Catholics today seem to fall into two errors when it comes to the Advent Season. Either the four weeks are nothing but a Christmas Countdown, focused only on shopping and decorating, or the season becomes Lent Lite, a quasi-penitential time where we might give up chocolate, but thank God it isn’t a full forty days.
Advent offers so much more than chocolate calendars or chocolate-less penance. This season calls us to ponder the miracle of our incarnate Lord, a God who is close to us. Even further, Advent is when we remember the “already” and “not yet” of our eternal destinies, teaching us the true meaning of hope.
In a 2010 homily, Pope Benedict XVI compared the Church during Advent to the Blessed Mother, pregnant with Jesus. During Advent, we wait with her for the coming of the Lord in joyful expectation. This time of “pregnancy” reminds us that God took on every aspect of human life, even growth in the womb. The Almighty entered humanity and gave us all, even the unborn, immeasurable dignity. How much must our infinite God love us, to deign to become so tiny, humble, and helpless!
The miracle of the Incarnation did not evaporate when Christ ascended into Heaven. The Incarnation continues in the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ. Through the Sacraments, we can encounter Christ Incarnate every day. Advent is such a joyful season because it is a reminder of how loved we are, and how close our God is to us, even now. We are confident in what God has already done and continues to do for us, so we await Christmas in delight.
That said, we shouldn’t throw notions of a penitential Advent out the window. The Church continually reminds us through this season, by the mass readings and liturgical prayers, that Christ will come again. So, while we are filled with joy at God’s incarnation and presence among us, we remember that we are not made for this world. We need penance and purification because there is a day of reckoning ahead, where we will stand before the Son of Man and see the definitive triumph of the Kingdom of God. Yes, God is here, so we wait in true joyfulness. But we must also maintain vigilance and engage in prayerful preparation. Even as Advent reminds us of all the blessings we already have, it also reminds us that history is yet unfinished.
That future finale may be terrifying, but it is also the most glorious good we could possibly anticipate. It is why God made us. It makes our time on earth of waiting and suffering meaningful. As the priest says during the Our Father at Mass: “we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.” We can take this phrase as the motto of Advent: we wait in joyful hope for the feast of Christmas, yes, but also for the coming of Our Lord at the end of days.
Our hope comes from our trust in a God who loves us enough to take on our flesh and die for our sins. Our hope also comes from the promise of the Kingdom of Heaven. Hope includes confidence in concrete truths while it anticipates a difficult good that is yet to come—and that duality is the epitome of Advent.
So, whether we decide to break open the chocolate calendars or fast from sweets, Catholics should find ways to channel both festive excitement and penitential preparation during the Advent season. Advent reminds us of God’s current closeness, the best Christmas gift we could ever receive, and that Christ will come again.
By Genevieve O’Connor, Communications Specialist and Campus Minister of Muhlenberg College, Allentown. She holds an MTS in Moral Theology from the University of Notre Dame and an MFA in Creative Writing from DeSales University, Center Valley.
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