Bakers and ice fishermen/women with traditions: 1st Sunday in Advent

Listen to the homily here.

Notes:

O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear

[Refrain]
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel

“The days are coming, says the LORD, 
when I will fulfill the promise 
I made to the house of Israel and Judah.”

Advent = an arrival  

Now, if you have been coming to Mass each week, did you notice something interesting?

·     What was curious to me, was that the readings are basically like last weekend, as well as last year

o   Like in Luke

o   “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on earth nations will be in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.”

o   The end of time

But why do we see a reading like this in a new year as we just finished our old year?

·     Well, consider what many of you do in Advent, which is redoing: making cookies.

·     Or going out to get back to ice fishing

·     Does that make sense?

·      I mean, many of you last year did the same thing this year.

·     Now, does a baker get worse or better?  Do the fishermen learn less or learn more?

Or here is another thought

·     Have you ever re watched a movie?  Or re read a book?

·     Did you watch or read this exactly the same, or experience a new thought, or a changed capability?

This season of Advent, we must do some of the same behaviors, and hopefully better

·     Have silence, especially during busyness

·     Go to confession, as we are preparing for Christmas

·     Focus to grow in your mind, body and soul

O come, o come Emmanuel!