WELCOME ADVENT

The time of waiting for a child to be born is full of excitement and wonder. What will he/she be like? How much will the baby weigh? Will the baby’s eyes be blue or brown? My grandson was born on December 24 last year and another baby boy arrived six weeks ago. This time last year, our family was brimming with eagerness and Christmas became an intimate experience of familial love. We received a most precious gift. The time before a child is born is a time of anticipation, love and hope for the future. The Advent season calls us to this intimate time of waiting, a gestation of peace and hope.

The stores are blasting Christmas music. Christmas lights are adorning neighbourhoods right after Halloween and line ups are forming to have pictures taken with Santa Claus. The commercial noise and excess of the season can be deafening. Nobody wants to wait. In the midst of all this mayhem, the scriptures call us to peace and hope. “For the sake of our relatives and friends, I will say, ‘Peace be within you.’” (Psalm 122) Advent invites us to step back and slowly approach the manger. We are waiting for Emmanuel, God with us. We bid him to come and be born in our hearts. 

The feast of Christ the King pointed us to this time of waiting and preparing. 

We fall into our history, the roots of our family, the branch of David. These four weeks remind us for whom we wait. Like the child in Elizabeth’s womb, we quiver with joy and excitement. 

The scripture, the hymns and the symbols of this beautiful season call us to come closer to the humble child who is love incarnate. Once again, God bursts into our reality. So, let us take the time to be mindful, to light the candles, sing the Advent hymns, pray and let the scriptures guide us to the manger. May the light of the candles glow in our hearts. Our world needs some patience, some peace, hope and love. Come, Lord, Jesus. Come and be born in our hearts. 

Jan Bentham is a retired Religion Coordinator with the Ottawa Catholic School Board. She is a musician, serving in music ministry at St. Ignatius Parish in Ottawa. She currently works at St. Paul’s University with the Catholic Women’s Leadership Program.