Come, Lord Jesus, come! These words we will be hearing frequently as we enter this beautiful season of Advent, a time of preparation and waiting. If you are a long time Catholic, then you know that our Sunday liturgy will be a bit different: no Gloria, no flowers and purple vestments that our priests will be wearing. This season is not like Lent, even though no Gloria, no flowers and purple are also part of that season. This time is to think about the “comings” of God’s Son and preparing ourselves for Jesus’ “coming” on Christmas day.
The first coming we commemorate is when Jesus entered our human history as a man. According to St. Francis this is one of the most profound mysteries where God shows us just how much we are loved by the Trinity, the community of Divine love. God brought dignity and worth to all of creation by blessings us with Jesus’ physical presence. Could there have possibly been any other way more sublime and more convincing to show us of God’s love than to become a person like us in all things but sin? In those short 33 years of the physical life of Jesus on earth, we have been given the capacity to learn and to live as God desires by listening to the word of Jesus and putting it into practice. Jesus proclaimed that his sisters and brothers were, indeed, those who followed this exhortation.
Jesus comes to us each day whether we are aware of it or not. We could not exist without God’s love to surround us and hold us up on this journey. Even before the moment when we were conceived in our mother’s womb, God knew us and chose to bless us with life. This divine presence will remain with us until the moment of our last breath when we are called home.
Our mission in life is not just to wallow in the certainty, strength and peace of God’s love, but it is to move outward, to create a world where everyone feels included and has a life of dignity sustained by a community. That is where the phrase Come Together enters my mind and heart during this time. We don’t beg Jesus to “Come” just for me and mine. The pandemic continues to spread and we can make choices. We have to come together, side by side, hand in hand, to meet the challenges of our world today. Regardless of our political party, our religion, our opinions and beliefs, we must Come Together.
This Advent season calls us to a new honesty: we all deserve to be free; it is a human right. But when does this freedom, when do my political opinions, when do my personal beliefs become a threat to the freedom and life of dignity that others have a right to? We say, Come, Lord Jesus, and Jesus will always come to our aid, but is this the space that is truly Gospel-like? Is this the kin-ship that God imagines for us? Are we living as kin do? There are many public abuses verbally and in actions that are not worthy of the Gospel Kin-ship. But there are also many, many examples of simple people doing great things, and literally giving their lives for all of us. May many more of us turn to God and not only beg Jesus to Come, but to Come Together in the name of love and kin-ship.
Now we invite your thoughts. Please share in the comments section below. And while you’re here, continue on a virtual mission by reading more of our stories and reflections as we discover together how “We are Mission”.
We are Mission! 