Sunday Sermon:Each individual must be the gatekeeper of his or her own soul

The liturgy of the first Sunday of Advent is based on the following readings: : Isaiah 63:16-17, 19, 64:1-7; Psalm 79; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:33-37. Our liturgy reflects the general message of the period of Advent; it is the alarm: ‘The Lord is coming. Be on the watch!’ The first two readings present to us a God who is Father; whom we approach with our sinfulness. The first reading warns us as well that we have wandered away from him time and again. The second reading tells us that despite of our unfaithfulness, God has faithfully sent his own Son to free us from our sins. And the Gospel warns us that it is high time we learnt our lesson: we are advised to stay alert so that the coming of the Son does not find us unprepared. The liturgy of Advent looks back at the history of salvation and at the same time points ahead at the eschatological fulfillment; rendering both past and future present, helping us to cherish the profound expectation of a Savior thought of by all, from Adam to the Incarnation. Hence the period of Advent is a clear manifestation of our anticipation of the coming of our Lord. Christians all over the time, who have listened to Jesus’ words, must live in permanent expectation of his coming and will welcome him as the long-awaited Master and loved one (Matt. 25:1). Nevertheless we should not ignore the fact that failure on our part to attend to his warning can have great consequences on our part. The pressing nature of Jesus’ consequent warning: Watch! Do not be caught unawares,’ can not be overlooked without paying the price. On this point above, Jesus uses very clear words; it is not the master nor the servants who are charged with watching, but the gatekeeper, whose task it is to open only to the shepherd of the flock while turning away thieves and brigands (John 10:1-2.8). The gatekeeper is first of all Peter and his successor, and with him every person who has been assigned that task. But in the last analysis, each individual must be the gatekeeper of his own soul. Jesus tells each one of us as a responsible individual: ‘Watch! Do not be caught unawares.’ From a pastoral point of view, this period of Advent introduces in our heart the spirit of hope and the invitation to total renewal. For this, every Christian should count himself or herself lucky because we are all given the opportunity to begin over again! As Christians, we can relive the richest, and most meaningful moment of human history within the context of each man’s personal history. It is an opportunity to relate with Our Lord in a new way. Advent and the opportunities it offers to the modern man is so essential. Today, many elements in our culture do not reflect much of the Gospel teaching. We are gathering frightening speed as we enter into the culture of death. There are many distressing and painful wounds and stains inflicted on the Church by some of her children, making her appear before the world as anything but the spotless Bride of Christ. The period of Advent saves us from that kind of shame, discouragement, and weariness. It is instead a period of cleaning up a place where Christ will come and rest for a while in our midst. Given the kind of life we lead in our post modern period, we should imitate the anguished call of the chosen people, as we read it in the first reading: “Lord, rend the heavens and come down!” We can look in hope to the time, when God will be all in all, and Christ will present to his Father the Church in all her bridal purity and holiness. We too can await with the prophets, with Simeon and Anna, with Mary and Joseph, the imminent coming of the Lord of all the nations, the Christ-Child who is the bearer of all we lack and all we need today; be it tolerance, comprehension, overcoming resentments, forgiveness and reconciliation, prayerfulness and getting our priorities right. During this period of Advent, every Christian should find out how prepared he or she is to meet the Lord; to receive him in his or her heart. Hence it requires us to live always in the grace of friendship with God, so that were the final whistle to go now, we would be ready to cross the threshold of eternity in peace and without fear. That kind of confidence requires to always have one’s hands full of good works. Because our works are the ones which will finally judge us! Ends