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Spiritual Reflection
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November 26, 2009 | | | |  | Spiritual Reflection for the First Sunday of Advent
November 29, 2009
We are to prepare ourselves for the day when the Lord will return and call us to himself.
To announce the birth of his Son, God set a star in the sky to guide the Wise Men to the scene of the Nativity. The Word became Flesh and dwelt among us. His coming was fulfilled. Now, we await His Second Coming, when the world, as we know it, will end and we will each be judged according to our deeds. Today's Gospel makes it clear that when Jesus returns, it will be in power and glory. Those who have wrought evil will be filled with fright for they will know and see the judgment that awaits them.
Jesus will judge each of us individually, and that judgment will be based on how we have lived and how we have shown our love for God and for others. Jesus is ever-present to guide us and shepherd us on the path to life. The Holy Spirit helps us to see more clearly the areas of our lives where we have fallen short and are in need of repentance. We are to ask for God's forgiveness while wwe still have the time and opportunity to do so. As we begin this Advent season, let us open our hearts to this love and forgiveness and do whatever is necessary to prepare for the day of His coming. | | | | | |
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 Our Lady of Lourdes - In 1858, in a grotto, near Lourdes in southern France, Our Lady appeared 18 times to Bernadette Soubirous, a young peasant girl. She revealed herself as the Immaculate Conception, asked that a chapel be built on the site of the vision, and told the girl to drink from a fountain in the grotto. When Bernadette dug at a spot designated by the apparition, a spring began to flow. The water from this still flowing spring has shown remarkable healing power, though it contains no curative property that science can identify. Lourdes has become the most famous modern shrine of Our Lady. |
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