There is something beautiful about all the lights that we now see around us in the streets and shop windows. As they shine and sparkle, they are trying to catch our eye and get our attention. As homes, towns and cities are decorated, clothed in a way in a festive ‘robe,’ and as days get darker and trees lie barren, we are reminded of the words of the prophet Baruch which we hear in the first reading this weekend, ‘Jerusalem, take off your robe of mourning and misery; put on the splendor of glory from God forever.’

I write this column on the Friday before Thanksgiving (an early bulletin deadline), just four days after a three-week vacation in India. Driving home from the airport I could see that some Christmas decorations were already up. Welcome Home! Advent and the season of Christmas come at the start of the year, not at the end, Jesus’ birth marks the beginning of a new era in human history. So, on this first Sunday in Advent, we celebrate the start of a new liturgical year.