Discussion Questions

First Reading

Jeremiah 33:14-16

F1. We welcome a new year of grace and the Lord’s surprises. “The days are coming, says the Lord.” What do the coming days of Advent awaken in you? How will you prepare?

F2. In this reading Jeremiah reminds the people of the Lord’s promise to them. How does that promise relate to hope? Why is Advent called the season of hope? Is hope a risky virtue? Is it ardent expectation? What would your life be like without hope? What can you do to bring hope to people you know?
 

Second Reading

1 Thessalonians 3:12-4:2

S1. What does Pope Francis say in the encyclical Fratelli Tutti about what community helps us do together? Would St. Paul’s prayer, “may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all” do the same thing? Who benefits? The ones loved or the ones loving?

It is my desire that, in this our time, by acknowledging the dignity of each human person, we can contribute to the rebirth of a universal aspiration to fraternity. Fraternity between all men and women. “Here we have a splendid secret that shows us how to dream and to turn our life into a wonderful adventure. No one can face life in isolation. … We need a community that supports and helps us, in which we can help one another to keep looking ahead. How important it is to dream together.

… By ourselves, we risk seeing mirages, things that are not there. Dreams, on the other hand, are built together.” Let us dream, then, as a single human family, as fellow travelers sharing the same flesh, as children of the same earth which is our common home, each of us bringing the richness of his or her beliefs and convictions, each of us with his or her own voice, brothers and sisters all.

Fratelli Tutti: Encyclical On Fraternity and Social Friendship
Oct. 3, 2020

S2. St. Paul said he “abounded in love” for the Thessalonians, to strengthen their hearts. Discuss “abounding in love” as an effective method of strengthening hearts or eliciting change of a kind. Do you think great change or growth ever happens without immense love?

Gospel

Luke 21:25-28, 34-36

G1. Could much of this Gospel pssage have been written today (roaring sea, drowsy hearts, dying of fright, anxieties, carousing, imminent tribulations)? Jesus tells us to pray for strength. Do you believe that if you ask for strength you will receive it? Could God send it through other people? Could you be a source of strength for others?

G2. If you said the prayer, “Come, Lord Jesus,” several times throughout the day, do you think it might keep your heart from becoming drowsy and maybe free it from anxieties?
 

**From Saint Louis University