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1st Sunday of Advent, Cycle C
November 29, 2015
4:00pm and 6:00pm
Saint Margaret Parish,
Bel Air
Vigilance: Awake,
Alert, and Aware
By (Rev. Msgr.)
Nicholas P. Amato
Be Vigilant
I am taken by just two words in today’s Gospel:
“Be vigilant.”
In this passage, Jesus uses some frightening
imagery – signs in the stars, nations in distress, tribulations, and people
dying of fright. But he is using these images not because he wants us to live
in fear.
Repeatedly, in the Gospels, he says: “Do not
be afraid.” Instead, he wants us to “be vigilant.”
Prayer and reflection on this idea led me to
three words that capture what it means to be vigilant. For easy remembering, each of the words
begins with the letter “A”: Awake, Alert, and Aware.
I see a difference in what each of these words
means. And I also see them in a definite
order, with one leading to the other.
1. Be Awake (Open palms moving in and out)
So first, be awake.
Jesus in this passage cautions us not to “become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness
and the anxieties of daily life.” So,
at a very basic level, don’t get caught and deal with the abuse of any
substance that deadens us to what is going on in life.
And I’m not just speaking about drugs, but
about anything that has the feel of addiction or compulsion, so I’m talking
about the latest edition of a tablet or smart phone, the latest kitchen
appliance or clothing style.
And don’t get trapped in being so busy with
our jobs and in making so many other commitments that we are always running and
always exhausted.
All of the possibilities in living each day can
make us asleep to life. They can lull us
into living unconsciously so, it is important to recognize the addiction or
compulsion and to gain control of them.
Being awake in this way takes us to step #2 of
being vigilant.
2. Be Alert (Opening and closing middle fingers of each hand)
Second, be alert.
Noticing the individuals in our lives,
especially our family and friends and being alert to what is going on with them.
Perhaps your own son/daughter has become withdrawn and seems down and you need
to be there for him or her.
Noticing the neighbor next door or the folks with
whom you work and being alert to their illness or problem at home and a
listening ear would help them.
Noticing the needs here at St. Margaret’s and
being alert to how we might assist someone by taking an ornament from the
Christmas Giving Tree and buying needed gloves, sweater, or jeans for a family.
Noticing the big picture of our country and
our world and being alert to something we could say that would be positive and that
lessens fear and negative energy.
So being alert to the persons and situations
around us. Being alert in this way takes
us to the third and final step of being vigilant.
3. Be Aware (Opening and closing hand toward chest)
Be aware.
Aware is different from Asleep and Alert. Aware speaks of looking within ourselves, being aware of how
well our interior life is.
Looking, as St. Paul says today, at our inner
feelings for others, being aware of feelings of respect or disdain, jealousy or
peacefulness is critical.
Because awareness requires self-reflection, we
need to check out our quiet time compared to the amount of time we’re talking
and engaged in listening to others or to noise of any kind.
Be aware of making space for reflection, for
being in touch with ourselves, with our hopes and worries, with our inner peace
or lack of that, with our loving of others and feelings of being loved.
Such reflection rejuvenates the quality of our
celebration of the Eucharist or it can quicken our need repentance. Such
reflection is the crowning and completion of being vigilant.
Conclusion
As we begin the four weeks of Advent, Jesus is
telling us to “Be vigilant” and I see
that spelled out as: Being Awake, Being Alert, and Being Aware.
I invite you to see Advent in a similar way.
