First Sunday of Advent

SUGGESTED ENVIRONMENT

A small table with one burning candle, perhaps in an Advent wreath. Consider decorating the table in violet, the liturgical color of the Advent season.

LITURGICAL READINGS

✧ Isaiah 2:1-5 ✧ Psalm 122:1-2, 3-4, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9 ✧ Romans 13:11-14 ✧ Matthew 24:37-44

FOCUS

“Stay awake!”

OPENING SONG

“Let Us Go Rejoicing,” (Psalm 122), Bob Hurd. To download, visit www.ocp.org/renew-music

OPENING PRAYER

Form two groups and pray together from Psalm 122 with everyone repeating the response.

R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the LORD.

I rejoiced because they said to me

“We will go up to the house of the LORD,” And now we have set foot

Within your gates, O Jerusalem.

R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the LORD.

Jerusalem, built as a city with compact unity. To it the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD.

R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the LORD.

According to the decree for Israel, to give thanks to the name of the LORD. In it are set up judgment seats, seats for the house of David.

R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the LORD.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!

May those who love you prosper! May peace be within your walls, prosperity in your buildings.

R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the LORD.

Because of my brothers and friends

I will say, “Peace be within you!” Because of the house of the LORD, our God,

I will pray for your good.

R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the LORD.

THE GOSPEL OF THE LORD

Be prepared for the coming of the Son of Man. Read aloud Matthew 24:37-44

REFLECT

What word, phrase, or image from the scripture reading touches your heart or connects to your experience? Share with the group or write your responses here:

OLD TESTAMENT CONNECTIONS

Two Old Testament themes pervade the parables in today’s gospel passage. The first is an apocalyptic vision that awaits a momentous event. We are invited to look forward with hope to a time, not greatly distant, when the conflicts of life will be resolved. That kind of thinking reflects a present time when things are very far from perfect, usually in matters of justice. In late Old Testament apocalyptic literature, those who suffer injustice await a full accounting of the conduct of those who oppress them. They glance into the future confidently, expecting that justice will be

done for them. Here, the reckoning will be between God and his own servants rather than between God and his enemies. It looks more like a theme from the prophet Amos who refers to “the Day of the Lord” (Amos 5:18), a judgment time for God’s own people. God himself determines how faithful his servants have been. In the gospels, there is another dimension to the apocalyptic theme. It is now Jesus, clothed in the Son of Man imagery borrowed largely from the Book of Daniel, who determines which servant has been faithful to his teaching and which has disregarded it. It will be a final time, a time of judgment. A second theme dwells on the wedding feast as the metaphor for the messianic time. Jesus once referred to the days of his presence with his disciples as a wedding time (Matthew 9:15) and he once told a parable about who should be invited to the wedding feast (Matthew 22:1-14). This theme originates in the Old Testament, starting with the image of Israel as the spouse of God, unfaithful but taken back (Hosea 2:1419). The prophets Jeremiah (31:22) and Ezekiel (16:60) further develop this idea. After the Exile, which was like a separation in the marriage, God again takes back his spouse, and the Covenant is renewed. But when the Messiah comes there will be a celebration of the marriage of God with his people that reaches a joyous peak of consummation, which is the fulfillment of God’s words to Moses: “I will take you as my own people, and you shall have me as your God.” (Exodus 6:7). The followers of Jesus understood theirs as the messianic time when sins are forgiven, there is no fasting, and people are relieved of their suffering. Yet because the messianic time was cut short by the arrest and execution of Jesus, the fulfillment of God’s plan was yet to come. Jesus would return to finalize his mission. Thus, they awaited the Parousia (his second coming) with fervent anticipation. The Mass has preserved the idea that “Christ will come again.” In the contemporary liturgy, it is declared after the consecration as a prayer of faith: “When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup, we proclaim your Death, O LORD, until you come again.”*

Adapted from Matthew: Come, Follow Me by Martin Lang, part of the RENEW

Scripture Series

* Memorial Acclamation, in The Roman Missal, trans. The International Committee on

English in the Liturgy, 3rd typical ed., (Washington, D.C. United States Conference of

Catholic Bishops, 2011), page 500.

How do you envision the second coming of Jesus? What ideas or emotions does the idea inspire in you? Share with the group or write your response here:

MEDITATE

The head of a company I once worked for vacationed for several weeks each year. His office door was open, and the lights were on every workday during his absence. He was in many ways a benign employer, but—whatever he intended—the open door and the glowing lights implied that employees should be on their toes, because the boss might return at any minute. Some employees may have acted responsibly for that reason. Some may have done so to protect their livelihoods. Most would have been on their toes whether the boss was on the premises or not—because they took pride in their work or because they thought it was the right thing to do. This is an analogy for today’s gospel passage. Although Jesus’ remarks are often interpreted to mean that folks should avoid sin, because they could die at any time and face God while in an embarrassing condition, we can also take his message in a more constructive way, and especially now. In Advent, we anticipate our celebration of the birth of Jesus, the event in which God appeared in history in the form of a human being. God did not appear in this way to frighten humanity into submission. Rather, through this act of unconditional love, God provided us with a way to intimacy with the Divine, and that way was Jesus’ gospel of love, charity, and justice, and the example of his life of compassion and humility. Advent reminds us to measure the large and small decisions we make every day by the standard of his teaching and his example. Refreshed by this season, we can continue striving for that ideal, not because we’re afraid to be caught off guard, but because we want to return the love that God gave us in Jesus.

Jesus told his disciples—and he is telling us—to “stay awake” and “be prepared.” How do you apply those words in your daily life? Share with the group or write your answer here.

ACT

Consider adopting “The Daily Examen” as a way of reflecting on the events of the day to raise your awareness of God’s presence in your life and discern his direction for you. Visit https://www.ignatianspirituality.com and click on “Ignatian Prayer” and “The Daily Examen.”

CLOSING PRAYER

Lord Jesus Christ, with the help of the Holy Spirit may we reflect your teaching and your example in every detail of our everyday lives and especially in those actions that affect the lives of others. Amen.

LOOKING AHEAD

To prepare for the next group session, read Matthew 3:1-12.