First Sunday of Advent (Cycle A)

The Unknown Day and Hour

 Lectionary: 1

Reading 1 - Isaiah 2:1-5
Responsorial Psalm - Psalm 122: 1-9
Reading 2 - Romans 13:11-14
Alleluia - Cf. Psalm 85:8
Gospel - Matthew 24:37-44

'... Therefore, stay awake!

For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.'

Introduction 

As we gather on this First Sunday of Advent, we also mark the beginning of the Church’s new liturgical calendar and a four-week preparation period leading up to Christmas. The word Advent comes from either of two Latin words, which simply mean “to come” (Ad-venire) or “to arrive” (Ad-ventus), and as early as the fourth (4th) century, Christians have had this special time of preparation towards Christmas. Of course, Advent is not merely a countdown to Christmas; Even as we begin the material preparations for the social celebration of Christmas, the liturgical celebrations of these weeks invite us to prepare ourselves for the coming of Jesus. But what does the coming of Christ Jesus mean?

The First Coming of Jesus is usually plain enough … Most people will say that Advent is the time when we prepare to meet Jesus, the child whose birth we shall, indeed, celebrate on Christmas Day. We call this, The Mystery of Incarnation. But the Season of Advent is actually split into two parts … and the prayers and the readings at Mass that are all about the birth of Christ in Bethlehem are in the second part, the nine (9) days from the seventeenth (17th) of December to Christmas Day.

In the first part, which lasts from now until the sixteenth (16th) of December; the prayers and readings at Mass for those days show that the Church is asking us to prepare not for the celebration of the first coming of Christ as a child, but for His Second Coming at the end of the world, when He will come as King, to judge the world and to unite us, and all Creation, with God, our Creator.

So we are being encouraged to do two things during this season. Our task is to prepare for the Coming of Christ at the end of time, and then to prepare to celebrate the first time He came to us, in the stable in Bethlehem. The prayers in the Eucharistic Celebration constantly remind us of both these comings. In the Creed we assert our faith in these two comings of Christ.

But there is still the third meaning. The coming of Jesus is not just a dead past in memory, nor is it a mere imagination of the future. By the power of the Spirit of the Risen Lord, the coming of Jesus continues to be enacted even today. Jesus comes in our midst as the Word is proclaimed, and as the Sacraments are celebrated. While this coming is visible in all the sacraments of the Church, it is more powerfully tangible in the Eucharist. This threefold coming of Christ is brought out very meaningfully in one of the sets of the penitential invocations – that we use during ‘Kyrie Eleison’ or ‘Lord have mercy’: 

• Lord Jesus, you came to gather the nations in the peace of God’s Kingdom. 
• You come in word and sacrament to strengthen us in holiness. 
• You will come in glory with salvation for your people.

The Solemnity of Christmas that we now look forward to is the feast that commemorates all three comings of Christ. For sure, it recalls the historical birth of Jesus of Nazareth; but we should also remember that the run-up to Christmas offers us yet another opportunity to reflect about the Second Coming of Christ ... and as we hopefully wait for his second coming, we are supported by the Word of God and the Sacraments. Yes, Jesus comes. Here and now. 

Waiting that forms us

Advent shapes waiting into something sacred. Isaiah's promise isn’t simply a prediction to be noted; it is an identity to be embraced.  In our Gospel reading, Jesus’ message is a jarring call to vigilance. “Stay awake!” he tells us, “for you do not know on which day your Lord will come”. He paints a picture of a world going about its business—eating, drinking, marrying—completely oblivious to the coming flood. This image is meant to shake us out of our spiritual complacency, to remind us that we, too, can become so consumed with the "anxieties of daily life" that we lose our spiritual focus.

This is a timely warning. The secular world has already plunged headfirst into the holiday season. The rush of shopping, parties, and to-do lists can easily distract us from the deeper meaning of Advent. We can become like the people in Noah’s day, so caught up in our own lives that we forget to look for the signs of God’s coming.

But the readings today present a powerful counter-vision. The prophet Isaiah speaks of a future time when all nations will stream to the mountain of the Lord, where "they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks". It is a vision of perfect peace, a world restored to God’s original design. For a world wracked by violence and division, this is an image of profound hope. This is the long-awaited hope that the Advent season celebrates—the hope of the Messiah's coming, a hope that darkness will not prevail.

St. Paul echoes this call to awaken from our slumber. In his letter to the Romans, he writes, “it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep... The night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light". Paul reminds us that our salvation is closer now than it was when we first believed. The "armor of light" is not a passive garment; it is an active call to action. It is a call to live with purpose, to live honorably, and to "put on the Lord Jesus Christ". This means actively choosing to live a life of love, to serve others, and to seek holiness in all things.

So how do we reconcile these two messages—Jesus’ call to wake up and Isaiah’s vision of a future peace? The connection is in the present moment. We do not wait for the perfect world of Isaiah to magically appear. We are called to begin building it now. The work of Advent is to live in such a way that our lives are a foretaste of the kingdom of God.

To be vigilant is not to live in fear, but to live with joyful expectation. It is to recognize that God is already at work in our world, in our lives, and in our hearts. It means being alert to his quiet, everyday arrivals—in the person we might not notice, in the moment of grace we almost miss, and in the acts of kindness that surprise us.

Our vigilance is a gift we give to Christ. By preparing our hearts for his coming, we make ourselves ready to receive him not only at Christmas, but at every moment. 

The Gospel’s urgency: unexpected but visible

Matthew’s images of banquets interrupted and people taken by surprise are meant to jolt us. Jesus does not describe preparedness as a private secret; it shows up in behavior. A household that keeps lamps trimmed, meals prepared, doors open—these are images of hospitality, responsibility, and care. To be ready is to be a person or community whose habits and relationships already reflect the kingdom we await.

We are warned not by fear but by realism: suddenness exposes what was hidden. What will be revealed about us when the light shines fully? Will our lives display a heart attuned to God’s justice and mercy, or the distractions and compromises that pass for normal? 

Concrete pastoral implications

• Examine routines: Small daily practices shape who we become. Begin with one concrete habit this Advent—short morning prayer, a nightly examen, avoiding one unnecessary mouthful of media—and let it form you toward watchful living. 
• Reconcile relationships: Paul’s call to put aside night-time behavior points us to putting aside division. Reach out to someone you’ve avoided, repair a strained relationship, ask for—and offer—forgiveness. 
• Serve visibly: Jeremiah’s vision of safety and justice becomes real when we feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, and stand with those vulnerable in our community. Being ready for the Lord means being recognizable as a people who act like the Lord. 
• Practice hospitality: The Gospel’s householder image invites communal preparedness. Invite someone who is lonely to share a meal; let your home be a sign of the kingdom’s openness. 

Hope that transforms fear

Advent’s watchfulness is rooted in hope, not in mere dread of being judged. Isaiah’s promise—“They shall beat their swords into plowshares”—reminds us our identity is grounded in our hope for the peace of God’s kingdom. When we live from that identity, vigilance becomes joyful anticipation. We watch because we trust that God will do what God promised, and we want to be people who help that promise come true. 

Concluding charge

Prepare, then, not with panic but with consistent, visible discipleship. Let this Advent make you someone whose life, in small ways and large, points to the coming of God’s justice, mercy, and peace. Keep watch by practicing faithfulness; welcome the Lord by loving your neighbor; live in the light so that when the unexpected hour comes, you will be found ready—not out of fear, but because you have been living the kingdom already.