Prepare for First Coming of Christ By Preparing for Second Coming of Christ with End of Life Care Issues (Homily #168)

Video of Homily #168b for 5pm Mass HERE

Audio of Homily #168a for 12pm Mass HERE

Prepare.  Prepare and stay awake!  Rejoice!

These themes to prepare, stay awake, and rejoice constantly appear in the Word of God today.  On this First Sunday of Advent, the beginning of the new liturgical calendar 2020, the Church as a wise mother reminds us to prepare, prepare, prepare.  Just as we prepared a meal this Thanksgiving Weekend and will now prepare for the holiday season of Christmas over these next 4 weeks, we are also reminded to spiritually prepare for the end of our lives. It is not just a preparation for the First Coming of Christ at Christmas, but it is also to prepare for His Second Coming beyond Christmas for our ultimate and final destiny in our journey home to God in Heaven. 

If you were like me hearing the readings today, you may have wondered why the very first Gospel reading of the three-year cycle of readings had to do with the end times.  I mean, come on now, I thought we were preparing for the arrival of cute little Baby Jesus! But instead, we hear of the glorious coming of Jesus at the end of the world.  The readings don’t seem to fit.

However, if we meditate further, we can ponder and hear that the best way to prepare for the First Coming of Christ this Christmas is to prepare also for His Second Coming at the end of time.  These two great events of human history are related.  And that’s the first main point: Prepare for the First Coming of Christ by preparing for the Second Coming of Christ.

In today’s Gospel from Matthew 24, Jesus over and over and over emphasizes the need to prepare.   As it was in the days of Noah before the flood, people were spiritually asleep and were not prepared for the flood.  “So will it be at the coming of the Son of Man.”  Jesus also talks about the men in the field and the women grinding at the mill and says “stay awake.”  And also, had the master of the house “stayed awake” he would have not been broken into.  So, too, Jesus will come at an unexpected time in our lives.  Therefore, prepare and stay awake.

This leads to the second main point: Prepare for our own individual, particular judgment at the moment of our death by remaining in the state of grace.  The Second Coming of Christ in the future may or may not happen during our lifetime.  We do not know.  But what we do know is that when our life comes to an end with death, Jesus will come to us at that moment.  That is why we must prepare and stay awake.  As it is written in the Book of the Prophet Isaiah from today’s First Reading, “He shall judge between the nations, and impose terms on many peoples.”  Because of this coming particular judgment, we must prepare and stay spiritually awake.  In St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans today, Paul writes that “it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep….for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.”  So how do we prepare?  Prepare and stay awake by throwing off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.  In our world today, too many people are spiritually asleep and are not prepared for their judgment.  Prepare by living virtue over sin.  That’s what it means to put on the Lord Jesus Christ.  The Sacrament of Confession will help to put on the armor of light.

Finally, and this is the third and last main point: There are some other really practical ways to prepare this Christmas with our neighbors.  The other month, the deacons and I attended a workshop sponsored by the Diocese on addressing end of life issues.  There were about a hundred deacons and their wives with them meeting with medical ethicists.  We talked about the need to prepare for end of life care, especially those in advanced age.  Perhaps I can flesh this out further in another homily in more detail, but for now, to stay on this theme of preparing during Advent, generally speaking, for example, we not only talked about the need to advise our parishioners to consider advanced medical directives, but we also talked about the need to prepare for a good and holy death.  We talked about preparing parishioners while they are conscious and alert, to express their wishes in writing, especially for the Last Rites (Confession, Anointing of Sick, and Holy Communion) when one is in danger of death.  One critical area emphasized to prepare our families is communication.  Communicate with family about, say for example, your will, beforehand.  Do not wait until after your death to let the surviving family deal with it during their time of mourning.  For this Advent, perhaps repair broken relationships with family and heal wounds with forgiveness.  The hour is now.  Also, the bishops are noticing that patient’s rights are being violated against their wills.  By putting your medical decisions in writing beforehand and even designating in writing your power of attorney, so someone can speak on your behalf, this helps prepare.  Another way is with Catholic Funeral Services.  There are some people who, if they can afford it now, purchase their plots before their deaths.  All Souls Cemetery has a program that will take any cremated remains of loved ones into their mausoleum which is consecrated grounds and sacred space instead of keeping remains at home.  [John Collins]  Finally, if one can afford life insurance, do it soon to prepare for surviving family and peace of mind as a matter of prudence.  The Knights of Columbus was founded, in part, to help widows or women who lose their husbands by providing life insurance.  All of these are important and concrete practical ways to prepare.

So, to summarize: (1) First, prepare for the First Coming of Jesus Christ at Christmas by preparing for the Second Coming of Christ at the end of the world; (2) Second, prepare for our own individual Particular Judgment by remaining in the state of grace; (3) Third, take practical steps with our loved ones to prepare for end of life care.

Prepare.  Stay awake.  Rejoice!  Preparing for things to come may be an uncomfortable topic, but God through his Church helps us to prepare for our journey at this moment and for the ultimate journey to him in Heaven which is the house of the Lord.  And in the meantime, on our pilgrimage this Advent season, let us rejoice!  The Word of God is calling us to prepare and stay awake, which ironically gives us cause to rejoice.  We rejoice because we are not alone in our preparation.  Our God is with us always, leading us home, guiding us ever gently, holding us in the ways of salvation.  

Come, let us climb the Lord’s mountain.  As we sang in today’s Responsorial Psalm, “Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.”