ADVENT II
[B]: (Is 40:1-5, 9-11; 2 Pt 3:8-14; Mk 1:1-8)
All three
readings focus on the absolute necessity of our readying ourselves by
repentance and reparation for Christ’s coming. John the Baptist
always plays a big role in Advent. He was the last and greatest of
a long line of Old Testament prophets. God sent those prophets to prepare
Israel for the arrival of the Messiah, the anointed Savior and
Redeemer of the world. Isaiah's prophecy in today's First Reading was
made more than 700 years before John the Baptist's prophecy, but
their substance is very much the same: God has not forgotten his
people, and in spite of their sufferings, sins, and failings, he will come and
save them, shepherding them to happiness beyond what they can imagine.
As the first
New Testament prophet, John the Baptist has three valuable lessons to
teach us about how to be a prophet. First, John invited the people of
his time to repent from their sins, so that they would be ready to welcome
Jesus, the Savior. We too are called to invite others to leave behind the sinful
patterns of life that our society encourages, so that God's grace can come
into their lives. If we really care about other people, we will do our best
to warn them against sin.
Second, He
called for repentance, for people to turn away from their sins, but
he also turned people's attention towards something
- the greatness, the beauty, and the transforming power of Christ: "One
mightier than I is coming after me... He will baptize you with the Holy
Spirit." We too are called to turn people's attention to Christ,
so that they can discover his love, goodness, and transforming power.
Third, Perhaps
the most remarkable thing about St John the Baptist was that so many
people actually listened to him. Why was that? Because how he lived was consistent with
what he said. John’s ministry was effective primarily because his life was
his message: he lived what he preached. He was a man from the desert. In
its solitude, he had heard the voice of God, and, hence, he had the
courage of his convictions. His camel’s hair garment and leather belt resembled
those of Elijah and other great prophets of Israel. His food, too, was very
simple: wild locusts and honey. The Israelites had not had a
prophet for four hundred years, and the people were waiting expectantly for
one. John’s message was effective also because he was completely
humble. His role was to serve Jesus and to serve the people. “He
must increase, I must decrease,” he says elsewhere (Jn 3:30). He frankly
admitted that he was the Messiah’s humble and obedient messenger,
preparing a straight way for the Messiah in the hearts and lives of the Jews.
Everyone who
knew John and heard him speak could see immediately that he was not
living a self-centered life, and that opened their hearts. We
too, as New Testament prophets, are called to live in such a way that the best
argument supporting our words about Christ will be that we are
living like Christ. This is the real power behind all the
saints. As New Testament prophets, we must use words to invite
repentance and to tell about God's goodness and Christ's truth, but our best argument
will always be Christ-like lives.
According to
the prophet Isaiah, there are two things we can do to get ready to receive
those blessings: to fill in every valley and to make low every
mountain.
The valleys stand
for our sins of omission, the things we should be doing
but aren't. For example, if we aren't spending quality time with our
family, we need to fill in that valley. If we aren't spending at least a few
minutes each day in prayer with God, we need to fill in that valley.
John’s
message demands from us too, to level the mountains of ego and the selfish
and sinful habits that we have built up; the sins of commission. If
we like to gossip and spread criticism, we need to tear that mountain down. If
we are leading a double life, indulging in hidden sins or lies that
are poisoning our souls, we need to lay low that mountain.
If we are
arrogantly treating our colleagues, teammates, or family members like lower
class people, we need to get rid of that mountain. The mountains and
valleys inhibit God's grace from traveling into our hearts; they
are roadblocks that keep out God’s mercy, peace, and wisdom. Advent
is the season to smooth out and clear up the roads to our hearts.
It was their
stubborn pride and self-centeredness, which blinded the eyes of the Jews and
kept them from recognizing Jesus as their long-awaited Messiah. The same stubborn
pride, the same exaggerated sense of our own dignity, blinds the intellects of
many of us today who not only fail to accept Christ and his good tidings, but
also prevent others from accepting him.
Every
Christian is called to be another John the Baptist, and that's why the
Church always holds his example up for our consideration during Advent. Today
Jesus will come onto the altar here in this church as truly as he
came into the manger at Bethlehem. When he does, let's thank him for not
forgetting about us, and let's promise him that this Advent we
will do our best to fulfill our Advent mission, by striving to follow
the example of St John the Baptist.
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