#advent reflections

The name of Flannery O’Connor’s second novel was taken from the Douay-Rheims translation of this last line: "the violent bear it away." What do we make of this strange and famously ambiguous wording?

Many have taken it to mean that the kingdom of God is attacked by violent people, such as those who killed John the Baptist, and that they threaten to take it away. But others have interpreted it in the opposite direction, as a word of praise to the spiritually violent who manage to get into the kingdom. O’Connor herself sides with this latter group. In one of her letters, she says, "St. Thomas’s gloss on this verse is that the violent Christ is here talking about represent those ascetics who strain against mere nature. St. Augustine concurs."

The "mere nature" that classical Christianity describes is a fallen nature, one that tends away from God and his demands. The "violent," on this reading, are those spiritually heroic types who resist the promptings and tendencies of this nature and seek to discipline it in order to enter into the kingdom of God.»

But the one who does not take Jesus’ words to heart "will be like the fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined." When the inevitable trials come, the life built on pleasure, money, power, or fame will give way.

So the question is a simple one: Where do you stand? How goes it with your heart? On what, precisely, is the whole of your life built?»

«The angel explains to Mary: "The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you…" At the heart of the spiritual life is the conviction that your life is not about you. The real spiritual life is about allowing oneself to be overwhelmed by the one who loves us. Mary is someone who is ready for the impossible, and this makes her the paradigm of discipleship. "Let it be done to me according to thy word." That’s an acquiescence to adventure.»

As the Day Ends As evening settles in and the activity of the day recedes, Advent invites us once more to look steadily at the mystery that stands at the center of our faith: divine power clothed in human nature. The Scriptures draw us into this paradox with quiet force. “And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger” (Luke 2:7). Nothing in…

Before John ever cries out in the wilderness,before camel’s hair and riverbanks and repentance,before the voice that will one day shake Israel— John listens. He does not speak.He does not preach.He does not explain. He recognizes. Luke tells us something remarkable, almost easy to miss if we read too quickly: “When Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the child leaped in her womb.”Luke…

May the Lord bless your spiritual walk today and gently guide you into the steady rhythm of daily disciplines and divine presence. As you begin this day, be encouraged that the God who started His good work in you remains faithful to bring it to completion. These daily devotions are not tasks to be rushed through, but invitations to slow your heart, listen deeply, and walk attentively with Christ…