Today, Sunday, December 8, 2024, is the second Sunday of Advent. I usually go to Mass and then come home and listen to Father Mike Schmitz’s homily. The messages are unique and clear. They are a great start to the week for some or the end of the week for others.
Father Mike Schmitz spoke of a few things in his homily. He first used the story of The Lord of the Rings to describe the feeling of trying so hard to accomplish something, investing so much time, only for the result to be a failure or incomplete. He mentioned how Frodo goes on this adventure to destroy the ring, correlating the ring with “corruption.” Then, after overcoming so many challenging obstacles, Frodo gives in to corruption. He misses the final step that would have led to success.
Father Mike shared how, when he reached that part of the story, he felt so unsatisfied. To put in all that work, only to fail or give in because of missing one critical thing, was disheartening. He related it to receiving an incomplete in a college course. You try so hard, but there’s one critical assignment you miss or fail, and instead of getting a D or F, you receive an “I” for incomplete. The point of these examples is that we can do so much in our lives and still miss something critical.
He further explained this point by referring back to his homily from last Sunday. On December 1, 2024, he asked his parishioners:
“If you knew that December 25 was going to be the day you die, what would you do in those 25 days to prepare yourself for that face-to-face meeting with Jesus?”
He said it’s like having a due date at the end of a class. You work so hard to pass, but after all that effort, you might still miss something and end up incomplete. If you were going to die on December 25, how would you use those 25 days?
He explained that we are all like Frodo. We might donate all our money to charity, attend church daily, or volunteer—all things we think Jesus wants from us. But if these actions are not done consistently and genuinely, they’re not done out of love. Instead, they’re a last-ditch attempt to gain His acceptance. What Jesus wants from us in those final 25 days is simple: to love.
Why, though, should we think of dying on Christmas? Father Mike used that scenario to describe Advent. Advent is a time to prepare for the birth of Jesus, which we also know as Christmas. Since December 1, we’ve been preparing for the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The most important thing we must do during this time is love.
St. Paul wrote to the Philippians in the second reading:
“And this is my prayer:
that your love may increase ever more and more
in knowledge and every kind of perception,
to discern what is of value,
so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,
filled with the fruit of righteousness
that comes through Jesus Christ
for the glory and praise of God.”
“That your love may increase ever more and more…for the day of Christ.” We need to love to prepare for the coming of Christ. Most likely, we won’t die this Christmas, but that shouldn’t stop us from preparing for His arrival. In my opinion, we should always show love in everything we do.
Father Mike ended his homily with a story about St. Mark Ji Tianxiang. He was a doctor in the late 1800s and early 1900s who was executed during the Chinese Boxer Rebellion in 1900. St. Mark, along with 119 other Chinese Christians, resisted the Boxers’ demand to renounce Christianity.
Before the uprising, Mark Ji Tianxiang was known for helping people for free, simply out of love. When he developed severe stomach pains, he began taking opium for relief, ultimately becoming addicted. He confessed his addiction repeatedly, praying for healing, but his priest eventually refused him confession. Most modern priests agree this was poor counsel.
Despite this, Mark Ji Tianxiang continued to attend Mass, prayer groups, and other services, praying and maintaining his love for God and others. When faced with execution, he asked to be killed last so none of his family members would die alone. His deep love and faith led him to sainthood, showing that his addiction did not define his relationship with God.
If St. Mark had looked at his life, he might have labeled it incomplete. But God didn’t see it that way.
As we prepare for the arrival of Jesus Christ, remember to love. You may have problems in other areas of your life, feel like you’re failing, or struggle with addiction. But all He asks of us is to love Him and our neighbors. Even when life feels incomplete, love is what He wants from us.
Thank you for reading.
God bless you all!