1. We are the clay and you the potter. Who made the beautiful “clay pot” to which the reading and Pope Francis are referring? Why is the pot fragile? How long has it been around? Is it still here? What is the immense gift of faith that it contains?

Without the Church—believe me—I would not have been able to encounter Jesus, even with the awareness that the immense gift of faith is kept in the fragile clay pots of our humanity.

Pope Francis responds to a Non Believer
4 September 2013

2.“Would that you might meet us doing right, that we were mindful of you in our ways!” Is there a veil that keeps you from seeing God’s presence at work in your life and in your world? Can you use Advent to lift that veil, to get more in touch with God in and around you?

Second Reading
1 Corinthians 1:3-9

1. St. Paul’s concern here is to make sure you are ready for life with God after death. Is there life with God before your death? Explain. If you feel sometimes that, indeed, “you are … lacking in …  spiritual gifts,” what could you do during Advent to restart, to recover the goals of your existence?

2. St. Paul also says “that in him you were enriched in every way, with all discourse and all knowledge. ... ” In what areas could all of us use God’s gift to us of knowledge and discourse right now?

Gospel
Mark 13:33-37

1. As vigilant gatekeepers watching for the Lord of the house, what signs do you observe that tell you God is present in the world today and in your life?

2. “He leaves home and places his servants in charge.” Are we the “servants” in charge of the preservation of the earth? Do we have any responsibility regarding the climate crisis? What can you do with a group? Individually?