FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT

From Advent darkness will come a great light, just as a glorious dawn paints the morning sky. In today’s Gospel Mark reminds us to be vigilant. We never know when we will be called to judgement.
Perhaps we need to be like a guard dog always alert for intruders, even when sleeping. One exception was Rollo, a big bloodhound. Like a good guard dog, he always napped at the entrance of his owner’s little country store. A stranger noticed a sign at the store entrance warning, “Danger! Beware of dog.” Looking down at the snoring Rollo, he asked the owner, “Is that the dog folks are supposed to be aware of?” “Yep that’s him.”
The stranger was amused. “He certainly doesn’t lok like a dangerous dog to me. Why in the world did you post that sign?” “Because,” the owner explained, “before I posted that sign, people kept tripping over him.”
Deacon Dick Folger