Today is Advent Sunday and the beginning of the Church’s new year. With Advent Sunday we begin preparation for the Holy Nativity. The liturgical mood for Advent is made clear by the colour of the vestments. Purple marks a season of penitence, as God’s people prepare the way for the coming of their Lord. Today the Gospel reading is selected from Mark chapter 13, the chapter sandwiched between the Book of Jesus’ ministry (chapters 1 to 12) and the Book of the Passion Narrative (chapters 14 to 16). This part of Mark’s Gospel is often known as the Apocalyptic Discourse where the clarion call is simple and direct, ‘keep awake’.
For those of you who wanted to do some thinking and preparation for today’s service during the preceding week, I invited you to focus on the image of Advent wreaths. There is one form of Advent wreath that you may have made to hang on the door of your house as a sign to those who see it that you are keeping Advent and that you are watching for the coming birth of Christ. In today’s picture from their book, Christmas time with Teddy Horsley, Teddy Horsley and Betsy Bear have hung an Advent wreath on their door.
Lord Jesus Christ,
we look forward to your birth at Christmas.
Help us to prepare for your coming,
so that we are ready to welcome you;
for you are our God.
Amen.
Next Sunday is the Second Sunday of Advent, when the image to help us prepare for the theme is Christmas adverts. You can find out more about that theme by looking at the Educational Resources and the Preparation Resources.
Prayer Request
Would you like to submit a prayer request? You can do so here.
Notice Sheet
Would you like to sign up to receive the Cathedral’s weekly notice sheet? You can do so here.
Exploring the Sunday Gospel – Christ The King