Advent: The Season of Hope

Two young woman are sharing their reflections on the season of Advent with us.

Advent: The Season of Hope (by Liz Weigel)

All Saints: Daily Reflections on Saints, Prophets, and Witnesses For Our Time by Robert Ellsberg is currently one of my favorite books. This book is a source of hope for me and isn’t Advent about Hope? Hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Hope for the birth of a new world order, one where peace and justice reigns.

How easy it is to forget about hope. Daily stories on increased unemployment and seemingly endless stories of the violence human beings inflict on each other can wear us down, but Ellsberg’s book is a wonderful resource to counter that dismay.

A recent favorite is the story of Mollie Rogers, Foundress of the Maryknoll Sisters (1882-1955). Ellsberg offers the following quote from her, taken from Hearts on Fire: The Story of the Maryknoll Sisters by Penny Lernoux:

“There is nothing more astonishing than life, just as it is, nothing more miraculous than growth and change and development, just as revealed to us. And as happens so often when we stop to regard God’s work, there is nothing to do but wonder and thank [God], realizing how little we planned, how little we achieved, and yet how much has been done.”

As we immerse ourselves in this season of Advent, in the season of Hope for what is yet to come, let us pause a moment and “regard God’s work.” For all of the negativity of the world, it is amazing how much work has been done to build God’s Kingdom of peace and justice on earth. Let us take a moment this Advent and look at the work of our own lives. Then, let us look to the lives of our loved ones. Next, let us find hope in the lives of innumerable holy men and women throughout the ages. When we make an effort to be grateful and open our eyes to the glories of God’s work, it is easier to hope. May this Advent season fill us with hope and anticipation for the world yet to come and may the continual influence of saints open our eyes to the beauty of Creation, to the possibilities available through our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Liz Weigel

(Liz Weigel is a graduate from St. Norbert College at De Pere, WI and currently a Bernardin Scholar at CTU, Chicago)

About Hope and Peace (by Megan Sherrier)

A twenty-something African-American male steps onto the stage, face clenched to deflect pain, eyes chilled from the hatred he has witnessed in his community. He starts his poetry slam blending words, slurs, and rhymes of anger with the intelligence and creativity equal to a sheltered academic crafting his lecture on some obscure topic. He repeats his tag-line:

“When they show us hope, we’ll show them peace.”

The words echo throughout the non-diverse audience. Shouts of approval and raised gang symbols flood the atmosphere. Labeled, this gentlemen would be poor, un-educated, a gang criminal, and a detriment to society. And yet his demand to outsiders of the bloody LA turf war has struck a chord:

“When they show us hope, we’ll show them peace.”

Those words have weight. They are not neatly packed into small talk between mothers at the parish hall, nor can they be digested as easily as the Knights of Columbus-sponsored coffee and doughnuts after Mass.

This poet’s angry cry has profound insight as we contemplate Advent. We all want to feel the peace that Christ’s birth in Christmas brings, but it doesn’t come to anyone who is not convinced of the hope and joy we find in the Advent season through Mary’s example.

How do we find hope these days despite the newspaper headlines? I found my answer where I learn most of my lessons—when my students use my own words against me.

I work as a youth ministry intern at my local parish, and was leading our advent youth retreat. As part of the retreat, students were working on an activity that helped them to realize the many names and roles of the child Jesus. The assignment was to make the longest paper chain possible out of all the names they could brainstorm or find in the Bible. Walking around to help the groups, I was asked a very wise question:

“Miss Megan, Can we write our own names as part of the chain?”

Not quite understanding their question, I joked that they were getting desperate to win the game.
“No!” One girl replied. “It’s because we are all part of the adult Jesus. You said yourself we had to be Jesus’ hands of service after his crucifixion. Well, I don’t see a baby Jesus anywhere, so why can’t we be today’s version of the hope He brings too?”

The group was allowed to write their names after that explanation.

Where do we find the hope? The hope lies in each one of us. The bigger question: How can we be the hope? We must look to Mary’s example of saying “yes” to the vocation God gave her and gives each of us.

The greatest peace comes when we follow God’s will for action in our lives—whether it is being of service to our friends, family, community, or strangers across the globe. Every single day we have the opportunity to act and show hope—for hope is not found in large-sweeping gestures made by politicians, but in the little acts of selfless love between neighbors.

Advent is not the time to ask “Where is God?” amidst the turmoil and headlines. Now is the time to ask “What is preventing you from letting His joy into your heart?” What prevents you from saying yes to being His hope?

Life is not just about the passion and suffering of Christ. And it’s not just about being the servant. It is also about receiving him into our hearts in his infant form—still full of hope and possibility in our lives.

“When they show us hope, we’ll show them peace.”

Each morning, follow Mary and face the discomfort that saying “yes” may entail. And pray to be the hope, so that we can all prepare for the peace of Christ to enter our lives here on Earth.

Megan Sherrier

(Megan is a 2007 CoC alumna and works currently as youth minister at Our Lady of Lourdes parish in Richmond, VA. She is a graduate from University of Richmond and is hoping to start her graduate studies in theology at CTU soon.)