REFOCUSING
This weekend we enter the season of Advent, a season of anticipation, and we begin again the church’s liturgical year. The focus of our readings in the first two weeks of Advent are on the second coming of Christ at the end of time. Then, on the third Sunday, our focus moves to His first coming in Bethlehem.
Advent is also a time for remembering; a time of invitation, conversion and transformation; and continued witness. As a season it symbolises hope, joy, faith, love and peace, which is highlighted each week as we light another candle on the advent wreath.
Throughout Advent we are reminded that Jesus not only comes to us, but that we are to come to Him.
I know only too well how, in the busyness of the secular world, it can be challenging to find the stillness we need to hear God, especially so in the Advent season. Yet, this week that is what the scriptures this week remind us to do. Jesus tells us to stay vigilant – to be ready for Him and to make ready our way to Him. He reminds us not to let the anxieties of daily life make us drowsy, forgetful, or neglectful of preparing our hearts for him.
I can recall many periods in my life where I have felt distracted and neglectful. However, I have been fortunate during my recent recovery from back surgery to have been gifted with the opportunity of a period to refocus, to be more vigilant. This was a real blessing, as during this period I found myself even more in need of time to sit with and receive God’s tender love and guidance.
Like the experiences of many others in our parish and in Wellington in these times of financial constraints, I have been advised that my position as Lay Pastoral Leader is impacted by Archdiocesan changes needed in response to their financial constraints. In response I have accepted redundancy. This will take effect in early March 2025 when the restrengthening and restoration work of the Cathedral winds up. I do not yet know what the next chapter of my life holds, but with vigilance and time God will reveal that to me.
So, as we light the first candle of the Advent wreath this weekend, may we all find comfort and hope in the direction offered to us in the words of scripture, seek the time and space to pause, to listen, and walk in the pathways of God.
Debbie Matheson
Lay Pastoral Leader/Parish Leader
