Homily – December 3, 2017

Maybe we could begin this Advent season deepening the mindset St. Paul offers in our second reading; his letter to the Christian community at Corinth. He calls the people to be thankful for the grace, the gift, given them in Christ Jesus. This gift is found in a living relationship with the living God. This gift comes to us because God sent his Son into the world not to condemn the world but to embrace the world, and be one with us as a member of the human family.

The gospels tell of the things Jesus said and did during his short three years of his public ministry but St. John tells us that Jesus did many signs in their presence which are not written in this book, but these are written that you may know that Jesus in the Messiah; the Son of God and that through believing you may have life in his name.

In his epistles, his letters to the different Christian Communities Paul spells out in many practical ways how we can grow in the life that is ours through the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. We are to be always thankful for the gifts of life and faith in Jesus. We are to acknowledge that the gifts that we receive from the Holy Spirit are not for ourselves but are for the building up and the healing of the Body of Christ, the Church. We are to be there for our brothers and sisters in the community and we are to live lives inspired by the teachings and example of Jesus not those of the godless.

During this season of Advent offers us all the opportunity to discover how faithful we are to the teachings of Jesus, how faithful we are in following the example of the unlimited love we see in our crucified Christ.