Homily: 4th Sunday in Advent – Cycle C
Friends,
our scriptures on this fourth Sunday of Advent provide us with a continuation
of the theme from last Sunday, in which we were called to rejoice because we recognize
that we are not alone, but rather that the all-powerful God is with us. Last Sunday, our celebration coordinated with
the celebration of the appearance of Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and of how
that appearance signaled that God is with us here in the Americas. We rejoiced because this beautiful and noble
mother has received us as her children and has promised to remain with us so
that we will always remain close to her Son.
This
Sunday, we remember Mary’s first “missionary appearance”, when she carried the
presence of the Lord to her aged cousin, Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s response was the same as our own:
she rejoiced at the presence of Mary and at the presence of the Lord, whom she
carried in her womb. Even John the Baptist,
the infant in Elizabeth’s womb, rejoiced at the presence of Mary and the
Incarnate God, living inside of her. Elizabeth’s
words, “¿Quién soy yo, para que la madre de mi Señor venga a verme?”, are the
sign that she and her child rejoiced because they realized that they were not
alone, but that God was with them. Their
joy was spontaneous, but it was made possible by their hopeful expectation of
the arrival, even though they could not know when it would happen.
When
I was still in college in Michigan, before my time as a seminarian, I had a
girlfriend who lived in Michigan, near the university. When I returned to Illinois at the end of
each academic period, we would be separated for a time. We’d keep in contact, of course, and would
often talk about how anxious we were for me to return to the university so that
we could be together again.
During
one of these breaks, a good friend of mine and I had the opportunity to attend
an event in Michigan. Although the event
wasn’t very close to where my girlfriend lived, I nonetheless decided that I
would use that opportunity to surprise my girlfriend with a visit. So my friend and I made our plans: we would
attend the event and then immediately drive north to surprise my girlfriend. The plan worked perfectly! She worked at a retail-clothing store and I
arrived close to the end of her shift. I
walked in the door and started browsing the clothes. She noticed me and came to offer me
assistance. Quickly, she recognized
me. Her eyes lit up with surprise, she
let out a squeal of joy and gave me a big hug.
Needless to say, she was happy to see me (and I was happy to see her)! Without doubt, this was the best thing that I
have ever done as a boyfriend!
The
reason why my former girlfriend was so spontaneously filled with joy, however,
was because she was so anxiously anticipating the next time that she could see me. In other words, she lived with the hopeful
expectation that we would be together again and that she would no longer feel
alone. Thus, even though I appeared
unexpectedly, she was ready to rejoice that I was there with her.
Elizabeth
was a faithful Jew. From the time when
she was young, she was taught to look for the coming of the Messiah—the Lord,
her God—and to be ready to rejoice when he came. Throughout her years, she never lost this
sense of expectation. Perhaps the
miraculous events surrounding the conception of her child—the angel Gabriel’s
appearance to her husband, Zechariah, his being made mute because of his
disbelief, and her conception of a child in fulfillment of the angel’s
proclamation—perhaps these events signaled to Elizabeth that the coming of the
One for whom she was taught to expect would soon happen. Nevertheless, she was surprised by Mary’s
arrival, carrying with her the Incarnate God in her womb. Because she lived with hopeful expectation of
this coming, however, even though she could not know when it would come, she
(and the infant in her womb) immediately rejoiced.
Friends,
this season of Advent has been reminding us that each of us who call ourselves “Christian”
should be living with the hopeful expectation of the coming of our Lord. This, not only during the season of Advent,
but throughout our lives, so that, when he comes, we will immediately rejoice
and be ready to run to him, like Elizabeth rejoiced when he arrived in Mary’s
womb, and like my former girlfriend rejoiced when I surprised her by my
visit. We need Advent to remind us
because, like we were reminded on the first Sunday of Advent, our “mentes se
han entorpezados” from the anxieties of our daily lives.
This
hopeful expectation is fortified by the fact that he has already come to us,
which is why we end our celebration of Advent with the great solemnity of
Christmas. Elizabeth and the other faithful
Jews of her time had only the promise of the prophets from which they
strengthened their hope: God had not yet walked with them as one of them. We, however, live with the joy of knowing
that the all-powerful God has become one of us—that is, one with us—to save us
from the incessant suffering of this world by opening for us a way to enter
into life with him in eternal peace. Not
only this, but he himself promised that he would return and that he would
remain with us until he comes again.
Thus, we have every reason to live in hopeful expectation, ready to
rejoice when he comes.
Listen,
I know—and the Church knows—that the burdens and sorrows of our lives can weigh
us down. The message of Advent is in no
way trying to dismiss the very real difficulties that we all experience in our
daily lives. Rather, the message of
Advent is a reminder to lift our eyes from the dark and dreary world to look at
that light, shining in those dark places, that reminds us that there is a life
beyond the burdens and sorrows that we are experiencing: a life that was made
possible for us when God himself became a human being, born in cave on the
outskirts of Bethlehem.
Friends,
the final days of Advent are upon us.
Surely, all of us have many things to accomplish in order to be ready to
celebrate Christmas. In all that we do
throughout these next days, however, let us turn our eyes to Jesus and so fill
these activities with joy as we anticipate his coming. Let us be ready to be surprised by Jesus and
the ways that he shows us that he is with us while we await his coming. In these ways, we will make ourselves ready
to celebrate his coming, and to share this joyful news with all those around
us.
May
the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, who promised to remain close to us here
in this land, guide us and inspire us in this joyful work.
Given in Spanish at St. Paul Parish: Marion, IN – December 18,
2021
Given in Spanish at Our Lady of the Lakes Parish:
Monticello, IN – December 19, 2021
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