Homily: 2nd Sunday in Advent – Cycle A
Dear
friends, as we know, Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of
Christ: primarily for his coming again, at the end of time, but also for our
annual remembrance and celebration of his first coming among us. During this time, we celebrate both who
Christ is and what he has done (especially, what he has done for us).
These two aspects of Christ are highlighted for us in our readings
today, particularly in our first reading, so let’s take a closer look.
Isaiah,
as we remember, is prophesying during the time of the Babylonian exile, and his
prophecies are often a declaration of God’s plans to restore his people to
their native land and to reestablish his Temple so that the people may worship
him worthily again. Like the prophecy we
heard last week, these prophecies declare that not only will the Israelites
return to their native land and to proper worship in God’s Temple, but also
that their nation will be raised in honor above every other nation and that a
time of great peace and prosperity shall follow. Needless to say, for a people suffering from
a sense of homelessness, that is, a people who couldn’t escape the sense that
where they were living was not their home and the feeling of embarrassment from
not having defended their homeland, this prophecy was truly good news!
This
week, that prophecy continues as Isaiah describes the one who will come to
bring this prophecy to fulfillment.
Although Isaiah was prophesying about the one who would return the
Israelites to their native land (which Jesus didn’t do: he came hundreds of
years after their return), Christians nonetheless have come to acknowledge that
ultimately this prophecy refers to Christ himself. Let’s take a closer look and see how this
prophecy reveals who Christ is.
The
prophecy begins by saying, “a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse…” In other words, new life will sprout from
that which appeared to be dead. This is
certainly what Christ is, right? Jesus
was conceived in a way that no human has ever or would ever be conceived. Thus, his life is truly new life sprouting
from humanity condemned to death because of sin.
The
prophecy continues, saying, “The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him…” and
describes how this leader will be infused with the best spiritual gifts:
wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge, and, above all, fear of
the Lord. Jesus was conceived in the
womb of Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit and, at his baptism by John in the
Jordan River, the Holy Spirit descended upon him in the form of a dove. Because he is God who took on the form of
human nature, Jesus has always been infused with “the spirit of the Lord”,
which showed forth throughout his life, especially in his public ministry.
Finally,
the prophecy describes the savior as one who judges all justly and who conquers
not through the use of force, but through words and just judgment. Justice and faithfulness are the strongholds
of his character. Jesus showed this
throughout his public ministry. Time and
again, when challenged and tested in his teaching, he responded with words “that
no one could refute” and never resorted to violence. He treated everyone equally: from the most
prominent Pharisee to the lowest leper.
He spoke truth and called all to believe in the kingdom.
Truly,
Isaiah’s prophecy describes an ideal leader: one whom all of us, I’m sure, hope
we could find today. I think that sometimes
we forget that only one who is truly divine could ever embody this ideal and so
we place too much expectation on our worldly leaders. Then, when they disappoint us by their
failures, we give up hope. Advent is
here to remind us that only Christ can fulfill this ideal so as to turn our
minds and hearts back to him, whose coming we both celebrate and anticipate.
Having
considered how this prophecy reveals who Christ is, let us turn now to see how
it reveals what Christ has done for us.
In order to understand this, however, we must first recall the effects
of sin on us and on the world.
In
the beginning, there were four harmonies that the created world enjoyed: the
harmony between man and God, the harmony between man and other men, the harmony
of man with himself, and the harmony between man and nature. Sin disrupted these harmonies, pitting man
against God, against other men, against himself, and against nature. In beautifully poetic language, Isaiah’s
prophecy describes the restoration that this new leader would establish. Predator will no longer hunt prey, children
will play safely among wild animals, all peoples will be united in peace and no
harm will come to anyone, and knowledge of God (that is, close familiarity with
God) will fill the world. Truly, what
Isaiah prophesies is a restoration of paradise!
Although
not in the exact way that Isaiah describes, Jesus fulfills this prophecy of
restoration by his life and ministry.
Being God himself, when he took on our human nature, Jesus opened the
way to restore harmony between man and God by making it possible to know God in
a familiar way. By his teaching and his
miracles, Jesus showed us that he came to restore the harmony that we lost with
ourselves, with other men, and with nature.
Finally, through the Pascal Mystery, Jesus consummated the work of
restoring harmony between God and man.
This is most clearly stated by Jesus himself. Two weeks ago, when we celebrated Jesus
Christ Our King, we read how Jesus, on the cross, turned to the criminal
crucified with him who asked to be remembered in his kingdom and said, “Today, you
will be with me in paradise.” Clearly, Jesus knew that, by his death and
resurrection, he was restoring the harmonies enjoyed in paradise.
Okay,
so who Christ is and what he has done for us is why we celebrate his coming and
anticipate his coming again during Advent.
Is there something for us to do during this time? Certainly!
I think that Saint Paul and John the Baptist provide guidance this week.
First,
however, we need to acknowledge that, because we are still subject to sin,
disharmony still abounds among us. Jesus
unlocked the harmonies for us (that is, he made it possible for us to enjoy
these harmonies again in this life), but we (with the help of the Holy Spirit)
must work to live in them. Thus, Saint
Paul’s instruction to the Roman Christians: “Remember the encouragement of the
Scriptures (like the prophecy from Isaiah) and strive to live in harmony with
God and with one another, both for your own good and for the good of the
Gospel.” John the Baptist, in preparing
for Christ to reveal himself, makes a similar call. “Repent from your sins so as to live in
harmony! For there is no mercy for one
who clings to disharmony.”
This,
therefore, is our work of preparing: to make real and tangible the harmonies
that Christ came to restore so that he will find us ready to receive him when
he comes again. Let us, then, spend
these weeks examining our consciences, being sensitive to the ways in which, by
our own thoughts, words, and actions, disharmony disrupts our relationships
with God and with others. Then, let us
ask for the help of the Holy Spirit to choose to repent of these things and to seek
reconciliation. In doing so, we will
have prepared well for Christ’s coming. /// May our thanksgiving, offered here
in this Eucharist, strengthen us for this good work.
Given at St. Mary Parish: Union City, IN and Immaculate Conception
Parish: Portland, IN – December 3rd, 2022
Given at St. Joseph Parish: Winchester, IN – December 4th,
2022
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