2nd Sunday of Advent

 Theme:  God’s reign is present already in Jesus Christ but it is also yet to come at the “end-time.”  The central marks of God’s reign are universal justice and peace.  Christians are called to give witness to that justice and peace through their individual repentance and communal harmony.

Continual personal repentance is necessary for a healthy Christian life.  Harmony within the Christian community is necessary to encourage both personal repentance and loving witness, the central characteristics of God’s reign of justice and peace.  Without this corporate / communal and individual Christian witness there are fewer, if any signs in this world that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, which would be a disaster from the Christian viewpoint.

Human justice and world peace are still elusive and scarce commodities in the modern world.  Human rights are being denied daily in many countries around the globe.  Localized wars continually threaten universal catastrophe.  Justice and peace are not always very well served within the Christian churches either, so Christians cannot afford to be smug about others’ failures.

 Point 1: Justice and peace are essential to God’s reign.  The ideal set forth poetically in Isaiah is based on the model of love that God has for his creatures and the whole creation.  As God cherishes and promotes his creation, so also his creatures must act and react toward one another lovingly, justly and in peace.  When individuals give one another what is due, not only is justice present but there is a basis for love of one another.  In turn, peace is founded in proper self-love, love of neighbor, and the love of one human community for another.  Until genuine love is concretely acted out in daily life, there will be no real hope for either justice or peace, the two central marks of God’s reign which is indeed present already but still to come in it fullness.

Point 2: Christians are witnesses to God’s reign.  Like John the Baptizer, all Christians have by their baptism the privilege and duty of witnessing to God’s reign, already come in Jesus Christ, yet to come fully.  Concretely, Christians are called to hard work for justice and peace, in themselves individually, in the family, the neighborhood, the village, the wider community and, when possible, in the world.  Work for justice and peace means preparing the way of the Lord of Love.  It also entails acting prophetically as did John the Baptizer.  Responsible, constructive criticism and efforts toward needed change are part of every Christian’s role as prophet in the daily mission of justice and peace.

Point 3: Witnessing to God’s reign requires personal repentance and corporate / communal harmony.  Like John the Baptizer, Christians themselves must take seriously the call to repentance in order to prepare for the full presence of God’s reign.  Personal sin is a countersign to God’s full reign of love; sin deals with love too, the inordinate love of self and the failure to love others.  Sin frequently involves infractions of justice and breaking the peace.  Personal repentance is a continual process of turning to God and to God’s ideals, love of neighbor and contributes to communal harmony, a necessary atmosphere for the growth of love, as St. Paul reminds the Romans.  Personal repentance and communal harmony go hand in hand as prophetic signs of God’s reign, already present but yet to come.

Conclusion: As we prepare to celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace and Justice, we should firmly renew our baptismal commitment to be prophets of God’s reign and resolve to take concrete steps to overcome injustice and disharmony in our daily lives.  There must be someone to whom I have failed to give his or her due.  There must be commissions or omissions in my life by which the harmony of the family, community, neighborhood, parish is disrupted.  There must be times when I fail to be a responsible critic in face of injustice and disharmony.  Perhaps now is the time for a thorough examination of conscience and an approach to the sacrament of reconciliation.

QUESTIONS THAT MAY LEAD TO OTHER THOUGHTS / REFLECTIONS / DISCUSSION / WRITTEN

1. Do you really see any connection between your personal sins and your mission to promote justice and peace?
2. Do you feel helpless in the face of massive injustice, war and hate in the world?  Is there anything that you can do – what can you do?
3. Have you acted justly, fairly and in a way that promotes harmony in your House (Moreau House)?  Have your personal actions and reactions to your community members promoted God’s reign of justice and peace?
4. What are you doing to answer the call of Advent to repentance?
5. When was the last time you approached Jesus in the sacrament of reconciliation?
6. Name something you have done that has been a sacrifice you made in order to promote justice and peace in your community, in your family, in your Church, in the world?

WHAT IS YOUR PROPHETIC ROLE AS A BAPTIZED CHRISTIAN?

