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November 21, 2022There is nothing so wonderful, so mysterious, and so marvelous as the incarnation. It is the heart of what we believe as Catholics, the foundation and summit of our journey of faith. It draws us into a joyful journey of becoming through the waters of our baptism and nourishes us with the Word and the Eucharist every Sunday as we make our way along the narrow road toward the Kingdom to come.
Few things warm my heart as much as the Season of Advent. Here, the prophecies of the past meet the faith that forms our future hope as the reality of the Word becoming flesh bursts upon the stage of our Liturgical celebrations once more. Each reading from the Advent Scriptures is a melody within a grand symphony of the Spirit, carrying me to a place of profound meditation, where I sit in solemnity with the Savior and allow my soul to be overwhelmed with the mystery of Christmas.
Traditions, Trials, and High Theology
Each Advent, my family and I set up our Christmas decorations, transforming out home into place where memories of Christmases past remind us of what it means to believe in the Son of God. Each ornament on the tree is a keepsake from a precious moment shared. Each warm evening fire holds us together in the love we share as a family. The music of the season helps to tell the story of that first blessed nativity when the Christ child left the mansions of heaven for the warmth of a mother’s womb.
These traditions ground us in the faith that has sustained us through the trials and triumphs of our lives. They call to mind the ancient texts foretelling the coming of the Savior king as the people of God traveled along the road of trials from the darkness of sin to the light of the Promised Land. In our living by faith day to day, we join our story to the story of salvation sung into the world from the beginning. Through God’s word we are pointed forward to that day when our faith shall be sight and our Savior shall call us home to be with him forever in heaven.
When I meditate on the way in which the Scriptures were formed and the Liturgical Year put together, I find myself overcome with awe. Though its perfection is too much for my mind to comprehend, I am able to take hold of its beauty, knowing by faith that it has the power to speak to my soul on a level too marvelous for words. It is both sweet and sobering, glorious and earthly, and I am overcome with a deep sense of spiritual satisfaction in reading the living story of our redemption.
It is Here I Find My Home
For many, the true meaning of Christmas has been lost in the clutter of modernity, secularism, and moral relativism. We fear offending others by wishing them the blessings of the season. We become caught up in the rush and worry of buying gifts, or sit in sorrow over the struggles and losses we have endured. The incarnation is obscured by the quaintness of tiny figurines around a ceramic nativity scene. The wonder of the season is relegated to the back burner of our minds or reduced to a tepid feeling of nostalgia until Christmas day is over and it is time once more to put the decorations away.
Oh, that we would immerse ourselves within the readings of the Advent season, take the time to celebrate the Eucharist more often, and to give the sacred truths the word teaches us a greater place in our hearts. Then we would see the wisdom in the Church’s Liturgy and the power and presence of the incarnation would once again take hold of our hearts and lead us to our true home in Christ.
I am grateful for those wise writers who have taken the message of the incarnation that springs forth from the Scriptures and shared their insights in the many Advent devotions I have read over the years. Those words have inspired me to spill my prayerful thoughts onto the keyboard and into the publisher’s hands as well. The thought that others will read my words and connect to that glorious message of hope fills my heart with joy and draws me more deeply into the family of faith within the Church.
The Ever-present Moment of the Incarnation
To those who surrender to the solemnity of the Advent season present within the sacred Scriptures, the incarnation becomes an ever-present reality that gives birth to faith from faith. It gives meaning to our past struggles and points forward to the hope that was won for us on the cross. It allows us to partake of the sacraments with greater joy as they lead us to a deeper relationship with the One who took on flesh so that we could be welcomed into the Kingdom.
This Advent, may the beauty and wonder of the incarnation burst forth upon your life through the sacred word as you meditate on the Liturgy and thank God for sending his Son Jesus to save you from your sins. May you discover day by day the Savior who comes to us in new and marvelous ways – from the innocence of the manger to the triumph over the cruel cross. May this Christmas be for you a new beginning on the journey we walk together as the family of God. Merry Christmas!
