that remind us of the need that we all have to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord. (more…)

The Missing Piece

Third Sunday of Advent
December 12, 2021 — Year C
Readings: Zep 3:14-18a / Is 12:2-3, 4, 5-6 / Phil 4:4-7 / Lk 3:10-18
by Rev. Mr. Mark De La Hunt, Permanent Deacon

Good morning and welcome to Gaudete Sunday, which in Latin means rejoice. To help us understand that word, I would like you to recall a time in your life when you went from feeling incompleteness, or pain, or uncertainty, or loneliness, or boredom, or aimlessness to feeling whole and joyful.

Maybe it was when that person you liked asked you on a date or agreed to go on a date with you, or when your significant other first said, “I love you”, or when your boss, out of the blue told you that you are doing a great job, or when your doctor relieved your pain, or when your best friend or family member forgave you, or when you and your wife first realized you were going to have a baby. (more…)

Gratitude and Confidence

Second Sunday of Advent
December 5, 2021 — Year C
Readings: Bar 5:1-9 / Ps 126 / Phil 1:4-6, 8-11 / Lk 3:1-6
by Rev. Nixon Negparanon, Pastor

The season of Advent is a time for us to prepare our hearts for Christmas.  In our gospel today, on this second Sunday of Advent, we hear John the Baptist preparing the people for the coming of Jesus, a voice of one crying out in the wilderness, “Prepare the way of the Lord.  Make his path straight.” (Lk 3:4). We hear these familiar words of John the Baptist calling all people to conversion.

Saint Paul’s letter to the Philippians in our second reading today, reminds us of three wonderful things.  First, Saint Paul reminds us of the joy of the Lord. (more…)

Prepare for His Coming

First Sunday of Advent
November 28, 2021 — Year C
Readings: Jer 33:14-16 / Ps 25 / 1 Thes 3:12-4:2 / Lk 21:25-28, 34-36
by Rev. Nixon Negparanon, Pastor

Today is the first day of Advent and also the first day of the liturgical calendar of the Church.  That’s why some would say it’s the New Year for the Church.

Every time we hear the word Advent, what comes to our mind?  Perhaps we would say, “Christmas is near.”  Yes, Christmas is near, but it’s not yet Christmas.

Advent comes from the Latin word adventus, meaning ‘coming’ or ‘arrival.’   In this season of Advent, the Church invites us to prepare for the coming of the Lord into our lives.  The Church teaches us there are three ways in which the Lord comes into our lives. (more…)

God Is the Reason

Fourth Sunday of Advent
December 20, 2020 — Year B
Readings: 2 Sm 7:1-5, 8B-12, 14A, 16 / Ps 89 / Rom 16:25-27 / Lk 1:26-38
by Rev. Salvador Añonuevo, Pastor

Last Friday, while I was celebrating the funeral service for Ed, a friend and parishioner at our sister parish, Resurrection, my attention was caught by his four-year-old granddaughter. She was embracing and hugging her stuffed animal all throughout the service, even until we went to the cemetery for the Committal.

After the graveside service, as I greeted Ed’s family, I asked her mother if that stuffed animal was her daughter’s favorite toy. She said that the stuffed animal was a gift from her Granddad, Ed. (more…)

Reflect the Light of Christ

Third Sunday of Advent
December 13, 2020 — Year B
Readings: Is 61:1-2A, 10-11 / Lk 1:46-48, 49-50, 53-54 / 1 Thes 5:16-24 / Jn 1:6-8, 19-28
by Rev. Mr. Eddie Craig, Permanent Deacon

Not only is this the Third Sunday of Advent, it’s also Gaudete Sunday. That’s why Father and I are in rose vestments.

There was something odd in our readings today. The psalm at Mass almost always comes from the Book of Psalms. But not today. It was the Magnificat, which comes from the Gospel of Luke. (more…)

Jesus Has Been Here All the Time

Second Sunday of Advent
December 6, 2020 — Year B
Readings: Is 40:1-5, 9-11 / Ps 85 / 2 Pt 3:8-14 / Mk 1:1-8
by Rev. Salvador Añonuevo, Pastor

A few years ago, my pastor from the Philippines, from the time when I was a newly ordained priest, came to visit me in my church in the Tidewater area. He was planning to be there on a Saturday afternoon, and he told me that he would concelebrate with me at the anticipated Mass. His plan was to arrive at least an hour before the Mass, so he would be able to see the place and possibly meet some of my parishioners. (more…)

Owner’s Manual for Life

First Sunday of Advent
November 29, 2020 — Year B
Readings: Is 63:16B-17, 19B; 64:2-7 / Ps 80 / 1 Cor 1:3-9 / Mk 13:33-37
by Rev. Salvador Añonuevo, Pastor

Not too long ago, Bristol Street Motors conducted a study to find out how many motorists actually read the owners’ manual before driving their car. They found out that sixty percent don’t bother to read it, and I understand why. Reading the car manual is about as exciting as cleaning your oven or watching paint dry. (more…)