A very wise old Jesuit priest once told me, when I was complaining about distractions, that the only way to empty a glass of air was to fill it with a liquid - his suggestion was beer! The meaning was obvious: we need to focus on positives rather than be obsessed by negatives. And nothing could be truer of the Advent season. If we harp on about the commercialisation and the pre-emption of the feast then we will be no further forward. If we fill hearts and minds with the unique message of Advent then what we have to say will be far more welcome.

Above all Advent is a time of joyful expectation. We need to enter into the readings, prayers, and rhythm of the season. There is so much joy and expectation that, properly celebrated, even the most hardened of hearers can’t fail to be excited. The people of the Old Testament are our models. They are waiting for God to restore his people. And we are in a similar position. In our buffeted Church, which if we are honest shows so many signs of decay, there are many signs of new life. In his own good time God will bring that new life to fruition. Until then we are called simply to long for him to do that because it’s in such longing that we discover afresh his power, our weakness, and his wonderful transforming love bridging the two. P.D.