Dave “The Giraffe” Van Vickle and I (Mike “Gomer” Gormley) start off nice and easy by talking about the darkness in the Church right now … and then we ease into our main topic for this Advent season—repentance.
The repentance aspect of Advent is highly neglected but extremely important. Most people like to focus on the love of God made man (which is huge, don’t get me wrong) but what is the proper response to this great love? Repentance.
So, how do we repent, why do we repent, why is Advent a season of repentance?
Snippet from the Show
Our entire Theology revolves around repentance because it’s not Jesus overlooking our sins, it’s him dying for us so that we may be transformed.
SHOWNOTES
Nehemiah 2:17-20 – “Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer disgrace.” And I told them of the hand of my God which had been upon me for good, and also of the words which the king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work. But when Sanbal′lat the Hor′onite and Tobi′ah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they derided us and despised us and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” Then I replied to them, “The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build; but you have no portion or right or memorial in Jerusalem.”
Catechism of the Catholic Church, p. 1430 – “Jesus’ call to conversion and penance, like that of the prophets before him, does not aim first at outward works, “sackcloth and ashes,” fasting and mortification, but at the conversion of the heart, interior conversion. Without this, such penances remain sterile and false; however, interior conversion urges expression in visible signs, gestures and works of penance.”
Romans 7:15 – “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.”
Exodus 32:15-20 – “And Moses turned, and went down from the mountain with the two tables of the testimony in his hands, tables that were written on both sides; on the one side and on the other were they written. And the tables were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, graven upon the tables. When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.” But he said, “It is not the sound of shouting for victory, or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the sound of singing that I hear.” And as soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses’ anger burned hot, and he threw the tables out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it with fire, and ground it to powder, and scattered it upon the water, and made the people of Israel drink it.”
Matthew 8:1-4 – “When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him; and behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” And he stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to any one; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to the people.”
Catechism of the Catholic Church, p. 1431 – “Interior repentance is a radical reorientation of our whole life, a return, a conversion to God with all our heart, an end of sin, a turning away from evil, with repugnance toward the evil actions we have committed. At the same time it entails the desire and resolution to change one’s life, with hope in God’s mercy and trust in the help of his grace. This conversion of heart is accompanied by a salutary pain and sadness which the Fathers called animi cruciatus (affliction of spirit) and compunctio cordis (repentance of heart).”
Five Practical Takeaways
- Google 3 different examinations of conscious: one based on your gender, one based on the 10 commandments, and one based on the virtues or the beatitudes
- Read paragraph 1432 in the Catechism, and write it out
- Create your own daily penitential rite
- Think about one sin or recurring thing in their life and create a plan to uproot it and remove it from your life
- Look at your calendar and mark when you’ll go to confession during Advent
As we approach our 1 year anniversary of this podcast, we would like to thank our listeners for your constant support and prayers.
Resources
- Text ESKB to 33-777 to subscribe and get added to Gomer and Dave’s email list!
- Letter to a Suffering Church by Bishop Barron
- The Activated Disciple by Jeff Cavins
- Forming Intentional Disciples by Sherry Weddell
- The Virtues by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.
- The Ten Commandments – Exodus 20:1-20
- The Beatitudes – Matthew 5:1-12
- Visit our website at ascensionpress.com
