ON FAITH
Reflections on
Advent as a Time
of Preparation
By Billy Kangas
Advent is a time of preparation and
expectation for the coming of Christ,
the time before celebrating the “joy
to the world” that God’s incarnation
becomes. In advance of a celebratory
Christmas season that follows Advent,
A Liberian girl sits on her mother’s lap during church.
we often take time to reflect on the
themes of hope, peace, joy, and love,
which gets us ready for a world that have every problem figured out, but biologist and philosopher, once wrote,
Christ has entered. The faithful remem- we serve a God who loved this world “Joy is the infallible sign of the presber the story of what God has done and enough to join us in it. We trust that ence of God.” If this is true, every
when Jesus said, “Behold, I am making moment of joy is like a little Christlook toward where God is going.
mas in our lives. Advent is not only
G.K. Chesterton wrote, “Hope is all things new,” he meant it.
Biblical peace is a time when we hope for the coming
the power of bea more than a ces- of Christ in great history-changing
ing cheerful in cir- “We may not have every
sation of wars. It is events. It is also a time where we hope
cumstances
that problem figured out, but we
a reconstituting of for little moments of joy, and invite
we know to be des- serve a God who loved this
reality where mercy God to use us as instruments of joy
perate.” It is not a world enough to join us in
and justice reign, for the world.
blissful ignorance or it. We trust that when Jesus
In the fourth century, Saint Aupower becomes subwishful thinking but said, ‘Behold, I am making
gustine wrote, “What does love look
a subversive cheer all things new,’ he meant it.” servient to hospitalthat refuses to let cirity, and governance like? It has the hands to help others. It
cumstance triumph
is driven by grace. has the feet to hasten to the poor and
over courage, doubt overcome faith, or It confronts rulers with a vision: God’s needy. It has eyes to see misery and
adversity conquer compassion. This is way of life. Advent invites us to see the want. It has the ears to hear the sighs
and sorrows of men.” Advent gives us
not easy; it is not our default setting. peace of God as a way of life.
When we hit brick walls, the first emoJoy comes upon us unexpectedly. It space to step back and love. By taking
tion that naturally arises is generally jumps out at us from behind sunsets, the focus off ourselves we are able to
not hope. Hope requires a strength that peeks out in the smile of a stranger, see the needs of others.
comes from focusing on a greater vi- and takes hold in a child’s laughter.
Billy Kangas is the fellow for Catholic
sion than what is wrong. We may not Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, a Jesuit Relations at Bread for the World.
www.bread.org 3
Laura Elizabeth Pohl for Bread for the World
Hope, Peace, Joy, Love