In 2006, an experienced mountaineer from Australia named
Lincoln Hall was on his way back down from experiencing the summit of Mount
Everest when he suddenly became very ill. Members of his climbing party used
oxygen to try and revive him, but because of the weather conditions and timing,
the party thought he was dead and left his body. When they returned to base
camp, they called his family and told them he had died. It was a sad ending to
a one-in-a-lifetime event for them all.
But the next day, another party was hiking up to the summit
when they suddenly saw movement from a body. Hall, hallucinating, exhausted,
and frostbitten, was alive. The team used their supplies to stabilize him and got
him down safely. They selflessly gave up summiting the world’s tallest mountain
to save a single man’s life. Hall survived the ordeal and eventually shared his
story with the world.
In many ways, this story reflects our own spiritual journey
to the Mountain of God. In the first reading, the Prophet Isaiah tells us that
we must move forward and climb the Lord’s mountain. As a faith community, we do
this together and help each other. Lincoln Hall relied on others, and so too we
can’t do this alone—Jesus is always with us, and gives us our strength,
particularly when we are weak. Born as a baby, weak and helpless, in a trough
for animals, and yet last week, we celebrated Jesus Christ as King of the
Universe, King of all Things and People. He is always there with us,
accompanying us on the Mountain.
Today we begin the holy season of Advent; we can think of our Advent journey as a climb up the mountain. We should use this time
to consider how we are called to be Christians, and what that means. The Church
reminds us that, at the same time, we are also to look forward to His Second
Coming at the end of time, not in fear but in excitement. Advent is a period of
joy, love, light, and delight in the coming of Jesus, both 2000 years ago and
at any point between now and eternity. Are we ready for the eternal journey? What do we need to change? What do we need to do more of?
As we shop Hamilton Town Center, Clay Terrace, and all the
stores listening to the contemporary Christmas music, seeing all the garlands, decorations,
and twinkly lights – it is deceptive. And it should concern us. The Gospel message today reinforces that – we
must be on guard and be prepared for the coming of Jesus. He tells us that a
day will come when we will be asked to explain our life: what we’ve done, what
we’ve said, and what we’ve thought. We will be called to account.
Like Noah, who warned continuously that people had become
complacent and sinful, no one listened. Jesus says that of two people working,
one will be taken up and the other left. “For you do not know on which day your
Lord will come.” We do not know when Jesus Christ will call us home. It could
be in five minutes, it could be in 50 years.
Therefore, we MUST live each moment as if he will come now.
We must stay awake, be prepared, expect Him. As St. Paul writes, we must take
courage and put on the armor of light, as a way to protect us and show that we
are willing to walk with Jesus. We know this is not easy. This is a struggle we
all deal with. But we cannot let it consume us or worry us.
In our entrance antiphon, the Psalm (25) tell us that we put
our trust in God of Father. “Let none who hope in you be put to shame!” We
can’t stand still in our faith, we must keep driving forward toward that
heavenly mountain. We must do it now—we can’t afford to wait. Don’t
put it off—later may be too late.
The Advent season is a joyous season; but many suffer during
it. Often quietly, they are lonely, sad, missing friends and family, isolated,
poor in spirit and money. Our Christian duty is to serve them and be ready to
walk with him. To put aside our own ambitions and goals, like the team that
saved Lincoln Hall. That team never made it to the summit of Mt. Everest—but
they did something even more amazing: they saved a man’s life.
As we start Advent, let us consider how we can practice the
corporal and spiritual works of mercy. We can:
·
serve the Matthew 25 Center—after all, we call
it Merciful Help for a reason!
·
call and visit older neighbors and those at
nursing homes, spending time with them.
·
spend some time with Jesus in Adoration before
the Blessed Sacrament.
·
collect donations of food, clothing, and funds.
·
pray the Psalms or the Rosary in your car or
wherever you have a few moments.
This week let’s go rejoicing to the House of the Lord on His
Holy Mountain. Let us give great thanks for the coming birth of Jesus Christ,
our Savior, who has enabled us to set foot in the gates of Heaven through the
Holy Eucharist, which we will celebrate shortly. Let us pray for peace in our
families, in our communities, and in our world.
Most importantly, let us be people of
peace—knowing that the peace of God will come in a few short weeks and then
again at the end of the age.
We pray that the Lord Jesus will come be with us: “O house
of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord” both this week and
forever.
Amen.
Photo: Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world. Mount Everest, Nepal, Himalayas. Taken October 2009. © Vyacheslav Argenberg / http://www.vascoplanet.com/ licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license
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