Advent 2019

My dear sisters and brothers in Christ, 

Advent begins today. Through liturgy and prayer, this time of conversion prepares us to joyfully anticipate the birth of our Savior in Bethlehem of Judea.

Advent also draws our attention to the second coming of Christ.  He will come again. “Stay awake for you do not know on which day your Lord will come” (Mt 24:42).  Understood properly, the Christian life is an ongoing encounter with Jesus Christ who promised to be with us always. Putting him first in our lives encourages us to yearn to meet him each day, face to face and for eternity. 

Am I prepared to meet him? Are you? Do we long to meet him? While Advent is an annual reminder of the Lord’s first coming, the Christian life is an ongoing advent of vigilance for the second coming of the Messiah. “You must be prepared for, at an hour that you do not expect, the Son of Man will come” (Mt 24:44). How can we prepare?

St. Paul penned a note of urgency to the Church in Rome: “…it is the hour for you to awake from your sleep and to put on the Lord Jesus Christ; making no provision for the desires of the flesh” (Rm 13:14).

As the pastor of the Diocese of Corpus Christi, I have asked myself, how can I assist us to encounter Christ and to bring this encounter to others, especially those on the periphery of life? In response, with this Advent letter, I announce:

The Eucharistic Congress for the Diocese of Corpus Christi from June 16-19, 2022.

 Your responses at the pastoral planning listening sessions and on surveys two years ago have provided me and those assisting me with invaluable input for study and reflection materials that will be made available throughout the diocese in preparation for our great event of 2022. A more detailed schedule of the parish and diocesan initiatives with study curriculums will be available early in 2020.

I invite every parishioner and every organization in the parishes and the diocese to take part as much as possible. I am calling us to renew ourselves and together to renew our diocese. Our efforts as one body will be decisive for us personally and for the future of the diocese. Together in Christ, all things are possible.  

Our spiritual renewal as missionary disciples will renew and challenge us to a sincere, transforming encounter with Jesus in the sacrament of his body and blood. It will also allow us to experience him present in our midst as his body. “Where two or three are united in my name, I am in their midst” (Mt 18:20).

Our world is hurting. Our Church is wounded. Jesus, the way, the truth and the life, is the answer. Through his Holy Spirit, he is appealing to us to seriously recommit ourselves to our baptismal life and to be united in his commandment to love as a covenant and mission to respond to this hurting world and our suffering Church. If we do not respond, who will? 

During Advent, I encourage you to spend time with the daily scripture readings as the best way to prepare to celebrate his birth.

May Mary, mother of the Church and the Church’s perfect model – the first to leave everything behind and say “yes” to God – show us the way to enrich our faith, strengthen our hope and enflame our hearts with love this Advent season!