This week, we’re going to wrap up the discussion on the message to Sr. Agnes in Akita, Japan, by her guardian angel. As I’ve said before, this message calling for us as disciples to do acts of prayer, penance, and sacrifice isn’t new, but has been a part of the call to discipleship from even before Our Lord’s ministry here on earth. I do believe, however, that this call is needed as much now as ever, both for the liturgical season of Advent and for the good of the world in the future.
We know that all things done by God come in His time, which rarely coincides with our own plans and timing. However, I don’t believe that it was mere chance that the message came out right before Advent. The season of Advent is one of preparing the way for Our Lord in our lives, as we heard from John the Baptist last week and Jesus this week in the Gospels. Just as John sought to prepare the people of Israel for the coming of Our Lord, Advent is a time to prepare ourselves for His coming into our lives now and His judgment at His return.
The acts of prayer, penance, and sacrifice have been given to us by our Heavenly Father in order to do that preparation. We are being called as disciples to do these acts in order to open ourselves to Jesus, know Him better, and follow Him. If we perform these acts of prayer, penance, and sacrifice out of love for Him, they will prepare His way in our lives.
I also believe that the call to acts of prayer, penance, and sacrifice has a communal aspect. There’s no doubt that we live in divided times. Political rivalries have flared up into outright anger and hatred. People have banded up into groups, and these groups are fighting against each other, sometimes physically. Even within the Church, disagreements result in arguing and yelling instead of trying to find common ground.
When we commit ourselves to acts of prayer, penance, and sacrifice, we can offer those acts for the good of others. As disciples, one important way we can show our love for neighbor is by praying for them and their needs. The very act of reaching out and serving our neighbors can be an act of penance. We can perform a work of sacrifice by giving something we have to a neighbor in need without counting the cost. I firmly believe that many divisions in our world and Church today would cease if we performed these acts of prayer, penance, and sacrifice for the good of our neighbor, especially for those we disagree.
As we have reached the halfway point of Advent, this is a good time to evaluate how we are doing in preparing the way of the Lord, and recommit ourselves to acts of prayer, penance, and sacrifice! Come, Lord Jesus!
