HOMILY ADVENT SUNDAY 01 – B
Biblical Waiting: Faith, Hope and Love
(Isaiah 63:16-17, 64:1, 3-8; Psalm 80; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:33-37)
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An old pastor got carried away with his homily. Eventually he realized he had talked at great length. He searched for his pocket watch but to no avail. He quietly asked the altar servers for the time. With simplicity, the smallest one responded, “There is a calendar in the sacristy, Father.”
Do you know the three theological virtues of our faith? Stay awake this Advent by living to the full the virtues of faith, hope and love.
The readings for this first Sunday of Advent present us with a spirituality for Advent. That spirituality can be summed up in three words: faith, hope and love. These, of course, have always been called the three theological virtues in our Catholic tradition because they are infused by God and cannot be obtained by human effort. The season of Advent, according to the readings today, are an invitation to live them out with even greater intensity and intentionality in our lives.
First, St. Paul in his letter to the Corinthians, gives us the source of our hope. In his words, we are waiting for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. That is the goal of our Christian walk. We know that Jesus was born and lived among us, that he died for us, was raised up to new life, and ascended into heaven. Now we wait for the final consummation when he will come again in glory to usher in a new heaven and a new earth. That is our Christian hope – that is what we are waiting for.
Secondly, the readings remind us this interim time is a time of faith. The Christ who is to come, is not absent from us now. We believe, as Isaiah puts it in the first reading, that God works for those who wait. St. Paul adds that God strengthens us to the end and that we are not lacking in any of the spiritual gifts that we need until Christ comes again. So, this time of waiting is also a time of faith and of prayer. We must constantly be praying for the gifts of the Holy Spirit to sustain us and maintain us until the time when Christ comes again.
Lastly, the readings call us to a life of active, practical love. In the gospel story Jesus strongly advises the servants and the doorkeeper to beware, to keep alert, to be vigilant and watchful, to keep awake. What else does this mean but to stay focused on using our skill and talents to serve others, to do God’s will, to keep the commandments that Jesus gave us, to love others as he has loved us?
St. Paul puts his own particular touch to this command to stay awake. He asks that we live in such a way that we are blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. What better way to be blameless than to spend our lives recognizing Jesus in those most in need among us – the marginalized, the poor, the powerless? In short, we will be ready to meet Christ by very simply living out the three theological virtues the Church has given to us: faith, hope and love.
These virtues form a crucial pattern in our lives. Very simply, faith allows us to hope, and hope empowers us to love. That is how faith, hope and love interact to help us live full, free, happy lives.
When we are weak in these virtues, however, another pattern is created, a negative pattern. If our faith is weak, we begin to doubt. When we lose our hope, we begin to despair. And when we lose our ability or desire to love, then we die. The opposite of love is not hatred, but rather, death. And this pattern is all too present around us every day. How important it is that we continue to pray for faith, hope and love.
Someone who lived these virtues, who lived an Advent spirituality all his life, was Fr. Raymond Lemay. He joined the Oblates in 1938 and was ordained a priest in 1945. After ordination, he spent 62 years ministering in the archdiocese of Keewatin-The Pas until he became seriously ill and died October 24th, 2008 at the age of 90. There was little sadness and much joy during the prayers for him and the funeral celebration itself. That was because he was such a man of God in spite of his limitations. He was not a great preacher, nor a good cook, and though gifted with his hands, was not that great a mechanic. However, these limitations were more than overshadowed by his faith in God, his hopefulness and his love for others. His humility and simplicity, his generous spirit, his good humour, his trademark expression “Good, Good, Good” and his constant willingness to render service to anyone in need made him loved by all.
Fr. Lemay died as he lived. Apparently, he opened his eyes, said in French la vie, la mort, ainsi soit-il (“Life, Death, so be it”), made the Sign of the Cross and breathed his last. There was joy during the funeral events because we could all celebrate his entry into eternal life, this humble minister of the gospel who lived an Advent spirituality, who lived to the full the theological virtues of faith, hope and love.
The Eucharist is food for those who wait; God’s Word and the Body and Blood of Jesus given to us to sustain us, to help us stay blameless until the day of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
So, this Advent, be like Fr. Lemay and live an Advent spirituality. Stay awake by living fully a life of faith, hope and love.
