Readings
A new adventure begins. A new liturgical year. I like going through
liturgical cycles because not matter what happens to me I am always faced with
the truth that comes from the life of Jesus. Every year I see Jesus in a
different way, and every year I try to follow Him in ways that are always new.
What a great invention these liturgical cycles!
This year, Luke is the one who will guide my steps. As I read these words, I
meditate on the world that that is to come. For a new world to come, an old one
needs to end. I long for the Kingdom to be established, where the values of the
King become the values of the citizens of the Kingdom.
My attention, however, is taken by the big "signs" that are given
to us. The Sun, the Moon and the Stars get all my attention. No matter how
important they are, they are falling. They have to go. I am reminded of the
roles that these celestial bodies played in the mind and cultures of the people
who first listened to the Gospel. They were divinities, they had values, and
many were guided by them as they chose a path to trod. I can't help thinking
about my life: what gives meaning? where do I get my own values? what guides my
path? When I have to make a decision, what are the values I choose to
follow?
I cannot welcome "the One who is to come" if I do not let my old
world die. The more I remove the values of the world from my heart and from my
vision, the more I will let the Son of Man to come in. Jesus does not share
values with the world. I have to choose which one I am going to follow.
As I pray: "O come, o come, Emmanuel," I ask Jesus to be
"God-with-us," then I cannot let Him share my loyalty with any other
things.
I am ready to start this new adventure, this new liturgical year, with great
joy! I know that my world is ready to end so that His may begin. And His … will
last forever.