S2 E1: A Path to Advent Peace

Transcript

Carol Vassar:

From SS. Isidore and Maria Parish in Glastonbury, Connecticut, I'm Carol Vassar, and this is Living in Faith, Hope, and Love. Each week, our Pastor, Father Mark Suslenko, delves into Scripture, shares insights from the saints, prophets, and theologians, and discusses practical ways to cultivate faith, strengthen hope, and embody love in the world around us. Through his reflections and spiritual encouragement, this podcast aims to inspire you to live your Catholic faith with joy and purpose. Welcome. 

As Advent begins, Father Mark offers a powerful reminder that God often meets us right in the middle of our ordinary—our routines, our worries, our full calendars, and, yes, even our chaos. While Advent invites us to quiet, prayer, and hopeful expectation, it arrives at one of the busiest times of our year.

In this episode, Father Mark explores how we can cultivate a more attentive heart, slow down just enough to notice the sacred in the everyday, and welcome Emmanuel—God-with-us—into every moment.

Here’s Father Mark

“A Path to Advent Peace,” by Father Mark S. Suslenko, Pastor, SS. Isidore and Maria Parish, Glastonbury, Connecticut

Father Mark Suslenko:

There's something very ironic about the Advent season. It's a season that's really characterized by patience, by waiting, by quietness, by preparing, by solitude, and prayer. It's a season of expectation and a season of hope. Yet, it comes at a time in our lives when we are most busy; when life is really getting us anxious with the preparations for Christmas, and all the stuff that we have to do in our daily routines.

We can all become very consumed with work. We can become consumed with the pressures and anxieties of life. I bet if I asked any one of you today, you could name at least three things that are really on your mind that are plaguing you. Three things that are preoccupying you. Three things that take you away from that center of peace that we all want to acquire.

We're pulled in so many directions. And being busy with the stuff of life, we go about the business of our days trying to tend to what is before us, get our tasks done, do what people want us to do, what we expect of ourselves, and to continue on as best as we can just like in the simple times that came before us when the tasks of life were grinding meal or working in the field or doing whatever was required to get by each day.

And it's in the midst of all of this ordinary stuff of life that at some point in time, Jesus is going to come. And when that happened, when the flood came the first time, people didn't know what was going on. They weren't prepared. And Jesus is trying to tell his friends today, you're gonna be busy with the stuff of life, but you still need to be prepared for the coming of Christ.

And so, how do we do this? We're given these four short weeks to try to quiet ourselves down a bit, to get rid of some of the clutter in our lives, to simplify things a little, to become more attentive, to become more hopeful, and to become more centered. It really requires the habit of prayer, and that's all something we can all work on and improve. Our relationship with God is what really gives fuel and light to everything else in our lives. If we don't have that relationship active and moving and growing, then we're not going to see the hand of God in anything that we do, and we're going to miss moments of grace and moments of inspiration, sacramental moments when God touches us and reminds us that he is with us; that he is Emmanuel.

And so the challenge of the Advent season, and it's a big challenge because life, as I said, is so complicated and so demanding. The big challenge is to try to find these little, sacred moments. That with a more astute vision, we look out at the ordinary and see something extraordinary. We look at something that we take for granted and see a blessing within it. It's taking a challenge that is before us, and rather than seeing it as a hurdle to overcome, we can welcome it as an opportunity for new growth and new adventures. Advent is that   opportunity to take what is secular and see it as something sacred, because God reminds us that he doesn't come to us just out of the sky. He comes to us as one like us, Emmanuel, and with that gift, he blesses all that is human, so any human experience that we have, however good or bad, is an opportunity to see the beauty and sacredness of God. Any moment of our life can be a graced moment if we change the lenses in our eyes and open up our hearts and souls just a bit.

So, over the next few weeks, these very short weeks, perhaps we can take some time to stop in the busyness of it all, to change things up a bit so that we can take what is ordinary and find God's divine hand alive within it; that we can take something that is purely secular and see it as a graced moment and blessing of God. If we can do so, then we're not only going to find ourselves a bit happier and less stressed, but when God does come again at that point in time, as we're busy about the stuff of our lives, we won't miss an opportunity to receive him with a joyful heart.

Carol Vassar:

Father Mark Suslenko is the pastor of SS. Isidore and Maria Parish in Glastonbury, Connecticut. If you like what you've heard today, please subscribe to Living in Faith, Hope, and Love on your favorite podcast app and take a moment to leave a review.

SS. Isidore and Maria is an active parish community, so whether you’re a long-time parishioner or are just getting to know us through this podcast, we welcome you to join us at Masses or any of our other community events and services. Visit our parish website - isidoreandmaria.org - for a full schedule of Masses, services and other happenings. That's isidoreandmaria.org. We're also active on Facebook and Instagram.

On behalf of Father Mark, I'm Carol Vassar, and we thank you for listening to this episode of Living in Faith, Hope, and Love.