Happy New Year!

Ring in the new and out with the old!

That is, in with the new Church Year that starts Sunday with Advent, the "coming" of Christ, first on our calendar of December 25th, and, then, again in his "second coming."

So, we wait!  In wonder, even surprise when Jesus comes again.

After all, Advent is a Latin word, meaning "coming."

Advent begins the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day when families and faith communities light the first of four candles, reminding believers of the coming of Christmas, and, our waiting for it.

Forget the waiting, however.

No one seems to want to wait in a hurried culture.

Yet, patience is a virtue and strength that merit nourishing and growing within self.

But, for four weeks?

Yep.

Joseph would have given up anything to have someone else deliver Mary's child, I bet.

And, Mary, the teen maiden, likewise, must have wondered what God was doing with her.

Christmas tree, Advent wreathe, four candles, one for each week until Christmas, and more. The Good fellows would bear gifts for my four sisters and two brothers. Sander's candy, underwear, and a toy.  All worth waiting for in our poor family as I pushed my nose up the window glass watching for their, Santa's, arrival.

Everywhere it was Advent in our 2-story aluminum-sided home where the nine of us resided on Detroit's East Side in a Polish community.

It's Advent.

And, it's worth celebrating before the Big C!