The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master's crib, but Israel does not know; my people do not understand. (Isa 1:3)
Such experiencing of the truth of the Holy Scripture is Advent. (…) Yes, I am Israel. I am the ox that does not know its owner. And only when we descend from the throne of our complacency will what the psalmist says happen: the heart will be lifted up, will gain height, and the hidden presence of God will begin to penetrate deeper into our confused lives. Advent is not a sudden miracle or wonder, as the preachers of revolution and messengers of new paths to salvation promised. God deals with us entirely humanly, leading us step by step and waiting for us. The days of Advent are like a quiet knocking on our troubled souls, urging us to dare to seek the mysterious presence of God that alone can truly free a person.
(Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, meditation on the Advent season)
