Reflection: We begin the season of Advent...

Today is the First Sunday of Advent. Over these special weeks before Christmas, we gather and give thanks. We pray and sing together, inviting the Lord into our lives, our homes, the Church and into the world which God loves so much that He sent His only Beloved Son. This Advent season has the significance of the opening of the Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy on December 8th, the Feast Day of the Immaculate Conception. Pope Francis will open the Holy Doors in Saint Peter's and they will remain open for the entire Year of Mercy. Let us open our hearts and walk through the Holy Doors asking God to pour out His mercy and grace upon us. 

The best way to prepare for Advent is to spend the four weeks of Advent with Mary, reflecting on how she pondered God's Word. Mary was still. She invites us to be still and to listen as God speaks to us during this beautiful season of Advent, as we prepare our hearts for the birth of Jesus. 

How can we prepare our hearts for the coming of the baby Jesus on Christmas Day? Ask Our Lady to accompany us. She is our most loving Mother and she always leads us to her Beloved Son. Jesus heals our hearts and shines His light upon us. Spend time with Jesus in Eucharistic Adoration. It is there, in the silence, that Jesus will speak to your heart.  The heart of the message of Advent is to bring light into a world of darkness. The Advent candles symbolize Jesus Christ, the Light of the world. It is He who can dispel the darkness and bring hope.  The Lord is always coming to those who seek Him. Let us seek Him through the eyes and heart of Mary.

The silent soul is capable of attaining the closest union with God.  It lives almost always under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  God works in a silent soul without hindrance.  In order to hear the voice of God, one has to have silence in one's soul and to keep silence; not a gloomy silence but an interior silence; that is to say, recollection in God. Diary of Saint Faustina 198, 477, 118

Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortable unto her. Hosea 2:14  

In the wilderness, John the Baptist proclaimed the saving Presence of God. After the Baptism of the Lord, the heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit rested upon Him in the form of a dove. The voice of the Father was heard: This is My Beloved Son, listen to Him. God came to a deserted place. He calls us into a deserted place, into the silence, where we can hear Him. 

Open the door of your heart and come away and rest awhile...