BLUE CHRISTMAS

2 December 2012
6:00pm

Fourth Sunday of Advent- Our Lady of Advent

When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived
together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 1:18
As Christians we can learn much from the example of Mary about how to
approach our Advent days. She is a living image of how to prepare oneself for
Christmas. The presence of the Mother of God can be felt quietly in our hearts as
we make our tiny efforts to walk the Advent journey in her company. Our Lady
is the perfect companion in the journey toward meeting Christ, her beloved
Son, for she is the humble servant who carries him within. From the moment
she receives the good news from the Archangel Gabriel about the mission God
intended for her, she accepts her role with utter humility and simplicity. She
does not attribute anything to herself. She simply obeys Gods plan for her and
submits entirely to the work of Gods Holy Spirit. When Gabriel arrives at her
modest home in Nazareth, he finds a humble maiden waiting, ready to accept
whatever the Lords design holds for her.
After the Archangel delivers his message she tells him: Here am I, the servant
of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word (Luke 1:38).She demands
nothing from Gods messenger. On the contrary, she accepts everything
expected of her and in return she receives everything by the power of the Holy
Spirit. The great mystery is accomplished in her, and the Word becomes flesh
in her by taking her own flesh. The, the Son of God the Most High becomes
also the Son of Mary, the humble maid. She who was poor, quiet, and totally
empty of herself now possesses all: God himself. From now on, thousands of
generations shall call her blessed.
Our Lady of Advent is without any doubt a unique model of how to embrace and
love the true Advent spirit as we continue our road to Christmas. She lived her own
Advent for nine months, a longer period than our short four weeks. She also lived
it in greater intimacy, for he whom we expect to come dwelled within her, and she
nourished and cared for him with unsurpassed love. The lowly, prayerful, humble,
quiet waiting attitude exercised by our Lady during her own Advent exemplifies
what all our Advent days should be like. In the midst of the noisy and chaotic
Christmas preparations we encounter in todays world, the example of the Mother
of God stands apart from all its false, haughty, glittering,selfish, or superficial.

Marys presence in our midst, radiating a serene beauty through her silence, her
acceptance, and total submission to Gods plan, speaks volumes to each and
every one of us. We, too, are called to accept Gods personal plans for our lives
and surrender to him. We, too, are called to better our lives not once, but many
times as the Lord reveals his will in our daily lives. Like our Lady, we must live
our own submissions to the Lord with complete simplicity, humility, and trust
in his plan for us.
Of her flesh he took flesh:
He does take fresh and fresh,
Though much the mystery how,
Not flesh but spirit now
And makes, O marvellous!
New Nazareths in us,
Where she shall yet conceive
Him, morning, noon, and eve;
New Bethlems, and he born
There, evening, noon, and morn.
Gerard Manley Hopkins
Br. Victor-Antoine DAvila-Latourette
Monastry Journey to Christmas
Copyright 2011
Liguori Publications
Liguori, Missouri 63057