Dear Parishioners of Mary Immaculate and St. Rose,
Advent is a time of watching, preparing, quiet and reflection. So why do I instead feel rushed, stressed, and tired? We live in a confused state of reality. On the one hand, the Church is asking us to pray, do penance, and prepare for the coming of Christ. On the other hand, the culture is in a hurry and so since long before the last jack o’lantern of Halloween was extinguished, we have been hearing Christmas carols, watching Christmas movies, and going to Christmas concerts, programs and plays.
So rather than trying to hold back the deluge of Christmas celebrations, maybe we need to just embrace both. We are preparing spiritually but we still need to attend our Christmas festivities. I must admit that it is very difficult to keep the season of Advent and not give in to all of the rush of Christmas that is already all around us. Every year I have in my mind how I can hang on to the time of preparation and not get caught up in all the hustle and bustle.  I seldom succeed!
So I was thinking, in spite of all the paintings that we have of the Annunciation that show a very cool, calm, and collected Virgin Mary talking with the Angel Gabriel, I wonder if she was sitting there just waiting for an angel.  Or was she busy about the daily events of life and maybe pausing in the midst of all that for a quiet moment of prayer?
What I plan to do this Advent is be more deliberate about taking some intentional short prayerful moments. Even in the busyness I can make some quiet reflective moments, just taking time to recognize the presence of Jesus.
Even without trying, I am often surprised by a moment of prayerfulness that is prompted by a song, or a memory, or a word or trigger in a play or program.
Advent is a time of anticipating the coming of Christ.  May this sacred time be a blessing for you and your family.  May there be many moments in which you see the presence of Jesus all around you.

 The Annunciation, Fra Angelico (c.1440)