Awake, aware, Advent

		Living the Scriptures  with St. Paul University  Catholic Center  Fr. Randy J. Timmerman

Because I live off State St., the epicenter of the party scene on the UW-Madison campus, it is impossible to miss the kind of literal inebriation and revelry that Luke speaks about in the gospel.

As a priest, I am aware of another kind of inebriation that Luke alludes to as well: I am sometimes so absorbed in my work that I lose mindful awareness of the events surrounding me.

First Sunday of Advent (Nov. 30, 2003) Jer 33:14-16 Ps 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14 1 Thes 3:12--4:2 Lk 21:25-28, 34-36

I want so much to be a "good priest," that I become intoxicated with work. It is so easy, isn't it - to get caught up in our work, our studies, our family life, our social and athletic events - that the coming of God dissolves into abstraction.

The relationships and jobs that sustain us are important, until they obliterate the reason we are put on this earth. We are here to serve God, to accomplish God's work, to develop our relationship with God. Our family and work lives can be set within that relationship with and service to God, if we let them.

When Luke says we become drowsy "with the anxieties of daily life," we know he realizes that life is challenging.

Take today for instance; I made a list of what I had to accomplish. I had to write this article. I needed to prepare my heart and a homily for Eucharist at St. Paul's. I wanted to phone my mother to be reassured that she continues to do well after a scare with a heart irregularity.

I had several staff meetings, one for a grant we are working on; one concerning a student retreat; another coordinating Bible study training. I had a student coming in for counseling and another with questions about religious life.

I knew that phone calls and e-mails awaited me. I had invited students over for dinner and discussion of dorm missionary work, so I needed to plan a menu and cook! Over-extended? Yes. Important work? Surely.

And yet. Yet Luke warns all of us to be aware. Christ is on the way. This is the beginning of Advent, the start of that holy time when we prepare our minds and hearts for the arrival of our God.

	Reflection questions • What activities can you cross off your to-do list, to make more time for holiness? • What activities can you do prayerfully as Advent preparation for the birth of our Lord?

Within my list of things to do is the possibility of remaining mindful that each item can be done with awareness of the impending incarnation. Each can be a stepping stone toward increased holiness during this season of expectation.

I can remain vigilant to the course of serving God first and foremost. I can cross some things off my list, so that I have quiet time to reflect on the great gift God gives in sending his Son.

And then, I can confidently raise my head, knowing my redemption is at hand.

Fr. Randy J. Timmerman is pastor of St. Paul University Catholic Center on the UW-Madison campus. St. Paul's Web site: www.stpaulscc.org

In a Nutshell In spirituality, God takes the initiative. Your desire to deepen your relationship with God occurs because God reaches out to you. Lay people may seek a spirituality that challenges them to use daily activities to grow in holiness. St. Ignatius Loyola believed God can be found in all our experiences if we stop to look and listen for the traces of God there. Catholic News Service 3211 Fourth St NE Washington DC 20017 202.541.3250 cns@catholicnews.com	Food for Thought   Our spirituality is the approach we take in developing a relationship with God and God's people. It would be great to feel great all the time about this relationship and its development. But for almost anyone there can be periods of feeling -- and I accent that word "feeling" -- that the relationship is stagnant or that God isn't nearby. Many people were surprised at the time of Mother Teresa of Calcutta's beatification (Oct. 19, 2003) to learn that even she experienced a dark night of the soul. In letters to her spiritual directors she expressed the feeling that God was absent. Pope John Paul II brought this up in his homily at the beatification. "Mother Teresa shared in the passion of the crucified Christ in a special way during long years of 'inner darkness,'" the pope said. However, "in the darkest hours she clung even more tenaciously to prayer." The pope captured my attention when he said that "this harsh spiritual trial" actually had a positive result, leading her "to identify herself more and more closely with those whom she served each day, feeling their pain and at times even their rejection." full story   Advent: Is There a Spirituality That Is Right for You? By Father Frederic Maples, SJ Catholic News Service Advent! The Lord is coming soon! This is a good season to deepen our prayer life so that we'll experience the coming of the Lord into our own hearts. However, as you browse your diocesan newspaper or the Internet, you might be overwhelmed by the abundance of offerings and differing styles of prayer and spirituality. With so much to choose from, how can you find a spirituality and practice of prayer that is right for you? full story  Advent: A Microcosm of Lay Life By Sheila Garcia Catholic News Service Last August I spotted a smiling Frosty the Snowman in a store window. Shopping malls plan early for Christmas! Our spiritual preparation, however, is concentrated in Advent's few weeks. But Advent is in many ways a microcosm of the lives of lay people: busy, filled with responsibilities to family, work, church and community. So lay people need a spirituality that takes into account the time-consuming obligations of everyday life -- not a "spirituality life," but one that challenges us to use daily activities to grow in holiness. full story  Ignatian Spirituality: Being a Contemplative in Action By Father Warren Sazama, SJ Catholic News Service Spirituality is a path to God. Throughout the history of Christianity there have been spiritual giants -- St. Benedict, St. Francis, St. Dominic, St. Teresa of Avila, and St. Ignatius of Loyola, among many others -- who interpreted Christian spirituality for their times. St. Ignatius of Loyola's "Ignatian spirituality" seems to be particularly suited to our times. Many people find it helpful. This is not surprising, for Ignatius lived in the first half of the 16th century -- at the dawn of the modern world when the Middle Ages were ending and the Renaissance was coming into full bloom. full story
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