Introduction to Advent
The Church’s feasts and celebrations run on a year-long cycle called the liturgical year, which begins on the first Sunday of Advent.
Through the yearly cycle of readings, we commemorate the entire mystery of Christ, from his birth through his ascension, then Pentecost, and ending with the expectation of his second coming.
Advent (from the Latin ad-venire, “to come to”) is a season of preparation that encompasses the four Sundays before Christmas. It has a three-fold purpose: 1) to prepare for Christmas, when we commemorate Christ’s first coming, 2) to prepare for Christ’s triumphant return at the Second Coming, 3) to celebrate and deepen a present coming: the coming of the Lord into our daily lives.
Our readings for this first week of Advent interpret each other, presenting a clear theme of expectation for the Lord’s coming:
Isaiah: Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down!
Paul: We wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus: Be watchful! You do not know when the time will come.
1st Reading – Isaiah 63:16b-17, 19b; 64:2-7
You, LORD, are our father,
our redeemer you are named forever.
Why do you let us wander, O LORD, from your ways,
and harden our hearts so that we fear you not?
Return for the sake of your servants,
the tribes of your heritage.
Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down,
with the mountains quaking before you,
while you wrought awesome deeds we could not hope for,
such as they had not heard of from of old.
No ear has ever heard, no eye ever seen, any God but you
doing such deeds for those who wait for him.
Would that you might meet us doing right,
that we were mindful of you in our ways!
Behold, you are angry, and we are sinful;
all of us have become like unclean people,
all our good deeds are like polluted rags;
we have all withered like leaves,
and our guilt carries us away like the wind.
There is none who calls upon your name,
who rouses himself to cling to you;
for you have hidden your face from us
and have delivered us up to our guilt.
Yet, O LORD, you are our father;
we are the clay and you the potter:
we are all the work of your hands.
During Advent, the first readings are prophecies about the Messiah and the Messianic age. The Book of Isaiah, often referred to as the “fifth gospel” due to its messianic prophecies, is particularly relevant to the Advent season as it foretells the coming of the Messiah and the hope of salvation.
Today’s first reading is a communal lament written during or shortly after the Babylonian exile (587-537 BC), a very difficult time in Israel’s history. It is a poignant expression of repentance, longing for God’s mercy, and a fervent plea for restoration.
You, LORD, are our father, our redeemer you are named forever.
The lament begins by affirming the people’s relationship with God. Isaiah calls on God as “our Father,” emphasizing their covenantal bond. The title “Redeemer” acknowledges God’s role in their salvation and their dependence on him.
Why do you let us wander, O LORD, from your ways, and harden our hearts so that we fear you not?
Isaiah acknowledges that the people have been unfaithful to the covenant. They have strayed from God and his absence from them is palpable.
Notice how Isaiah frames this as God permitting their behavior. While this may seem like an attempt to shirk responsibility, it’s a recognition of universal divine governance — everything that happens, whether good or evil, unfolds because God either wills it or permits it.
Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your heritage.
Isaiah pleads for God’s return, not only for the sake of the individuals but for the entire collective — the tribes considered as God’s inheritance.
Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, with the mountains quaking before you, while you wrought awesome deeds we could not hope for, such as they had not heard of from of old.
The lament intensifies: Isaiah cries out for a dramatic intervention by God. The imagery of rending the heavens and causing mountains to tremble conveys the urgency and magnitude of the speaker’s desire for God’s presence.
In a messianic context, this is an expression of Israel’s centuries-long hope for a savior.
No ear has ever heard, no eye ever seen, any God but you doing such deeds for those who wait for him.
The attention shifts from the people’s distress to the mighty works of God. God’s ways surpass human comprehension; he acts on behalf of those who patiently wait for him.
Saint Paul quotes this verse when encouraging believers to rely on the wisdom of God, which is different from the wisdom of the world (1 Corinthians 2:9).
Would that you might meet us doing right, that we were mindful of you in our ways! Behold, you are angry, and we are sinful; all of us have become like unclean men, all our good deeds are like polluted rags; we have all withered like leaves, and our guilt carries us away like the wind.
Isaiah describes the collective state of impurity and the futility of human righteousness. The imagery of filthy rags and withering leaves emphasizes the inadequacy of human efforts and the transience of life in the face of sin.
There is none who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to cling to you; for you have hidden your face from us and have delivered us up to our guilt.
God has withdrawn from the people; they are in spiritual desolation.
The image of God hiding his face from the people is an example of anthropomorphism: a literary device used to help humans relate to and understand something that is not human. In reality, God transcends human attributes and emotions. Biblical authors often used anthropomorphic language to convey complex theological ideas in terms that people could grasp.
