Pastor Sullivan's Blog

In the Name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. I once received an “Ask The Pastor” question that dealt with the choice of Scripture on this day. It went something like this, “Dear Pastor, why is the gospel lesson for the first Sunday in Advent Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, which takes place at the beginning of holy week? Wouldn’t it be more appropriate to begin Advent with the story of Zachariah and Elizabeth or something else that happened before Christ’s birth?” That’s a good question. If Advent were merely a “pre-Christmas” season then it would make sense to hear about the angel Gabriel appearing to Zachariah in the temple, the birth of his son John, or even Gabriel’s announcing to Mary that the she would conceive the Son of God in her womb by the power of the Holy Ghost. But Advent isn’t a pre-Christmas season. There’s no doubt that it prepares us to celebrate the Nativity of Christ on the twenty-fifth but the focus of this season is much bro...

In the Name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. The world is closer to Christmas than the Church is right now. The world has its Christmas trees up, its decorations hung, and its shopping going on. There’s nothing wrong with any of those things. But the world only has those things. The world’s version of Christmas, which is simply a gaudy imitation of the real Christmas, is in full swing, racing toward the 25 th for the giving and receiving of gifts. Once the Thanksgiving turkey is put away, the world starts in on its version of Christmas immediately. Not so the church. The tree may be up but we are not yet celebrating the nativity of our Lord in the flesh. First comes Advent and Advent is its own animal. While the world is in the midst of its Christmas season already, Advent calls Christians to prepare their hearts for Christ’s second coming, for that’s what ‘advent’ means, “coming” or “arrival.” How do we prepare our hearts for Christ’s Second Advent? B...