One of the things that I love most about Advent is that it is the most counter-cultural season of the entire liturgical year.

Some of you may think that it is Lent, with its emphasis on penitential practices.  Really though, people “get” Lent.  Many non-Catholics and even nominal Catholics enjoy “giving things up” during the Lenten season.  Now that is probably as far as they go, but I think my point still stands, that Lent is at least understood by the culture.  People like to talk about what they are giving up, Catholics like getting their ashes.  No one likes to talk about Advent.

Advent flies in the face of everything our culture wants us to do.  Our culture says to buy material goods for yourself and to make others feel good.  Our faith tells us to bring light to the areas in our lives that have darkness.  Our culture plays festive seasonal music, we omit the Gloria and music is toned down during the Mass.

The secular culture celebrates the holidays for weeks, and by the time Christmas comes around, people are already sick of the songs and ready to throw out the tree.  For us, when Christ does come, the celebration really begins.  The Christmas Gloria sometimes hits me harder than the Easter Allelulia.

The rising sun is the greatest symbol of Advent.  So we must ask each other, where is there darkness in my own life?  How can I bring light to that darkness?  Where is there darkness in the world?  How can I bring light to that darkness?  Christ Jesus is our light, and we were Baptized into His life, how can we bring Christ’s light to ourselves and others this season?