God is with us. The all-powerful Lord of heaven and earth, who humbled Himself to be born of the virgin, who suffered the shame of the cross, and who triumphed over Sin, Death and Satan, is with us. And He doesn’t just sit beside us, like a good friend, unable to do anything. He gives us grace, strength, and all that we need to endure, to persevere, to hang on, to trust, confident that those who trust in Him will never be put to shame.

The early Church won people to the Lord Jesus by being immensely attractive and by showing forth a different way of being human. It was usually only after those encounters with Christians that those who did not know God came into the Church to be baptized, feast on the Eucharist, and join the community of believers. It will almost certainly be the same now.

Ours is a culture that often mistakenly equates greatness with things like money, fame, titles and other such things. The saints show us the truth. The truly great ones are the ones who love. As we enter into these Advent days, let us call upon the intercession of Blessed Solanus, and those others to whom we are especially close, that our love may increase and abound, in order that we might become ever more conformed to the Heart of Jesus, and so that those who are living the nightmare that is life apart from God might come to know Him.

These tasks and responsibilities of the king, all gloriously fulfilled in “Jesus Christ, ruler of the kings of the earth,” help to inform our understanding of what it means to participate in His Kingship and how we’re supposed to exercise that participation. In short, we are called to have our eyes and hearts wide open to those around us who are in need – wherever they may be: the streets, nursing homes, the unborn, the elderly, victims of human trafficking and so many more places.