Fr. Jerry Pokorsky: We Know Not the Day nor the Hour — If You Get My Drift

By Fr. Jerry Pokorsky, Catholic Culture, Dec 01, 2025

Fr. Jerry Pokorsky is a priest of the Diocese of Arlington who has also served as a financial administrator in the Diocese of Lincoln. Trained in business and accounting, he also holds a Master of Divinity and a Master’s in moral theology. Father Pokorsky co-founded both CREDO and Adoremus, two organizations deeply engaged in authentic liturgical renewal. He writes regularly for a number of Catholic websites and magazines. See full bio.

Advent begins with the same warning that ended the liturgical year: Be watchful. Stay awake. You do not know the day nor the hour (cf. Mt. 24:37-44). Jesus speaks these words not to frighten us, but to shake us free from spiritual lethargy. Advent is our time to wake up, purify our souls with God’s grace, and clear the obstacles that keep us from receiving Jesus—in Bethlehem, at the end of time, and at every Mass.

Advent is the season of spiritual readiness for the coming of Jesus. Not paranoia, not anxiety: readiness. Jesus tells us to stay awake because He desires to come to us with mercy, not catch us off guard with judgment. The Church gives us these weeks to reorder our lives, examine our habits, and prepare the way of the Lord.

Let’s begin with a good, honest Advent confession. Mortal sin doesn’t take place in a vacuum. An ensemble of venial sins usually accompanies grave sins. And to prepare for confession, we must avoid the many occasions of sin—and the distractions that lead us there. …