Monthly Spiritual Message, December 2006
By Friar David M. Huebner OFM Conv,
The liturgical season of Advent is upon us. It’s a time of preparation for the feast of the Nativity which commemorates our Lord’s first coming. It is also a time when we anticipate the end of temporal existence with his second coming. Advent is usually observed with some fasting, extra prayers and more intense meditation to dispose one to welcome Christ – that is to welcome Christ as a new born infant into the world.
Often the idea of welcoming the new-born infant Christ, cuddling him next to our hearts, is lost in a secularized Xmas. Having the attitudes of welcome and hospitality towards our new born King are often swallowed up in the jingle bells and ho, ho, ho of a materialistic feast called Christmas, but is so in name only. This is precisely why we have to prepare ourselves spiritually.
It is often said that adoration is the highest form of prayer. This is because praise of God is the pinnacle of a well-lived life, as well as a vehicle which allows God to release his grace in our lives. In order to praise God from the heart we need to be imbued with an attitude of gratitude towards God. This is precisely what Christmas can do in our lives. However if the spirit of a worldly Xmas is alive in us we may not be able to arouse in us this attitude of gratitude towards God that is needed to release his life- giving joy and abundant supernatural life within us.
I’m sure we can all remember and recount how grateful our hearts were when we welcomed our first child into the world, whether that is our own child, grandchild, or the child of a dear friend or relative. We were caught up in the safe birth, the relief of the parents, and the awe of looking upon the face of a new-born, and wholly innocent human being. A little person wholly dependant on others for life. Let’s take a little time to focus in on the words, “wholly dependant on others” for a moment.
An attitude of gratitude towards God – on whom we are totally dependant, is paramount if God, who is within us, is to transform our soul totally into his sanctuary by grace. Grace needs an atmosphere to act in, and for us that atmosphere is gratitude.
When we were Baptised we not only became members of the Church, brothers and sisters of Christ and sharers of the Divine Nature; we were also made temples of God. When Mary carried Christ within her she burst forth into her Magnificat, her soul alive and imbued with a sense of gratitude that glorified God.
We too, this Advent need to initiate a spirit of adoration towards God. A spirit of adoration will release those attitudes of gratitude within us that can allow God to transform our souls and transform our lives for the better, for the happier. So how can this be done? I have some suggestions. You may be aware by now that I like six step suggestions. The reason being that one can take a suggestion each day, and act on it when and if appropriate, then bring it all together during our Sunday Eucharist:
- First and foremost is forgiveness.Brothers and sisters of penance seek forgiveness for yourselves and with others, especially those of your own fraternities. Be merciful towards yourself. There is nothing like the feeling of being forgiven, or in forgiving others, wholly and truly, which make your heart well up and overflow with gratitude towards Our Father.
- Think about others and forget about yourself.After all Christ came into the world for us, not himself.
- Practice being gentle and kind – this is what we do for infants.Be kind and gentle towards yourself and others. Try to avoid those situations and people that usually make you harsh, critical, judgmental, self-righteous or gossipy.
- Be complimentary.Compliment people in a real and sincere way. Tell them what you like about them. If this is done in a truly Franciscan way it can never be merely crawling or sucking up to someone.
- Give peace, bring peace, look for peace, offer peace, and most important of all: be at peace.That is why all the other suggestions leading up to this one are so very important.
- And this is very important – at the beginning and end of each day, during Advent, think of at least 12 things to thank God about from your heart.It may be as simple as, “thankyou Lord for the roof over my head.”
God is trying to inspire us from within our soul. He is trying to help us to incarnate the same attitudes that resided in his divine Son, and beloved daughter Mary. Francis recognized this and joyfully proclaimed that he was herald of God the Most High, thereby becoming life-giving for others, including us who follow him.
Francis recognized how Christ did it, and tried to incarnate him. Jesus became Incarnate in a humble young virgin, grew up in obscurity. He was born at a time when the world was in darkness, full of violence, strife, oppression. He drew his first breath in a dark, cold and damp cave that was used as an animal stable. He was born in a town called the House of Bread and his first cot was a feeding trough for animals. There were only a few people who even noticed his birth, shepherds scorned by the general public as being smelly rough types.
Yet the humble shepherds called by angels to adore their new born Messiah did so with an attitude of gratitudetowards God for the birth. Let us as lowly brothers and sisters of Francis and Clare also have this “attitude of gratitude” of the lowly. Let us journey towards Christmas preparing gratefully to remember our Saviour’s birth. Let the peace and goodwill that becomes more alive in us via a proper preparation allow us to incarnate Christ ourselves, so that we do our part to add to a bountiful harvest when Christ comes again in glory to judge the living and the dead. Amen.
Wishing all of you peace and a bountiful Christmas.
Friar David M. Huebner OFM Conv,
National Assistant SFO – Oceania.
