Advent

In light of the political ascendancy of “manly men” like Hegseth, I have been taking even more solace in the small rituals of Advent.

In a Nazi prison camp, Jean-Paul Sartre wrote his first play, set in Bethlehem on the night of Christ’s birth.

One central problem for Christians now is how to reconcile two of the beatitudes in our lives as citizens—how to be peacemakers while also thirsting for justice.

“The Advent season prepares us to see the incarnation with the Passion in mind. God is all-powerful and in the incarnation is all-vulnerable. Both things are true.”

On Gaudete Sunday, we are called to remember—and rejoice in—the fact that Mary accompanies us in all that our human bodies experience.

The images of wind, water, and fire in this Sunday’s Advent Gospel reading invite us to consider what needs cleansing within us.

Two months after contracting Covid, the brain fog refuses to lift. The first Sunday of Advent’s readings call me to pray for wakefulness and clarity.

In the fourth week of Advent, we celebrate the authentic encounter between Mary and Elizabeth, seeking to welcome one another with that same grace and respect.

With John the Baptist and Mary as our guides, we can rejoice—not because our troubles have come to an end, but because we see the nativity of Jesus on the horizon.

The Church must create opportunities to listen to prophetic voices from the deserts of our communities.

Despite the personal, political, and institutional disappointments of the year, Advent gives us a time to lift our heads and seek new life in unexpected places.