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Second Sunday of Advent
December 9, 2007 Year: A
Is 11:1-10; Rom 15:4-9; Mt 3:1-12
Preparing the way of the Lord
First Reading...
"On that day:
A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide by what his ears hear;
but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the
wicked.
Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,
and faithfulness the belt around his loins.
The wolf shall live with the lamb,
the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze,
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,
and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder's
den.
They will not hurt or destroy
on all my holy mountain;
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
On that day the root of Jesse shall stand
as a signal to the peoples;
the nations shall inquire of him,
and his dwelling shall be glorious." [Is. 11:1-10]
Second Reading...
"Whatever was written in former days was written for our
instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the
encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope.
May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you
to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with
Christ Jesus, so that together you may with one voice
glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has
welcomed you, for the glory of God. For I tell you that
Christ has become a servant of the circumcised on behalf
of the truth of God in order that he might confirm the
promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the
Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is
written, "Therefore I will confess you among the
Gentiles, and sing praises to your name." [Rom. 15:4-9]
Gospel Reading...
"In those days John the Baptist appeared in the
wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, 'Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven has come near.' This is the one of
whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said, 'The voice
of one crying out in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of
the Lord, make his paths straight.''
Now John wore clothing of camel's hair with a leather
belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild
honey. Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were
going out to him, and all the region along the Jordan,
and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan,
confessing their sins.
But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for
baptism, John said to them, 'You brood of vipers! Who
warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit
worthy of repentance. Do not presume to say to
yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our ancestor'; for I
tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up
children to Abraham. Even now the axe is lying at the
root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not
bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is
more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy
to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy
Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and
he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his
wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with
unquenchable fire.'" [Mt. 3:1-12]
I remember during my fourth year theological studies in
Mangalore St. Joseph Seminary (1986-87) one of the
professors teaching us Sacraments, and precisely on the
importance of baptism made the reflections. He said that
once we receive baptism we will be saved by all means.
God will continue to work in us. Well, the Berlin Wall
or Iron Curtain had not yet fallen but I remember the
professor saying that President Mikhail Gorbachev had
been baptised and our faith tells us his baptism must
make a difference. His grandmother had him secretly
baptised by a Russian Orthodox priest. His
grandmother/mother put an icon of Jesus on the wall in
every room in the house. Gorbachev’s father was a
staunch Communist and put a picture of Stalin next to
each picture of Jesus. For some reason or other the
lecturer’s words about President Gorbachev’s baptism
stuck in my mind and three years later when I was
studying in Spain (Avila) the Berlin Wall fell on 9
November 1989. Then on 1st December 1989 I
watched President Gorbachev being driven into the
Vatican to meet Pope John Paul II. The two met and
spoke in the Pope’s private library for seventy
minutes. That is the power of the Holy Spirit received
at baptism. Baptism counts. Baptism makes a
difference.
GOSPEL
INTRODUCTION:
There was conflict between the followers
of John the Baptist and the followers of Jesus in the
days of the early Church. The Baptist’s people claimed
superiority because Jesus had once been a disciple of
the Baptist and had been baptized by him. The Jesus’
people responded with stories in which John was
presented as preparing the way for the coming of Jesus.
The debate no longer concerns us today. But we do see
that, whether intentionally or not, John did clear the
way for Jesus because he preached a decisive change in
history. He was the most powerful of all the apocalyptic
preachers at a time when everyone was expecting change.
The change which came with Jesus was not the one that
people expected, probably not the one John expected
either. But his warning that it was a time for “metanoia,”
a word meaning “total transformation” was valid for his
day and for us too. We are called upon during advent and
indeed through our whole lives to transform ourselves,
to break out of our old habits and begin life again as a
new person. We may not be able to do it perfectly. We
will make mistakes and fall back into old ways, but it
is enough to respond continually to the invitation.
Story:
Once upon a time, a pastor invited his
parishioners to participate in special mass to which he
invited representatives of the local Muslim community.
He invited the Muslim guests and the parishioners to a
gathering in the church hall after the liturgy. He hoped
that once the parishioners became acquainted with people
of a different faith tradition who lived beyond the
boundaries of their upper middle class neighbor, they
might respond to the challenge to respect other
religious traditions. However, some parishioners were
irate that the pastor had invited non-Christians to the
liturgy – after all they did not belong to the parish
and had no business being at the mass. Indeed some of
the irate parishioners left their local church and
joined another parish, making sure that its pastor would
not expect them to mingle with people of a different
faith. Those who remained in the parish developed a
deeper appreciation for the beliefs of their guests and
also learned from them that they, too, had members who
questioned to hear that they would attend a Catholic
liturgy. All at the gathering agreed that both of their
traditions call for respect of the beliefs of others.
Wilderness is always fearful, lonely, and
suspicious. Hence, there is fear all over. If you find a
path in the wilderness you are to a certain extent going
to be happy, that you will reach a place of safety. John
the Baptist cries to prepare a way for the Lord in the
wilderness.
How do we live: Wilderness of fear,
anxiety, depression and tensions. Hence, going out of
the wilderness is trying to make a path. Get out of the
wilderness through a path. Path requires that we work
hard.
The
first reading for this Sunday is taken from the book of
the Prophet Isaiah. During the time of Advent, we read
the Prophet Isaiah almost every day. So who was Isaiah?