Isaiah is acknowledging that it’s only through the goodness of God that people can be righteous at all. Should God remove his favor and cease protecting them from their own wickedness, they cannot help but sin.
Yet, O LORD, you are our father; we are the clay and you the potter: we are all the work of your hands.
Isaiah returns to his appeal to God as father of the people. The humble metaphor of God as the potter and humanity as clay reinforces the idea of God’s creative power and authority.
The acknowledgment of human culpability, coupled with the praise for God’s past favors,
The people have admitted their own culpability and have praised God’s past favors, expressing genuine repentance and humility before the divine. They now wait with hope for God to save them once again.
2nd Reading – 1 Corinthians 1:3-9
Brothers and sisters:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God always on your account
for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus,
that in him you were enriched in every way,
with all discourse and all knowledge,
as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you,
so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift
as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He will keep you firm to the end,
irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God is faithful,
and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
In the first three weeks of Advent, the second readings help us understand the mystery of Christ and offer guidance on how to live out the Christian faith while we await the fulfillment of God’s promises.
Our reading today is the salutation from Saint Paul to the church in Corinth.
Brothers and sisters: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul begins with customary greetings from both Greek society (“grace to you”) and Hebrew tradition (“peace”).
Note the emphasis on the divine source of these blessings: God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus,
The salutation continues with a brief prayer of thanksgiving. Paul expresses gratitude for the grace they’ve been given through their relationship with Christ Jesus.
that in him you were enriched in every way,
God’s grace elevates believers to an entirely new level of existence, allowing them to partake in God’s very nature (2 Peter 1:4). This transformation enables individuals to engage in God’s inner life, even here on earth, though in a limited and imperfect way.
with all discourse and all knowledge,
The gifts the Corinthians have received from God include rhetorical eloquence (“all discourse”) and knowledge, worldly abilities that would be highly esteemed in Greek society.
God is very clearly present in the lives of the Corinthians, which is the very thing that Isaiah prayed for in our first reading.
as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you,
Paul sees these blessings from God as divine confirmation of Paul’s testimony about Christ.
so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift
Paul reassures the Corinthians that they lack no spiritual gift, emphasizing the completeness of their spiritual provision.
They (and we) have everything they need to succeed in their mission on earth.
as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Messiah has been born, has died, and has risen from the dead, but the day of his final revelation is yet to come. In the meantime, they live in anticipation of his return.
One of the main points of Paul’s letter is to guide them on how to live their lives while they wait.
He will keep you firm to the end, irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The “day of the Lord” has a long theological history in Jewish tradition. It referred to a future event when the reign of God would be definitively established on earth. When this occurs, the faithful will be rewarded and the unrighteous will face judgment. For Christians, “the day of the Lord” is the day when Christ returns and appears as judge, clothed in glory (2 Corinthians 1:14, 1 Thessalonians 5:2).
The purpose of the abundant spiritual gifts they’ve been given is to equip them with all they need to stand blameless when the Lord returns in glory.
“Although we lack no gift, nevertheless we await the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will then keep us secure in all things and present us unimpeachable when the day of our Lord Jesus Christ comes. The end of the world shall arrive, when no flesh may glory in His sight.” [Saint Jerome (415 AD), Dialogue Against the Pelagians 2,8]
God is faithful, and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
The passage concludes with a declaration of God’s faithfulness and the divine calling into fellowship with Jesus Christ.
Having experienced God’s power and presence, the Corinthians are to be faithful as they wait.
So are we.
Gospel – Mark 13:33-37
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be watchful! Be alert!
You do not know when the time will come.
It is like a man traveling abroad.
He leaves home and places his servants in charge,
each with his own work,
and orders the gatekeeper to be on the watch.
Watch, therefore;
you do not know when the Lord of the house is coming,
whether in the evening, or at midnight,
or at cockcrow, or in the morning.
May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping.
What I say to you, I say to all: ‘Watch!’”
On the first Sunday of Advent, the selected gospel reading is not about Jesus being born in Bethlehem (his first coming) but about Jesus’ return as the Son of Man (his second coming). As mentioned in the introduction, we are being urged not to simply remember the historical birth of Jesus, but to urgently prepare for the coming of Jesus at the end of time.
Today’s gospel reading is often referred to as the “Parable of the Watchful Servants” or the “Parable of the Doorkeeper.” It is part of a larger teaching often called the Olivet Discourse, which took place on the Mount of Olives just before Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion.
