Night of Recollection - Advent Through the Eyes of Our Lady

Tonight, I invite you to explore a profound way of praying—one that can deepen our experience of this Advent season. To begin, let us reflect on the words of St. Josemaría Escrivá:

“This time of Advent is a time for hope. These great horizons of our Christian vocation, this unity of life built on the presence of God, our Father, can and ought to be a daily reality.

Ask Our Lady, along with me, to make it come true. Try to imagine how she spent these months waiting for her Son to be born. And Our Lady, Holy Mary, will make of you alter Christus, ipse Christus, another Christ, Christ himself!” Christ is Passing By, 11

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First Sunday of Advent

On this First Sunday of Advent, we hear Jesus’ apocalyptic words in the gospel: descriptions of cosmic signs, nations in dismay, and people overcome with fear. At first glance, these words might tempt us to despair, as they mirror the anxieties we often feel when we look at our world today. Natural disasters, political unrest, and personal struggles can leave us feeling as if everything is unraveling. But Jesus does not speak to sow fear; he speaks to give us hope.

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Advent by Candlelight

N.B. This reflection is on Luke 3:1-6 from the Second Sunday of Advent, Year C.

In stillness we gather by candlelight to prepare our hearts for the coming of Christ. This Gospel reading from Luke, though seemingly unusual in its detailed account of rulers and regions, invites us into something profound: the historical reality of God’s intervention in the world. Luke begins with a litany of names and titles, grounding the story of salvation in a particular time and place. This is no accident, for it reminds us, as we affirm in the Nicene Creed, that Jesus “suffered under Pontius Pilate.” Christianity is not a myth, not a collection of poetic fables disconnected from reality. It is history—God stepping into time, taking on human flesh, and transforming the course of humanity forever.

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