A lit candle is seen on an Advent wreath. (CNS/Lisa Johnston, St Louis Review)
“Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.” We hear this command by Jesus on November 27, the First Sunday of Advent. As we begin a new liturgical year, we draw from Matthew’s Gospel during the Advent and Christmas seasons and most of Ordinary Time. Jesus, as portrayed in Matthew, calls us to bring the good news to the ends of the earth. This summons is succinctly articulated in the commissioning of the disciples at in chapter 28:16-20. Their mission is ours.
Celebration, the sister publication of NCR, invites you to join us throughout the Advent and Christmas seasons (November 27, 2016-January 9, 2017). We invite you to reflect upon on our shared mission by visiting celebrationpublications.org/dailybread during each day of this high season. Over the course of these weeks explore the writings of these and other Celebration contributors: Patricia Sanchez, Mary Collins, Peg Ekerdt, Gabe Huck, Jesuit Fr. William O’Neill, Rev. Donna Schaper, Paul Philibert, Ann Garrido. Be inspired by the art created by Julie Lonneman and Mark Bartholmew. Be fed by the Daily Bread contributions and stimulated by Pat Marrin’s Pencil Preaching through new and daily posts.
The following passage is also proclaimed on the First Sunday of Advent: “Brothers and sisters: You know the time; it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed; the night is advanced, the day is at hand.”
Let us take this message from Paul to the Romans as our clarion call to participate in the new dawn of God’s justice and mercy. The challenge, more than ever, is to mend our world, our environment, our relationships. The time is now! Join the Celebration community for a few moments each day to reflect and ponder. Then let us roll up our sleeves and get busy building a new world.
