Waiting is never easy. Time slows down, and the mind tends to run uncontrollably.  Yet, the Church teaches the art of waiting and uncovers its meaning and importance. Advent is a time to await the coming of Christ. But waiting isn’t a time of doing nothing.  It’s a time of preparation. The saint we celebrate today, St. John of the Cross, is a role model for us on utilizing Advent as a time of hope and faith and preparing our hearts and mind to receive Christ.  

We prepare for Christ by seeking with our whole lives to become more like him. Yet, sometimes our choices outweigh us from being united with God. St. John of the Cross showed us that Advent preparation includes a time to do acts of kindness and generosity as well as penance and self-denial. Through these acts, God, in his mercy, steps in and frees us from guilt, evil, and those transgressions that might contaminate our relationship with him. God lovingly frees us from our sins.  

St. John of the Cross describes this pilgrimage away from our transgressions toward the light of Christ as the “Dark Night of the Soul.”  This famous Spanish poem tells of the journey of the soul from darkness to light – from being away from God to being in union with God.  Advent is that journey from darkness into light.