The emergence of John was like the sudden sounding of the voice of God. At this time the Jews were sadly conscious that the voice of the prophets spoke no more.  They said that for four hundred years there had been no prophet.  Throughout long centuries the voice of prophecy had been silent. As they put it themselves, “There was no voice, nor any that answered.” But in John the prophetic voice spoke again.  What then were the characteristics of John and his message?

1. He fearlessly denounced evil wherever he might find it.  If Herod the king sinned by contracting an evil and unlawful marriage, John rebuked him.  If the Sadducees and Pharisees, the leaders of orthodox religion, the churchmen of their day, were sunk in ritualistic formalism, John never hesitated to say so.  If the ordinary people were living lives which were unaware of God, John would tell them so.

Wherever John saw evil–in the state, in the Church, in the crowd–he fearlessly rebuked it.  He was like a light which lit up the dark places; he was like wind which swept from God throughout the country.  It was said of a famous journalist who was great, but who never quite fulfilled the work he might have done, “He was perhaps not easily enough disturbed.” There is still a place in the Christian message for warning and denunciation.  “The truth,” said Diogenes, “is like the light to sore eyes.” “He who never offended anyone,” he said, “never did anyone any good.”

It may be that there have been times when the Church (we) was too careful not to offend.  There come occasions when the time for smooth politeness has gone, and the time for blunt rebuke has come.

1. He urgently summoned men to righteousness.  John’s message was not a mere negative denunciation; it was a positive erecting of the moral standards of God. He not only denounced men for what they had done; he summoned them to what they ought to do.  He not only condemned men for what they were; he challenged them to be what they could be.  He was like a voice calling men to higher things.  He not only rebuked evil, he also set before men the good.

It may well be that there have been times when the Church was too occupied in telling men what not to do; and too little occupied in setting before them the height of the Christian ideal.

1. John came from God. He came out of the desert.  He came to men only after he had undergone years of lonely preparation by God. As Alexander Maclaren said, “John leapt, as it were, into the arena full-grown and full-armed.”  He came, not with some opinion of his own, but with a message from God. Before he spoke to men, he had companied long with God.

The preacher, the teacher with the prophetic voice, must always come into the presence of men out of the presence of God.

1. John pointed beyond himself.  The man was not only a light to illumine evil, a voice to rebuke sin, he was also a signpost to God. It was not himself he wished men to see; he wished to prepare them for the one who was to come.

John was preparing the way for the king.  The preacher, the teacher with the prophetic voice, points not at himself, but at God. His aim is not to focus men’s eyes on his own cleverness, but on the majesty of God. The true preacher is obliterated in his message.

Men recognized John as a prophet, even after years when no prophetic voice had spoken, because he was a light to light up evil things, a voice to summon men to righteousness, a signpost to point men to God, and because he had in him that unanswerable authority which clings to the man who comes into the presence of men out of the presence of God.

A Personal Exercise: At the end of your questions write a paragraph describing how you have exercised or fulfilled your role as a prophet in our time / give a couple of instances – or give instances of where you had a chance to exercise your prophetic ministry and failed to do so.

December 7, 2014  – Second Sunday of Advent – Lectionary: 5

Reading 1 – Isaiah 40: 1-5, 9-11

Comfort, give comfort to my people,
says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her
that her service is at an end,
her guilt is expiated;
indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD
double for all her sins.

A voice cries out:
In the desert prepare the way of the LORD!
Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!
Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill shall be made low;
the rugged land shall be made a plain,
the rough country, a broad valley.
Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all people shall see it together;
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

Go up on to a high mountain,
Zion, herald of glad tidings;
cry out at the top of your voice,
Jerusalem, herald of good news!
Fear not to cry out
and say to the cities of Judah:
Here is your God!
Here comes with power
the Lord GOD,
who rules by his strong arm;
here is his reward with him,
his recompense before him.
Like a shepherd he feeds his flock;
in his arms he gathers the lambs,
carrying them in his bosom,
and leading the ewes with care.