Briefly, let us say that he lived in Jerusalem during
the eighth century before our era, that is to say around
the year 750 before Jesus Christ. According to rabbinic
tradition, he was the brother of King Amaziah. In any
case, according to the Bible of Maredsous (1990
edition), “he seems to have belonged to a notable family
of Judah” (p. XLI). Seized by the Spirit of God, Isaiah
raised his voice against all the sins of his time. In
light of today’s liturgy, we can compare him to John the
Baptist, who preached a baptism of repentance to all the
People of God (cf. gospel).
So,
announcing the coming of the Judge of all men, Isaiah
prophesied to his contemporaries about the imminent
coming of the Messiah: There shall come forth a shoot
from the stump of Jesse - Jesse was the father of David
(1 Sam 16:1) - a branch shall grow out of his roots. But
he wanted to specify what was essential to the mission
of the Messiah: The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon
him... So what was the promised Messiah to do? Nothing
other than to pour out the Spirit of the Lord over all
the earth, over every man, over every woman, in the
measure of each person’s conversion to God, his Creator
and Master! Thus, everyone will be united and in peace
with each other, having realized unity and peace through
conversion.
The
importance of this passage of Isaiah 11:1-2 was pointed
out by Pope John Paul II, who wrote: This text is
important for the whole pneumatology of the Old
Testament, because it constitutes a kind of bridge
between the ancient biblical concept of “spirit,”
understood primarily as a “charismatic breath of wind,”
and the “Spirit” as a person and as a gift, a gift for
the person. The Messiah of the lineage of David (“from
the stump of Jesse”) is precisely that person upon whom
the Spirit of the Lord “shall rest.” (Servant of God
John Paul II, Encyclical on the Holy Spirit, 18 May
1986, no. 15)
Who
will receive the Spirit of God? Who if not he or she
whose spirit is entirely disposed to receive it. For the
Spirit of God is the Spirit of Love! And no one can
welcome love other than through love! So it is thanks to
the conversion of our heart and soul that the Spirit of
God, who rests on Christ, will come into us, here below,
and for all eternity.
Isaiah, speaking of the Spirit, continues with these
words: with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and
decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he
shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and
with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
Righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist, and
faithfulness the girdle of his loins.
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in
the strength of His power. Put on the whole armour of
God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles
of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of
blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present
darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the
heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armour of
God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil
day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand
therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your
waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As
shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready
to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take
the shield of faith, with which you will be able to
quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the
helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which
is the Word of God." [Eph 6:10- 17]
Accordingly, we must "Prepare the way of the Lord, make
His paths straight." [Mt 3:3] The Gospel of Matthew [Mt
3:1-12] began by telling us that Saint John the Baptist
proclaimed a baptism of repentance in the wilderness of
Judea. In the desert of Judea, there is a steep slope
that falls from the central ridge of the country to the
valley of the Jordan and the Dead Sea. According to
Catholic tradition that has been handed down, when
reference is made to baptism in the Jordan, it indicates
that St. John the Baptism preached near the river, most
likely not far from Jericho.
Saint
Matthew, as is his custom, seeks to show us how the
prophecies of the Old Testament find their realization
in the New Covenant. Here, he takes up this passage of
Isaiah which speaks of John the Baptist: “A voice cries
in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his
paths straight.” (Is 40:3)
Scientists say that certain deserts are growing daily,
such as the Sahara desert or the one in Australia. Are
there not other deserts that are growing in our modern
societies? Where are the John the Baptists who announce
the coming of the Kingdom of God? I do not hear them...
Let us
not forget these words of the Lord: “When the Son of man
comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Lk 18:8) Let us
ask the Virgin Mary to pray with us and for us!
Preparation for Christmas means:
-
Trying to understand others,
especially your family members
-
God speaks to us through many ways,
even through our children
-
Preparing the way for the Lord, means
also keeping a clean heart
-
Trying to be aware of the poverty and
misery around us
-
Being content with what gives us
daily
-
Trying to extend a helping hand to
those who are in need
-
Becoming more active in our Church
programs
-
Becoming a SCC animator
-
Trying to visit the community at
least during this Advent
Well, practical points can be many more,
but one thing, during this Advent make a good confession
of sins, so that your Christmas will be a joyful, inner
disposition to accept the Lord Jesus. AMEN
A
New book from Fr. Rudy :
Short review of the book: This book is an out come of a
serious exegetical study on the important words and
texts from the writings of St John of the Cross. The
study deals with a short life and writings of the mystic
and then does a complete study on GOD, MAN and WAYS to
EXPERIENCE GOD. The book is available at: St. Joseph
Church, Near Holy Cross Convent School, Mira Road East,
Thane Dt. Maharashtra State - 401 107, India. Books can
be ordered through email:
rudyocd@yahoo.com
or rudyocd@gmail.com
The cost of the book is Rs.
125/- pp.xviii + 234, The Title of the Book is: THE
DYNAMISM OF SPIRITUAL GROWTH - An Exegetical Study on
St. John of the Cross, author: Dr. Rudolf V. D' Souza,
OCD, MA. PhD. |
Dear friend, my
homilies will be posted on Thursdays and you can benefit
them and if you need more resources, you could contact
me on
rudyocd@yahoo.com or
rudyocd@gmail.com
Let us make this ministry
fruitful one so that the Word of God becomes a source of
joy for me and for you and help people become more aware
of its riches. You are also welcome to share your
feedback with me. Thanks and God bless.
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