將臨期第一主日

親愛的基督內的弟兄姊妹們，

將臨期是一個等待和希望的時刻，是我們重新相信天主仁慈的愛和關懷的時刻，也是反思基督在我們生命中的幾次降臨。除了耶穌第一次降生之外，我們在復活節反思基督作為復活的主的到來。係聖體聖事中，在我們的日常生活中，在死亡的時刻，以及在人類歷史的終結，(第二次降臨)。Advent一詞來自拉丁文(advenio)，字面意思是「來到」。在此期間將臨期，我們自己應該考慮透過「對所有人充滿愛心」來「歸向」基督，因為基督已經藉著聖洗「來到」我們身邊。

正如我們以描述世界末日，結束了上一個禮儀年一樣，我們以類似的世界末日警告開始新的將臨期。教會邀請我們加入持續不斷的信仰朝聖。透過耶肋米亞先知的預言，向我們展示基督第一次降臨的預言，以及透過路加福音預言，基督的榮耀，最終的第二次降臨。教會也透過讀經二提醒我們，基督每天此時此地降臨到我們和我們兄弟姊妹的生命中－主耶穌都為了每個人而死。

至聖的天主教會提醒我們，這是「喜樂和虔誠地期待主耶穌降臨的日子」，因為將臨期的目的是讓我們對基督的降臨充滿厚望，正如父母滿懷希望等待嬰兒的降生，並為迎接孩子做準備一樣，將孩子融入他們的家庭。我們知道生命中所有有價值的事物──健康的孩子、充滿愛的婚姻關係、一件藝術品、一項科學發現——都需要一段寧靜時間的醞釀。

亞瑟‧東尼 (Arthur Tonne) 蒙籍講述了一個美麗的故事。清楚表達今天福音的信息。幾年前，俄克拉荷馬州的一名巴士司機創下了一項不同尋常的記錄。23年內，他開過巴士超過 90萬英里，沒有發生任何交通意外。當被問及是如何做得到的時候，他給了這個簡單的回答：「看著路面。」

在今天的福音中，主耶穌以多種方式給了同樣的建議：「時刻保持警覺」、「企直」、「抬起頭來」，「注意別讓你的心昏昏欲睡。」同樣，耶勒米亞先知呼籲我們保持希望並相信天主的正義和護理，提醒我們上主會儘管發生了可怕的事件或道德敗壞，但仍實踐他的諾言。這種祈禱等待的精神得到了回應

聖詠作者說：「我終日仰望你。」耶勒米亞先知充滿盼望的預言在主耶穌身上實現了，而聖保祿提醒我們要積極地為主耶穌的到來做好準備，充滿愛心，堅強我們聖潔的心。因此，一個好的天主教徒必須在靈性上保持警惕，留意天主的道路，並積極地致力於信仰和愛心，就像我們在救贖臨近時要企直並抬起頭一樣。

這不僅是將臨期的良好神修建議，也是日常生活的安全規則。一個好的足球員或籃球員應將注意力集中在球和球員上。一個好學生必須警覺、清醒、專注，觀察老師並傾聽他或她的話。教會中優秀的天主教徒必須身心保持警覺，注視祭台並積極主動參與祈禱和歌詠。

基督內的弟兄姊妹們，我們需要為基督的第二次降臨做好準備，讓主耶穌每天都會在我們的生命中重生。將臨期給我們時間，透過悔改來做好準備；透過祈禱和懺悔來更新我們的生活，並與他人分享我們的祝福。將臨期也給我們一個機會來檢查我們的生活中需要糾正的事物，看看我們如何失敗了，並評估我們可以做得更好的方法。

讓我們接受德國一位神父，安吉魯斯·西萊修斯的挑戰：「基督可能誕生一千次在白冷城。但一切都是徒勞的，直到他誕生在我內。」主耶穌必須在我們的心中和生活中重生，在這個將臨期和我們生活的每一天，重生在我們的愛、仁慈、憐憫和寬恕中。

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Advent is a time of waiting and hoping, of renewing our trust in God’s merciful love and care, and of reflecting on the several comings (advents) of Christ into our lives. Besides Jesus’ first coming at birth, we are asked to reflect on Christ’s coming as the risen Lord at Easter, in the Sacraments (especially the Eucharist), in our everyday lives, at the moment of death, and at the end of human history (the second coming). The word Advent comes from the Latin advenio, which literally means “come to.” During this Advent season, we ourselves should consider “coming to” Christ, by “abounding in love… for all,” because Christ has already “come to” us in Baptism.

Just as we ended the previous liturgical season with an apocalyptic description of the end of the world, we begin the new season of Advent with similar apocalyptic warnings. The Church invites us to join the ongoing pilgrimage of Faith by showing us a prophetic vision of Christ’s first coming (advent), through the prophecy of Jeremiah, and a prophetic vision of Christ’s glorious, final Second Coming (Parousia) through the Gospel selection from Luke. The Church also reminds us, through the second reading, of Christ’s daily coming, here and now, into our lives and those of our brothers and sisters — everyone for whom Jesus died.

The holy Catholic Church reminds us that these are days of “joyful and prayerful anticipation of Jesus’ coming,” because the Advent season is intended to fill us with great expectations for the coming of the Messiah, just as parents expectantly wait for the birth of their child and make preparations for receiving the child into their family. We know that all valuable things in life—a healthy child, a loving marriage relationship, a work of art, a scientific discovery—need a period of quiet incubation.

There is a beautiful anecdote given by Msgr. Arthur Tonne clarifying the message of today’s Gospel. Several years ago, a bus driver in Oklahoma reached an unusual record. In 23 years, he had driven a bus over 900,000 miles without a single accident. When asked how he had done it, he gave this simple answer: “Watch the road.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives the same advice in several ways: “Be vigilant at all times,” “Stand erect,” “Raise your heads,” “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy.” Similarly, the prophet Jeremiah calls us to remain hopeful and trust in God’s justice and providence, reminding us that the Lord will fulfill His promises despite frightening events or moral decay. This spirit of prayerful waiting is echoed by the Psalmist: “For you I wait all day long.” Jeremiah’s hopeful vision was fulfilled in Jesus, and Paul reminds us to actively prepare for His coming by abounding in love and strengthening our hearts in holiness. A good Catholic must, therefore, remain spiritually alert, watchful of God’s ways, and actively engaged in faith and love, just as we are told to stand erect and raise our heads when redemption is near.

This is not only good spiritual advice for the Advent season but also a safe rule for daily life. A good football player or basketball player should always concentrate his attention on the ball and the players. A good student must be alert, awake, and attentive, watching the teacher and listening to his or her words. A good Catholic in the Church must be physically and mentally alert, watching the altar and actively participating in the prayers and songs.

Like the Roman god Janus, who had two faces, one looking at the past year and the other looking into the future, Christians during the Advent season are to look at the past event of the first coming of Jesus into the world and expectantly look forward to Jesus’ second coming in glory.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we need to prepare ourselves for Christ’s Second Coming by allowing Jesus to be reborn daily in our lives. Advent gives us time to make this preparation by repenting of our sins, by renewing our lives through prayer and penance, and by sharing our blessings with others. Advent also provides an opportunity for us to check for what needs to be put right in our lives, to see how we have failed, and to assess the ways in which we can do better.

Let us accept the challenge of the German mystic Angelus Silesius: “Christ could be born a thousand times in Bethlehem – but all in vain until He is born in me.” Jesus must be reborn in our hearts and lives, during this season of Advent and every day of our lives, in our love, kindness, mercy, and forgiveness.