PREPARING FOR A MEANINGFUL ADVENT

On Sunday, 26th November on the Solemnity of Christ the King, 27 of our students received their First Holy Communion. They have encountered the real and true presence of Jesus in the Holy Communion. My heart felt thanks to our catechism teachers especially Assunta, Gregory and Michelle and the parents of the students for preparing them for the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist.

In my homily on this solemnity, I was sharing with our First Holy Communicants about Jesus, the Head of their lives based on St Paul's letter to Ephesians who invites everyone to fit and join together into the Body of Christ (cf. Eph 4: 15-16). For instance, when we draw a picture of a man or woman we first draw a sketch of a head then slowly we add one by one other parts of the body. We never draw a picture of a man or woman first with other parts of the body and finally we fit the head into them. The head is the first and foremost a part of the body. Once the head comes out well then, the other parts surely turn out to be right.  During the Sunday morning Mass they have chosen Jesus as the Head of their lives and they themselves have fitted and joined together into the Body of Christ. Jesus will be in control of their lives and will show them the right path in life. As they grow they will grow in love and peace.

My dear parents of the First communicants, I urge you to assist your kids in their faith life. It is your responsibility to bring them for the Sunday Mass to fulfill their obligation and for the Catechism classes. Please do not deprive them from these commitments. It is your duty to guide them in their faith education and their spiritual life. They need to grow and learn maturely in faith. It is our commitment to help them grow maturely in faith and wisdom. This will direct them to love the Church more and more as they grow in age.

Advent begins this Sunday and with it comes our short four weeks of the Advent season. My dear parishioners as we look forward a favourable Christmas and dawn of New Year 2018, we shall expect a Christmas and a year full of new hope and a meaningful one that sparks rejuvenation in our families and parish at large.

I will be a little occupied with a few important commitments during this Advent season. As usual I shall be making my visit to the home bound, the sick and the elderly to administer to them the Sacraments of the Holy Anointing, Reconciliation and Eucharist. Besides this I shall be going around from parish to parish to help out in the Penitential services practically every evening. I am also thinking of how to beautify our church compound with Christmas lightings, putting up the nativity set and other decorations to create the atmosphere of Christmas and New Year. Your ideas are most welcome.

Once again, this Advent we are given an opportunity to begin anew and to prepare ourselves receiving Christ Jesus more deeply into our hearts and our homes every day. To receive this gracious gift, we have to open our hearts to the light of Christ. The Prophet Isaiah whose words we read and reflect through much of Advent, tells us of the coming of Messiah, who is to be the Saviour of the world. He brings us the light into darkness and peace and justice into the world. Isaiah's words help us to walk through Advent with hope and expectation.

Let us pray during this Advent Season for the grace to allow the Light of Christ to enter into our hearts and our homes. We shall live this time of grace in a watchful and prayerful way while we await the coming of the Messiah this Christmas.

"O Lord, we are the clay and you are the you are the potter: we are all the work of your hands." (Is 64: 7).