Dear Friends,

As we enter into the Year of Grace 2026 with the start of the season of Advent, let us still ourselves, reflect upon our lives “right now” and prepare our souls for the mystery of God-with-us. In the spirit of reverence and awe before our Eucharistic Lord Jesus Christ—God’s abiding Presence in us—as a community of faith, I ask that you join me in being both intentional and sincere in a renewed effort to PRAY. I do not mean the mindless rattling off of words that we memorized when we were in elementary school, but to STILL ourselves in SILENCE and intentionally place ourselves reverently and peacefully in the Presence of the God of LOVE listening to hear the Primordial Word He spoke at the moment of Creation. In this Season of Advent, Holy Church gives us an opportunity to participate in the shared grace of this community giving praise to God by our worship and adoration, as well as, appreciating that our lives are understood more clearly when we realize that our lives are not the time in which we wait for God; but, in His superabundant patience that He waiting for us.

In the Gospel of Matthew selected for this Sunday, Jesus makes a reference to Noah, not only in Noah’s uncertainty of the timing of the coming of the flood; but also in his waiting as the flood waters ebbed and his hope-filled anticipation of the whole new reality that God was presenting him after the destruction of everything that he had known up to that time to be normal. In a reflection titled, “Advent: Waiting,” Gwen Marra begins quoting the eighth chapter of the Book of Genesis: “He (Noah) waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.” She continues: Waiting. Waiting. Waiting. We all wait at some time in our lives. Sometimes we wait for traffic. Maybe you spend time waiting for teenagers to come home or a baby to stop crying. These are short term waits. They are irritating but in reality, you know the wait will end relatively quickly. There are other kinds of waiting that happen to all of us at one time or another. These are long term waits. They can make us weary. We wait as we watch a loved one struggle with cancer. We wallow in grief that no one else understands. We wait for a job opportunity to become reality so we can support our family; we wait for a child to turn towards God as the source of truth rather than looking to the world to meet his/her needs. These kinds of waiting are draining. They seem to pull us under, wanting to drown us. This kind of waiting makes us feel hopeless and helpless.

I believe Noah’s waiting in Genesis 8 was similar to this type of gut-wrenching waiting. He was waiting in the midst of a long-term storm and he had no idea when this challenging time in his life would end. Life as he had known it was finished. Everyone he knew except his family had died. Flood waters had destroyed everything familiar to him. He was surrounded by a zoo-full of animals that were stinky and noisy. … Sometimes we gloss over this remarkable event in the Bible. We know the ending, so we don’t focus on the faithful journey that Noah and his family traveled. … [but, it] gives us insight into Noah’s perspective. His life shows his obedience to God, even in challenging times, and this period of waiting was no different. He remained faithful, having assurance that God would lead him and care for him, no matter what the future held. Noah knew he belonged to God. I am sure there were times that Noah was weary. But when we look at Noah’s life, we can see glimpses of Hope. … When I face challenges and am in the midst of one of life’s storms, I can look at Noah’s life and have hope while I wait. I know I belong to God. … Sometimes it requires me to look back over my life and remember God’s faithfulness during challenging times. I can be assured that even in times of waiting, God is present and God is working. Whatever your present season of life is, know that you are not alone. God is faithful, and we can trust Him to see us through life’s journey.” (https://inallthings.org/advent-waiting)

Advent is a season of waiting, but in the realization that we really are not waiting for God to come to us, because He is already with us … within us. Moreover, when we comprehend the mystery of His loving and merciful patience waiting for us to turn toward Him and trust Him; we should not expect God to do more than He already has … He has saved us by sharing His life with us; rather, “Let us then throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves properly as in the day … putting on the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Be of good cheer and have a blessed week!

Msgr. Grous