Homily: 2nd Sunday in Advent – Cycle C
Back
at the beginning of the pandemic, we began to describe our behaviors as a “new
normal”. Soon after, I myself and many
others began to see an opportunity in this way of thinking. While many in the media were saying that the
“new normal” meant restrictions on movement, social distancing, and other
limitations, I starting asking whether the “new normal” could actually be a
“better normal”, one in which, in spite of limitations, we, as a human society,
would be better than we were before.
I
bring this up today because our readings suggest that Advent is a time to look
towards and to hope for a “better normal”.
Our first reading, from the book of the prophet Baruch, describes the
prophecy in which God’s chosen people (as represented by the city Jerusalem)
are told that, after a time of suffering (which was the Babylonian exile), they
will be restored as a people in their own land.
Certainly, this was remarkable in itself. The Israelites in exile had long-despaired
that they would ever return to their native land and so this prophecy must have
been a great surprise to them: one that filled them with great joy.
Nonetheless,
the prophecy went on to describe how the restoration of the Israelites to their
native land would not simply be a restoration to the “old normal”—that is, the
“normal” that they enjoyed before the exile—rather, it would be a “new normal”,
a “better normal”: a transformation into a people whose prestige and grace
would become the object of admiration for all the peoples of the world. This would be symbolized by the giving of a
new name to the representative city, Jerusalem.
No longer would it be known as “foundation of peace”, but rather as “the
peace of justice, the glory of God’s worship”: names that indicate that the
foundation of peace is justice, and that the glory of justice is the true
worship of God, which God intended to restore by restoring his people to their
native land.
Perhaps
the most important point about this restoration—this establishment of the
“new”, that is, “better normal”—is the motivation for it. Although the reading does not explicitly
indicate why God had decided to bring about this restoration, it appears to
indicate that it is because of his mercy—that is, his “suffering of heart”—for
his chosen people. In other words, his
motivation is not because the Israelites proved themselves worthy, which they
hadn’t proven, but rather, having seen their repentance, that he had seen them
suffer long enough and thus wished to end their suffering and to make of them a
shining sign of his love and mercy to all the world.
Friends,
this message is important for us to hear today: both because of our current
situation and especially because we are in the season of Advent. For nearly two years now, we have been living
in this pandemic. Even though, at the
beginning, bold proclamations were made that “we’re in this together”, time has
proven, it seems, that we have become even more divided than we were before. The most recent shooting at a high school in
Michigan is an indication, perhaps, that we are more of a threat to one another
now than before the pandemic started. I
think that we can agree that this is not a “better normal” than the one we left.
Still
also in our Church. Attendance at Mass
and adherence to the Catholic faith have not returned to their pre-pandemic
levels. Time away from Mass when our
churches were closed to congregational worship led many to consider that they
did not need to attend Mass and so they haven’t returned, even though
restrictions on Mass attendance have been lifted. And young people, for whom faith should be a
rock of stability, are instead turning away from the Catholic faith and are
becoming more disillusioned than ever before.
This
message, therefore, is one of hope: that God has witnessed our suffering and,
in his mercy, wishes to restore us. And
not to the old, pre-pandemic normal, but rather to a new and better normal in
which we become a shining light of his love and mercy to the world. That this message comes to us in the season of
Advent is a reminder that this grace of restoration has already come to
us. In Jesus, God became one of us so
that the work of restoring our human nature to its original glory could be
accomplished in us. Therefore, with
great solemnity we celebrate his birth.
Nevertheless, this season reminds us that the full manifestation of this
restoration is yet to come, when Jesus returns in the fullness of his glory to
establish the “new and eternal Jerusalem”: the fullness of God’s kingdom for
all eternity.
Advent,
however, is more than just a reminder.
Rather, it is also a call to action.
When God sent his promise to restore his chosen people, it was because
he had seen their sorrow for their sins and had mercy on their suffering. Although they could not prove themselves
worthy of God’s forgiveness, they nonetheless demonstrated their faith in his
mercy through their acts of repentance.
When John the Baptist began his ministry of preaching in preparation for
the coming of Jesus, he began by calling people to a “baptism of repentance for
the forgiveness of sins”. Thus, the
immediate preparation for God’s merciful restoration of his people is
repentance! The same, of course, applies
to us.
During
this time of Advent, we are called to examine our hearts to see in what ways we
have turned from God through sin, not only because we fear God’s punishment
(which we should fear), but also because sin turns us away from the hopeful
expectation of Jesus’ second coming, thus leaving us unprepared. By recognizing and acknowledging our sin
(especially by making a good, sacramental confession), we not only prepare
ourselves for his coming, but we also hasten it! These acts of repentance demonstrate our
faith in God’s mercy and so call on him to respond as he did to the Israelites
in exile: to have mercy on them and so end their suffering. For us, this means the second coming of
Jesus. Thus, our call is to do the work
to awaken our hearts from the drowsiness that comes from the anxieties of daily
life and to acknowledge and repent from our sins, so that once again we might
look with joyful anticipation for our Lord’s return.
Friends,
let us not neglect this important work during this season of Advent, for
through it we will cooperate with God’s grace to bring about the new and better
normal that he desires for us. To
accomplish it, however, we must begin with silence. And this is hard work! The world around us increases the noise
during this season: music, lights, decorations… thousands of ways to distract
us from the work of examining our hearts and turning them back to the
Lord. (There’s a reason why the only
adornment for Advent that the Church suggests is an Advent wreath: a simple
wreath with only four lights…) We should
fight against this by planning daily times of separation from these noises in
order to cultivate prayer: both as individuals and as families, so that we
might still our hearts and find there an encounter with God.
Then,
we’ll be prepared to make a good confession, through which we will not only
conquer the effects of the evil one in our lives, but also restore and renew
our connection with Jesus, thus preparing us to receive him when he comes. Through confession, we will also unlock our
hearts to love others, prompting us to participate in the work of building a
new and better normal: one in which we are more united than before and
solidarity moves us to share the good that we have received with all those
around us, especially the poor.
Friends,
our Blessed Mother, Mary, is our great example and help in this good work. This week, as we celebrate her in her
Immaculate Conception and honor her under the title of Our Lady of Guadalupe,
let us ask for her prayers and follow her example of humble faith, so that we,
too, might rejoice with her in the fullness of eternal joy, when her Son,
Jesus, returns in glory.
Given at St. Joan of Arc parish: Kokomo, IN – December 5th,
2021
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