My dear people:

Promises are wonderful.  It’s a beautiful thing, for example, when a young man and a young woman would stand before God and promise to be faithful to each other in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, until death. I love it when a married couple ask me if they could renew their marriage commitment at Mass.  Even after 25 years, 30 years, or 50 years, almost without fail, tears would roll down the cheeks of the spouses who are standing again in front of the altar being reminded what they had promised so long ago, and remembering all the ups and downs over the years, and remembering how God has never been absent from all the struggles without Whom, their marriage would not have survived.  When you promise something to someone, you’re giving part of yourself.  When someone you trust promises that they will come through for you, you don’t feel alone. Your friend is promising you their presence.

The Bible is filled with God’s promises to us.  What does God promise?  Not wealth or success or a life free from suffering. He promises us a person.  The first reading today from the book of Isaiah brings that out. “The days are coming says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made…  I will raise up for David a just shoot; he will do what is right and just in the land. In those days Judah shall be safe…” God is promising us His personal presence that we can see and touch.

And in the gospel, we see the fulfillment of God’s promise in a person, Jesus Christ.  Jesus is God among us.  God has come through for us.  God is with us.  Do I really believe this?  Sometimes our hearts can get drowsy.  Jesus warns us about this in the gospel today.  When our hearts grow drowsy we lose sight of the promise.  We can get caught up in paying bills, in taking care of the kids day in and day out, in getting caught up in the rat race, in all the vicissitudes of life, and forget God’s promise.  After two years of lockdown and isolation, many of us are getting used to the idea of living without the Sacraments, without actually participating in Holy Mass in person.  It is so easy to get used to living without God once the heart has become drowsy.  We can lose our desire of living relationship with a person, Jesus Christ, who fills our hearts with joy.

That’s why the Church gives us Advent.  Advent is a gentle wake-up call, a 4-week period to prepare our heart for Christmas. It’s a time to be reminded of God’s promise; it’s time to rekindle the longing for the fulfillment of God’s promise; it’s time to see in Christ that fulfilment in flesh and blood in order to rejoice in Jesus Christ at Christmas..