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 85: 9-10, 11-12, 13-14

R. Lord, let us see your kindness, and grant us your salvation.
I will hear what God proclaims;
the LORD—for he proclaims peace to his people.
Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him,
glory dwelling in our land.

R. Lord, let us see your kindness, and grant us your salvation.
Kindness and truth shall meet;
justice and peace shall kiss.
Truth shall spring out of the earth,
and justice shall look down from heaven.
R. Lord, let us see your kindness, and grant us your salvation.
The LORD himself will give his benefits;
our land shall yield its increase.
Justice shall walk before him,
and prepare the way of his steps.
R. Lord, let us see your kindness, and grant us your salvation.

Reading 2 – 2 Peter 3: 8-14

Do not ignore this one fact, beloved,
that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years
and a thousand years like one day.
The Lord does not delay his promise, as some regard “delay,”
but he is patient with you,
not wishing that any should perish
but that all should come to repentance.
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief,
and then the heavens will pass away with a mighty roar
and the elements will be dissolved by fire,
and the earth and everything done on it will be found out.

Since everything is to be dissolved in this way,
what sort of persons ought you to be,
conducting yourselves in holiness and devotion,
waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God,
because of which the heavens will be dissolved in flames
and the elements melted by fire.
But according to his promise
we await new heavens and a new earth
in which righteousness dwells.
Therefore, beloved, since you await these things,
be eager to be found without spot or blemish before him, at peace.

Alleluia – Luke 3:4, 6

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths:
all flesh shall see the salvation of God.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel – Mark 1: 1-8

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.

As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;
he will prepare your way.
A voice of one crying out in the desert:
“Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.”
John the Baptist appeared in the desert
proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
People of the whole Judean countryside
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem
were going out to him
and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River
as they acknowledged their sins.
John was clothed in camel’s hair,
with a leather belt around his waist.
He fed on locusts and wild honey.
And this is what he proclaimed:
“One mightier than I is coming after me.
I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.
I have baptized you with water;
he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Listen to the Scriptures:  Click on the link below:

http://ccc.usccb.org/cccradio/NABPodcasts/14_12_07.mp3

Top of Form

For the Church: that God will give us the energy to pursue conversion and the strength to make changes so that we may live more fully the way of justice and holiness, let us pray to the Lord.

For a renewal of the Holy Spirit in our hearts: that God will renew the gift of the Spirit within us and help us to manifest God’s presence in our lives, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who must wait: that we may be transformed during our waiting by reflective listening to our lives, healing of past wounds, and inspiration to compassionate action, let us pray to the Lord.

For wisdom and understanding for political leaders: that God will inspire the leaders of all nations with insights to promote peace, understanding, and justice so that all may live in safety and freedom, let us pray to the Lord.

For deeper respect and appreciation for the created world: that we may be good stewards of the earth, air, land and water that God has provided for our well-being and that of future generations, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who are dissatisfied with life: that they may recognize the gift of each day and have their eyes opened to all the blessings that are present before them, let us pray to the Lord.

For Christians during this Advent season: that we turn from the wastelands of violence, opulence, and greed and strive to promote honest and loving relationships, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who lack freedom or feel entrapped by life, for those with additions, those in abusive situations, and those in refugee camps: that they may experience renewal through God’s presence and freedom through God’s love, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who are experiencing deep loneliness: that God will inspire them with a new vision for their lives and an awareness of the desires for life which God has planed in the hearts, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who are working to promote the dignity of each person: that God will guide and make fruitful their efforts, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who are awaiting the fulfillment of God’s promises: that they may wait with courage and never lose hope, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who are awaiting the return of loved ones: that God will sustain them in their wait and deepen their love and care for each other, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who are working to resolve the financial challenges of the world and our nation: that God will inspire them with new insights and help them to find effective ways to relieve the burdens that many face, let us pray to the Lord.

For all who are ill, particularly those with the Ebola virus or aids: that God will relieve their suffering and inspire those working to find effective treatments, let us pray to the Lord.

For an easing of tensions between nations and within nations: that God will open new paths for communication and the resolution of disputes and give courage to all who must change, let us pray to the Lord.