St. Augustine underlined the supreme value of a prayer which is brief and from the heart. It is a prayer of desire as much as of word; he likens this kind of prayer to a dart speedily released to God. It is with this kind of prayer in mind that this Advent blog has been created. It will begin on the first day of Advent and will consist of a reading of a small part of each liturgical Advent day. For some, these few lines recall what they had already heard for that day; for others, it is an opportunity to travel Advent as the Church suggests it be done. The reason for an Old Testament text is that Advent is the season which longs for the coming of Him who is the completion of all hopes and promises and covenants. Letting ourselves enter into the depths of hope and love, we will better prepare for the celebration of the arrival of God for us. At the end of each day’s page, there is a short prayer of desire. Finally, in the last Advent days we will include on this page the famous O-Antiphons, a centuries-old cry for the coming of Jesus. We begin on November 30, day 1 of Advent. John Kilgallen, SJ
SOMETHING NEW - An Advent Prayer blog, brief and to the point
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
July 16 marks 80 years since the first atomic bomb was detonated. The specter of nuclear annihilation has been with us ever since.
The first time we see the titular hero of James Gunn’s new film “Superman,” he doesn’t descend from the heavens. He plummets.
If we imagine ourselves as satisfying a God who will “give us” things only if we do the “right things,” then our relationship with God becomes less a friendship and more a chore.
For 13 years, Josep Lluís Iriberri, S.J. has guided pilgrims along the same trail St. Ignatius walked over 500 years ago.