Theme : Advent
SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT “Prepare a way for the Lord. Make his paths straight.” Mark 1:3 Mark 1: 1-8 REFLECTION: The Gospel of Mark is the shortest of the four Gospels. Reading Mark’s first words, you can sense his excitement. There is a great urgency about the text. At the time when Mark was writing his Gospel, the story seemed to be over –everything seemed to be falling apart; there was wide persecution of Christians, leading many to conclude that the end time was imminent. Following in the footsteps of the prophet Isaiah (first Reading for today’s liturgy), John the Baptist appears in the wilderness and tells us that it is time to begin to …
Read More »FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT “Be on your guard, stay awake…” Mark 13: 33-37 REFLECTION: It may seem surprising that the reading selected for the First Sunday of Advent is not taken from the earlier part of Mark’s Gospel but from Chapter 13 – a section dealing with the ‘end time’. From the literary point of view, it is one of the most elaborate and carefully constructed passages in the entire Gospel. It is rather like a farewell speech. Yet, the contents can also be read in the context of how we are to prepare for the coming of Christ today. Despite the trials, tribulations and natural catastrophes of the present moment Mark reassures us that …
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