THE ADVENT OF ADVENT

Advent is almost upon us and time to start thinking about what you might do to mark this oft neglected season.  Many people take advantage of making “straight the way of the Lord” by going to confession.  As you spend a little time over the next weeks considering what you have to confess, here is a short list of sins often looked over:

 

Praying daily.  The most used analogy in Scripture of how Jesus relates to His Church is bridegroom and bride; Jesus being the bridegroom and we the bride.  If that is so, how do you communicate with the divine spouse?  Would your spouse (or you) put up with it?  Would you go days without any intentional communication or when you do just grunt out a request for something?  If you’re not praying daily and adding thanks and praise and contrition along with petition, that is something that might need changed and confessed.

 

The Body:  Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.  How do you treat your body?  Do you have the opportunity for enough sleep and not take it?  Do you eat enough (and not too much) and is what you consume good for you?  Do you get enough exercise?  Do you dress modestly?  Do you follow proper medical advice?  This body of yours is a gift.  How do you treat that gift?

 

Intake:  Are you careful about what comes in through the senses?  What do you listen to?  What do you look at or read? 

 

There was a holy day of obligation lately. 

 

Have you fulfilled your roles adequately?  These may include spouse, parent, friend, worker, student, son or daughter, sibling, citizen . . .

 

When someone has some heavy sins to confess, these are often overlooked.  And when people ask me, “Can you help me think of anything else?” I mention these and more often than not they hadn’t considered these.  So I offer them to you.  Hope they help.