Before I jump into the subject of my column title, I want to say a huge “thank you” to all those who attended and supported the Bishops’ Pro-Life Banquet. It was an incredible event, with so many amazing pro-life friends from across the state. It was a worthy celebration of the amazing work the Lord did for us in Nebraska with the defeat of Initiative 439 and the passage of Initiative 434. The praises of countless pro-life advocates, heroes, and heroines were sung. Fun was had by all, and I pray to God that we will continue to celebrate this important victory as we also continue to meet the needs of mothers and babies in need across our state, as we work toward a greater culture of life and civilization of love.

Now, onto a handful of short reflections of mine on the Advent season, and how it can help us grow as faithful citizens who bear the light of Jesus Christ in the public square.

Before and after Advent

I’ve found it fruitful for my life at the Nebraska Catholic Conference that Advent is directly preceded by the Solemnity of Christ the King and, of course, precedes the birth of Jesus Christ. It is a great reminder that the same infant in swaddling clothes in Bethlehem is the same person who sits on the throne in glory, ruling both heaven and earth. During Advent, we await not only a celebration and a memorial of His birth in Bethlehem, but we prayerfully anticipate His Second Coming in glory as King.

Thy Kingdom come

When I think of “Advent,” I recall the words of the Our Father, as we hear them in Latin: adveniat regnum tuum (“thy kingdom come”). As we await that Second Coming of Christ, we constantly recite the words our Lord gave us, to pray for the coming of His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. And, while we know that this City of Man we live in right now will not perfectly reflect the City of God we await, we nevertheless still work for the Kingdom to come on earth.

Political leadership matters

As I think about Advent and the coming of the baby Jesus, I think about the other events that take place in those infancy narratives in the Gospels. Christ is born. But quickly, the Holy Family must flee immediate threats to Jesus’ life. He had hardly been born before his enemies sought to take His life. And all of this takes place at the hands of a greedy, corrupt, and jealous earthly king, Herod. King Herod refuses to give due reverence and honor to the Christ Child, Who is King of the Universe

The other Advent

Advent also directly precedes the beginning of our state legislative session. This is why I will often joke that Advent, for us at the Nebraska Catholic Conference, is not only about the coming of the infant Jesus but also about the coming of the Nebraska Legislature in January. Joking aside though, having Advent precede our legislative session gives us a special opportunity to pray that our state senators come to know and love Jesus Christ. After all, the Incarnation of Jesus Christ is the decisive event of human history. His coming to earth, to suffer and die for our sins, is what reunites us with the Father and puts us on the path for eternal life with the Trinity.

Advent aspirations

All of these reflections prompt me to ask whether our prayerful and vigilant work at the Nebraska Catholic Conference is creating a society that honors Jesus Christ, our King. Yes, we strive to pass good laws and defeat bad laws, but also, is our work helping people to say alongside of Peter: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”? And through these words, come to a deeper sense of being loved by God and, in return, loving Him more and more, and loving our neighbor as ourselves?

Advent, you might say, helps bring me back to the beginnings of it all: to that Child lying in a manger, innocent, sweet, and sinless, coming in glory then, coming in glory constantly into our own hearts now, and will come again in glory. This is the Good News heralded by the angels to the shepherds that we now, during Advent, patiently anticipate, that all men on earth would live in peace. And, as Pope Saint Paul VI was famous for saying: “If you want peace, work for justice.”

And that’s what we hope to do at the NCC: we seek to bear the light of Jesus Christ in the public square, by working for justice in our society, that the kingdom of Jesus would come on earth as it is in Heaven, so that all people will live with Him in peace here and forever in Heaven.