As every month, the student brothers went on their retreat this December and because we are in the period of the Advent, this retreat was unusual. The first part was spent in the desert of Judah (Wadi al-Quelt) and the second in Bethlehem.
Why in the desert? The desert has always been the “theological place” for the encounter between God and man and between God and his people. The people travelling towards the Promised Land were led into the desert and it was there that they received the Law; the desert is the place where the Prophet Elias retreated before he carried out his mission; it was in the desert that John the Precursor prepared himself to announce the coming of the Messiah; in the last place, Jesus, after his baptism in the Jordan, was drawn into the desert by the Holy Spirit before the start of his ministry. It is a testing ground where people can complain – as the chosen people did – for what they no longer have, or successfully defeat all temptations – as Jesus did – strengthening their spirit. It is exactly that! The desert: a place of purification that bares the very essence of man, a place that allows seeking out the essential and the truth, which pushes towards prayer and intimacy with He who, in solitude, is found, fills us with his love, shows us his fidelity and boosts our enthusiasm for setting out on a new path; camping in the desert means moving from one place to another to reach a new base, another way of being and a new state of life.
On the strength of all this, we also set off, in the wake of “seekers of God”, on our own in that “place”; we made room for the Word of God which, as usual, was devastating: “The desert and the parched land will exult… The burning sands will become pools, and the thirsty ground, springs of water” (Is 35,1.7), “I will turn the desert into a marshland, and the dry ground into springs of water.” (Is 41,18).
We recognize that the Lord has already fulfilled these marvels of grace with his Incarnation, the source of salvation for the whole of humanity; the Lord has fulfilled them in our lives of men, believers and religious and will complete them until the day of his final coming.
Our meeting with Him and letting ourselves meet Him in the desert could not end there. In Bethlehem, lighting the last candle on the advent crown during Vespers made us all the more aware that the memory of the birth of the Lord is approaching; we renewed to Him our willingness, lasting all our lives, to wait for him and to receive him; so we sang the hymn that the Church has always sung: “Maranà tha, come, O Lord!”. Because celebrating Christmas does not only mean remembering the arrival of Christ on the Earth but rather making room in our lives to generate him in the faith and deliver him to our brothers. When Vespers were over, we were also able to pray in the Holy Grotto.
The day came to an end with a fraternal dinner and our return to the convent.
We wish all our readers a successful preparation for the Nativity of the Lord: may he become incarnate in your lives!
Why in the desert? The desert has always been the “theological place” for the encounter between God and man and between God and his people. The people travelling towards the Promised Land were led into the desert and it was there that they received the Law; the desert is the place where the Prophet Elias retreated before he carried out his mission; it was in the desert that John the Precursor prepared himself to announce the coming of the Messiah; in the last place, Jesus, after his baptism in the Jordan, was drawn into the desert by the Holy Spirit before the start of his ministry. It is a testing ground where people can complain – as the chosen people did – for what they no longer have, or successfully defeat all temptations – as Jesus did – strengthening their spirit. It is exactly that! The desert: a place of purification that bares the very essence of man, a place that allows seeking out the essential and the truth, which pushes towards prayer and intimacy with He who, in solitude, is found, fills us with his love, shows us his fidelity and boosts our enthusiasm for setting out on a new path; camping in the desert means moving from one place to another to reach a new base, another way of being and a new state of life.
On the strength of all this, we also set off, in the wake of “seekers of God”, on our own in that “place”; we made room for the Word of God which, as usual, was devastating: “The desert and the parched land will exult… The burning sands will become pools, and the thirsty ground, springs of water” (Is 35,1.7), “I will turn the desert into a marshland, and the dry ground into springs of water.” (Is 41,18).
We recognize that the Lord has already fulfilled these marvels of grace with his Incarnation, the source of salvation for the whole of humanity; the Lord has fulfilled them in our lives of men, believers and religious and will complete them until the day of his final coming.
Our meeting with Him and letting ourselves meet Him in the desert could not end there. In Bethlehem, lighting the last candle on the advent crown during Vespers made us all the more aware that the memory of the birth of the Lord is approaching; we renewed to Him our willingness, lasting all our lives, to wait for him and to receive him; so we sang the hymn that the Church has always sung: “Maranà tha, come, O Lord!”. Because celebrating Christmas does not only mean remembering the arrival of Christ on the Earth but rather making room in our lives to generate him in the faith and deliver him to our brothers. When Vespers were over, we were also able to pray in the Holy Grotto.
The day came to an end with a fraternal dinner and our return to the convent.
We wish all our readers a successful preparation for the Nativity of the Lord: may he become incarnate in your lives!