PODCAST | “An Invitation to the Desert”: Second Sunday of Advent
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In this podcast for the Second Sunday of Advent, Fr. Leo Austin reflects on the invitation we receive this season to go to the desert– a mysterious and quiet place where we can meet Our Lord face-to-face without distractions and without hiding to contemplate our lives and specifically our vocations.
Even if he already knows everything, it is good for our relationship with Jesus Christ to open our hearts to him and tell him the story of our lives. This is always a little bit scary, as Fr. Leo explains, but God does not come to accuse us or threaten us. He comes to walk with us and offer us his light.
This Advent, therefore, can be a great opportunity to open our eyes and allow Our Lord to point out things that maybe need to change or scars from the past that are not completely healed. Through an examination of our lives and through confession, we experience God’s healing and the peace of having him inside us.
A bonus of being forgiven is being able to forgive and to bring that peace and dignity to the world that sometimes is so hectic and also in need of God.
Did you enjoy this podcast? Explore “A Time for Hope: Advent with St. Josemaria Escriva” – a collection of devotions, readings, and meditations from the St. Josemaria Institute to help you prepare for the Nativity of Our Lord and the season of Christmas.
Rev. Leo Austin
Fr. Leo Austin is a priest of the Prelature of Opus Dei. He has a B.A. from Pompeu Fabra University (Barcelona, Spain) and a Ph.D. from the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome, Italy). After being ordained in 2008, Fr. Leo developed his ministry as a priest at Aldovea High School in Madrid, Spain. In 2013, he moved to the United States where he has been involved in several programs for high school students in California and Illinois, as well as working with college students and young professionals, providing them with spiritual guidance and helping them to live their Catholic Faith as an integral part of their personality.
