Advent message – 2015

Advent – 2015

“Come unto me, all ye that travail and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you”

St. Matthew, XI. 28

To my brothers and sisters in Christ, greetings;

As most of you know, the above passage from St. Matthew’s Gospel can also be found on page 76 of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer. Included on that page are three other selections from Holy Scripture that in combination are known more widely in our Church as the “Comfortable Words”. This particular quotation of Our Lord’s own words is especially meaningful to us as we enter this Advent Season.

Those who are experienced with today’s computer technology will be familiar with the function of a “refresh” button. Most often, pushing a “refresh” button will restore the display to its most recent (and hopefully “clean”) version. From there, as the theory goes, one should be able to continue with the work that was originally intended. But this analogy falls short of Our Lord’s meaning when he tells us, “…I will refresh you“.

When we are refreshed by Christ, we are reinvigorated; we are stimulated to work anew for the increase of the Kingdom of God; we are motivated by our desire to bring others to His Love and His Glory. When we push the “refresh” button on our spiritual lives, we are not simply restored to the last, imperfect, version of ourselves, but rather, we are displayed anew to the world as a people whose clear purpose is to continue with the work intended for all Christians; to bring all peoples and nations to God.

During this Advent Season, I beseech you all to avail yourselves of the refreshment that is offered by Our Lord “Come unto me, all ye that travail and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you”. I implore you to continue (and if possible, to increase) your presence at the Holy Mass whenever it is offered; to use the Grace imparted to us through the Body and Blood of Christ to inspire you, to stimulate you, to motivate you; to reinvigorate your Faith, filling it with such life and energy that all who are seeking will be inspired by your example to seek it’s source. I urge you to call all others who travail and are heavy laden, so that they too may receive the vigor, the energy, the life that is only possible when we are refreshed by Jesus Christ.

Yours in Christ, 

Daniel J. Jennings+

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