Encountering Jesus

We have entered the season of Advent, which culminates in the celebration of the Nativity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. Advent is a time of preparation, but for what are we preparing? We are preparing to encounter Jesus as the babe in the manger in Bethlehem. The Bread of Life comes to the City of Bread (Bethlehem).

But wait, aren’t we supposed to be living our lives in Jesus – He in us and we in Him? How then can we have an encounter with Him? There are many ways. First, consider that we are on a journey of faith which calls us to continuous (daily) conversion. Thus, each day we renew our encounter with Jesus. The Catechism tells us we have a “permanent need for ... inner conversion” (CCC 1888).

“Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” (Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est)

Jesus comes into our lives in so many ways and often we don’t even notice. Why? Because we don’t look; we don’t expect to meet Jesus, but He’s there, often right in front of us. Take St. Mother Theresa of Calcutta, for example. She saw Jesus in everyone she encountered, especially the sick and dying in the slums of Calcutta. There are people we see every day who are not necessarily in the dire straits that she dealt with, but are still in need of Jesus, although many of them don’t recognize their need for Him. Think of what Dr. Peter Kreeft says, “You are what the world sees of Jesus.” (Dr. Peter Kreeft, Food for the Soul, Cycle C) So when you encounter others, keep that in mind. Sometimes a kind word, a smile, or a polite gesture can improve someone’s day. And recall Jesus’s words, “whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40) By treating others with respect, kindness, and charity not only are you being Jesus for them, but you are encountering Jesus in them.

Of course the greatest encounter with Jesus is in the Eucharist, especially at mass. How do you spend your time at mass? Do you read the Bible passages beforehand and meditate on them at all or do you wait until they are read at mass and try to follow along? Are you looking at what everyone else is doing or wearing or saying or are you following the miracle taking place on the altar? Do you go to Eucharistic Adoration? This is another way to contemplate and spend real time with Jesus in the real presence in the Eucharist. (If you do and prepare, truly meditating on this miracle, you might hear him - he’s talking to you.)

Some people get so intent on saying their prayers or reading a passage from scripture that they don’t recognize when God is talking to them. As Fr. Larry Richards says, when God starts talking to you, shut up and listen! You can complete your prayers later, but you need to pay attention when God is talking.

“Time spent in honor of God and for the salvation of souls is never badly spent.” St. Padre Pio

He won’t always talk to you just when you are praying or in meditation. Sometimes he uses other people. Think about the people in your life who have moved you to change, even in small ways. Sometimes it will be an event or circumstance in your life. “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” (C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain)

And the world today certainly needs arousing. An overwhelming majority of Americans think the country has been heading in the wrong direction. At the same time, the number of people identifying as Christians is declining rapidly. Pew Research predicts that, if the current trend continues, less than fifty percent of the nation will identify as Christian in the next 30-40 years. The further we withdraw from God, the more immoral our society becomes, and the more it self-destructs.

“… truth and meaning are found only in the Lord and in a relationship with Him.” (Raymond Cardinal Burke, Hope for the World)

Why does God allow us to sink like this? “God allows us to experience the low points of life in order to teach us lessons that we could learn in no other way.” (C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain.) The real question is, “are we learning?” Judging from the continued rise in violence, pride, abortion, transgenderism, euthanasia, etc., all things God has spoken against, our deafness persists. And so does the darkness.

We need to encounter Jesus and let Him change us. Seek Him out. Seek an encounter with Him. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.” (Mt 6:33) God is calling. He is always waiting for our knock so that he can come and be with us. If you can’t get to Adoration, spend some quiet time with the Lord. Bishop Sheen recommended a Holy Hour (because it takes 15-20 minutes to separate oneself from the world).

We want to be friends with Jesus. He is family, our brother. We need to get to know Him and the way we get to know people is to spend time with them. Remember, He is the Word Incarnate, so reading and meditating on Scripture is having a conversation with Him. St. Jerome said, “ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.”

Like Lent, Advent is a time for preparation, for change, for renewal. We have to let Jesus change us. Mother Angelica often said that to be Christian is to change. Let God work in us and through us, with His help and grace. Remember, “I Did It My Way” is the theme song of hell.

“Of course, the wise men went home by a different route; no one meets Christ and remains the same.” Fulton J. Sheen

“At the end of the day, we do well to gaze upon the Lord.” Pope Francis, Chrism Mass homily, 2022