9781644135945

The Light of the World
likewise the works of darkness, since they are violations of our obligations to practice
charity toward our neighbor.
Since we are Christians, we must make an unqualified renouncement of the works of
darkness. Our task requires only that we “put on the Lord Jesus Christ.” We must think and
reason as Christ thinks and reasons; we must love what He loves: the will of His Father, the
salvation of souls, poverty, humility, suffering, and the cross. We are to live our lives on earth
as He lived His life, in simplicity, with our heart and mind fixed on God. Our life should be
a continual prayer and a continuous act of consecration to duty. All our actions should be
marked by a complete surrender to the overpowering love of the Father. Whoever lives thus
is truly a Christian; he is another Christ.
It is to such a life that the liturgy invites us so insistently during Advent. Our aim at the
beginning of the new Church year should be to “put on Christ.”
“The day is at hand,” the Day of Judgment. With every moment that passes we come nearer
to that dread day. The first judgment comes at the moment of our death. This judgment
will bring us peace and consolation if, while there is yet time, we rise from the sleep, from
the sluggishness, from the inactivity of our present life, and return to our first fervor. In
the monotony and trials of the spiritual life, sensible devotion may indeed fail us, but our
will to serve God must remain constant. A properly ordered will can keep us punctual and
devoted even when we have lost all taste for prayer, and when we are oppressed by the
many sacrifices and sufferings of the day. Even when we are weary and tired, and seem to
have failed in our attempts to serve God, the will can remain fixed on its purpose. Does it
actually do so in our case?
How far have we succeeded in putting on Christ? It may indeed be true that we make
our meditation and devote some time to spiritual reading daily; we receive Communion
frequently; we are much given to prayer; we have had an abundance of grace. But have we
actually “put on Christ”? Have these practices led us to think as Christ thinks, to live as
He lived, to love as He loved? It is time that we rise from sleep and begin anew to strive
earnestly to “put on Christ.”
“The Lord will give goodness; and our earth shall yield her fruit” (Communion). We are
invited to begin the new year of grace with renewed confidence. In Holy Communion, God
the Father bestows on us His choicest gift, Christ Jesus, His dearly beloved Son. Christ nourishes
us with His flesh and blood, and fills us with His spirit and His life. Thus strengthened
by Holy Communion, our earth, that is, our soul, brings forth its fruit of virtue: holiness and
union with God.
The Church urges us to make use of the Holy Eucharist as a means to perfection. In this
sacrament we shall find motivation and help in the task awaiting us. Let us receive Christ daily,
and each day offer him a purer and more devoted heart.
Prayer
Stir up Thy might, we beseech Thee, O Lord, and come, that from the threatening dangers of
our sins we may be rescued by Thy protection and saved by Thy deliverance, who livest and
reignest world without end. Amen.
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