Bairbre CahillLiving out our faith and accepting Jesus as King as Advent approaches
It is a long time since we have had the High Kings in Ireland, so we may not be terribly comfortable with the idea of kingship. What then does this Sunday’s Feast of Christ the King have to say to us here at this last Sunday before Advent?
When Jesus speaks in the Gospel about the Kingdom of God he is talking about God’s desire that we should live in a relationship of love and justice, peace and integrity with God and with each other.
This Sunday’s feast of Christ the King asks us to reflect on the extent to which we manage to do that. What priority do we give to Jesus and his message in our lives? Do we see faith as something private between ourselves and God or do we allow faith to shape our attitudes, actions, choices and relationships? If we do, then we are giving Jesus authority in our lives. We are accepting Jesus Christ as King.
We may not always manage to live that out. We may mess up and get knocked off balance by many things in life, but at least the desire is there to give time, energy and space to the presence of God in our lives.
It is good to think about all this as we move towards Advent which begins on Sunday, November 30. Advent is a wonderful and special time in the Church’s year which can easily get lost in the mad rush to Christmas.
Celebrate Advent
Perhaps one thing we could do this year is to make space and time to celebrate Advent, to pay attention to this quiet season. Advent is about waiting, preparing, making ready and reflecting on what is to come.
Imagine how Mary felt in these weeks leading up to the birth of her son. She must have wondered what was about to happen to her life.
We have four children and it is almost hard at this stage to remember what life was like before our first was born!
I remember wanting so much to meet our baby, imagining what it would be like to hold her. We were excited and rather nervous about what it would be like to have a small child at the heart of our home.
We had read all the books, been to the antenatal classes, quizzed other friends who had babies but nothing could really prepare us for the reality of meeting our own child. Our lives were turned upside down and inside out and we have never been the same since, especially now that we have four!
In the same way, when Jesus is born, all that has been said and written about who God is – all the words and ideas – take shape, take flesh in this little baby. Everything that God wants to communicate to us is expressed perfectly in the person of Jesus and our world is never the same again.
In Jesus, the Word of God is made flesh. In the Gospel, when St John talks about Jesus becoming human, he uses that phrase “the Word became flesh” but this can also be translated as “he pitched his tent among us”. That is a beautiful image – God’s tent is pitched among us because God wants to be with us, to travel life’s road with us.
Family life is very much about us pitching our tent together, creating a place of safety and shelter where we can be at home. That home may be a stable or a refugee camp, a house or an apartment, but being at home is very important. In every family which creates a place that is home, we see a glimpse of God.
So this Advent we might think a little about how we make space for God to pitch his tent among us, to be part of our lives. Creating a little space for prayer in our day helps us to keep our balance and our priorities in the middle of the busyness of Christmas preparations. Looking back over the day and naming the blessings helps us to recognise the presence and action of God in our day to day lives.
Another nice idea for Advent is that of the Advent angel. You could do this with your immediate family, extended family or even a group at school or work. Put everyone’s name in a hat and then invite each person to draw out one name (hopefully not their own!) and throughout Advent find a way of doing something nice each day for that person without looking for thanks or reward.
It might be getting someone their slippers or making a cup of tea. It could be giving a hug or taking time to listen, praying for someone or sending a nice text message.
The idea is that you are being a source of joy and blessing for others.
The fun bit is if people don’t know who has whom and spend at least the first week trying to figure it all out. That usually lasted about a day in our house because the kids always gave away whose Advent angel they were really quickly!
Kids get great fun out of this, but being an Advent angel also links in with this Sunday’s Feast of Christ the King and the challenge to live the vision of the kingdom – love, justice, peace, integrity and relationship with God and one another.
For Gospel reflections for the Sundays of Advent, you can follow me on http://godfaithandfamilylife.wordpress.com