The Olivet Discourse is significant for its eschatological themes; in it, Jesus discusses events leading up to the end times and provides teachings on being vigilant and ready for his return.
Jesus said to his disciples: “Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come.
Jesus begins by emphasizing the need for vigilance and alertness.
The Greek word used for “time” is kairôs, which carries a more qualitative and opportune connotation than chronos, which refers to chronological or sequential time. Kairôs refers to a specific, significant, or appointed time — an opportune or decisive moment.
Kairos is uncommon time, and uncommon events occur within it. Because it is inherently unpredictable, Jesus admonished the disciples to stay alert.
“A person does not go wrong when he knows that he does not know something, but only when he thinks he knows something which he does not know.” [Saint Augustine of Hippo (ca. 400 AD), Letter to Hesychius 52]
It is like a man traveling abroad.
Jesus uses a parable to illustrate his point.
He leaves home and places his servants in charge, each with his work, and orders the gatekeeper to be on the watch.
The master entrusts his servants with specific responsibilities, and the one at the door is given the task of keeping watch. The imagery emphasizes the sense of responsibility and the expectation of being prepared for the master’s return.
A parable is an instructional tool that draws comparisons between the audience and someone in the story. In this case, the disciples are being compared to these servants because they will be entrusted with continuing Jesus’ mission on earth after his departure in the ascension.
This is commonly referred to as living in the “in-between times”, the period between Christ’s first coming (Incarnation) and his anticipated second coming (Parousia). During this period, there is a tension between the inaugurated aspects of God’s kingdom and the expectation of its ultimate consummation in the future, when Jesus returns.
Of course, we too find ourselves in this tense period of history.
Watch, therefore; you do not know when the lord of the house is coming,
The verbs here are in the second person plural form, which means Jesus is talking to his audience and not referring to the servants in the parable.
This is a personal and immediate injunction to watch.
whether in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning. May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping.
The four periods of time listed here are the four night watches of the Roman military. Like soldiers standing guard, Christians are exhorted to stand watch and not be caught asleep.
In pointing out the night watches, Jesus seems to be calling for heightened vigilance during times of greatest vulnerability, when enemies have the most opportunity to attack and destroy.
What I say to you, I say to all: ‘Watch!’”
The triple directive to “Watch!” emphasizes the call for continuous readiness.
Although life between the times will go on as usual, it is a time of vigilance.
“Watch therefore, and pray, that you do not sleep unto death (see Luke 21:36). For your former good deeds will not profit you if in the end of your life you go astray from the true faith.” [(ca. 400 AD), Apostolic Constitutions, 7,2,31]
The selection of this gospel reading for today is not intended to frighten the faithful, but to reassure them that God’s promised salvation will indeed occur. It is not a question of if, but when, the Son of Man will return in glory.
With this assurance in mind, Christians are to remain alert and vigilant, giving in neither to despair nor to frenzied activism, keeping hope burning brightly through prayer and purposeful action.
Connections and Themes
The first Sunday of Advent directs our focus on the realm of human suffering, then moves toward the hope of a brighter future.
Lamentation in the midst of suffering. As a form of religious expression, laments are often misunderstood as mere complaining or an indication of faithlessness. In fact, a lament is a plea for divine intervention in the midst of deep sorrow, grief, or mourning — a plea that demonstrates a deep, honest relationship with God. Expressing pain, doubt, or confusion can be an integral part of a spiritual journey.
After all, in times of oppression, overwhelming burdens, or hopelessness, who else but God could we turn to? Through the ages, believers have cried out: “Where is God?” or “How long, O Lord?”
Waiting. Waiting is the prominent theme for this Sunday. As we wait expectantly for the coming of Christ, we might wonder: “What should I be doing?”
The readings tell us to wait with patience, vigilance, and joyful hope while remaining diligent in our responsibilities. We have faith that God will keep his promises, that life with him is a future worth waiting for, and that he will come soon.
The coming of the Day of the Lord. We wait, but our waiting is not idle. Paul’s message to the Corinthian Christians resonates with us, reminding us that we too possess all the gifts and talents required to actively live out our faith while anticipating Jesus’ return.
This waiting is also not a solitary endeavor; we must wait in partnership with others. Our vigilance extends to the pursuit of justice, fidelity to God’s promises, and compassion towards those who lament. Much like the servants in the gospel reading, we are trustees awaiting the return of our master, navigating an “in-between” time marked by both ambiguity and hope. Waiting as a community gives purpose and meaning to our waiting, embodying the essence of our faith in action.
Sunday Readings 