December 15, 2019. Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Advent of Year (A)

Readings: Isaiah 35:1-6; James 5:7-10; Mt. 11:2-11

 Rejoice for The Lord!

Today is Gaudete Sunday, so called because of the entrance antiphon: “Gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico, gaudete. Dominus enim proper est. Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I say, rejoice! The Lord is near.” St. Paul, writing to the Philippians from jail, urged them to rejoice in the Lord. Paul would not allow his prison cell to dampen his joy. But the Second reading tells us to be patient until the coming of the Lord. Just as the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, so we too must make our hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand.

This theme of hope and patiently waiting for the Lord is stressed by the Prophet Isaiah in the first reading. Isaiah was writing to the Jews who were in captivity in Babylon. They were sad because they had lost everything: freedom, property, homeland and the temple. They had lost hope of ever returning to their homeland. Their future was bleak, dark and gloomy. But Isaiah was more optimistic as he described the future he saw. God would bring them home and change their lives. “The desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will see the glory of the Lord, the splendor of our God… Strengthen the hands that are feeble, make firm the knees that are weak, say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not!” The weak, the sick, the blind and the lame would be freed of their affliction and restored to wholeness. Yes, “His anger lasts only a moment, his goodness for a lifetime. Tears may flow in the night, but joy comes in the morning.” (Ps.30:5).

Isaiah’s dream of prosperity and peace is the dream and undying faith of every generation. Our dream is that, out of this brutal and cruel world, the earth will one day be at peace, its defaced beauty restored, its wounds healed, its sorrows lifted. God will open a road leading his people home, where all men and women will praise Him with one heart and mind. This, indeed, is the message of Christ to John the Baptist in prison, and to the poor and hopeless of this world: ‘Go and tell John what you hear and see’, “The blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers and cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.” (Matthew 11:5).  

But don’t we sometimes feel like the despondent children of Israel? At times, we seem to have come to the end of our ropes. There seem to be no light at the end of the tunnel. We have tried everything, and nothing seems to work. Well, John the Baptist must have felt that way too, in today’s Gospel reading. He preached repentance with fire and brimstone: reprimanding, warning, cajoling and coaxing the Jews to act with immediate alacrity: repent of their sins and bear good fruit of repentance. He, who, was a fearless preacher, who confronted kings and queens with a call to new life, ended up in Herod’s prison. He must have felt that if Christ was the Messiah, he would show him mercy and get him out of jail. But that did not happen. John may have felt like Elijah, who, after his mighty works, found himself running for dear life, and prayed God to take his life. “This is enough, O Lord! Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers.” (1Kings 19:4). So, John sent messengers to Christ: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” (Matt.11:3). John had run out of patience. Why was his case different? But Jesus answered John that God’s ways were not man’s ways. The kingdom of God may be slow in coming but it will certainly come. Our destiny may be delayed but never denied. Go and tell John what you have seen and heard. What have we seen and heard?

Dear friends, in whatever situation you may find yourselves in today, know that God is right there with you. Even as a country, see how far we have come. Do not forget that there was a time in this country, when people were separated by the color of their skins, and voting rights was the prerogative of a few rather than a right for eligible voters. How can we forget the struggle for emancipation and its subsequent declaration in 1863, or the civil rights movements, and all those who fought for and against it? Think of the many lives that were lost during those struggles. What made the movement possible was people’s undying faith in God and their hope for a better tomorrow. Isaiah reminded the children of Israel in exile that their freedom was within reach. This was the same faith that put freedom within reach for African Americans, living in slavery, in years long past. Their traditional spirituals, according to Pamela Crosby, “All God’s Chillun got shoes” mentions having shoes – something most slaves did not have – plus a robe, a harp, a crown and wings gave them hope. They knew none of these were actually available on earth for them at the time but held on to their faith that “there is a balm in Gilead to make the wounded whole. There is a balm in Gilead, to heal the sin-sick soul. Don’t ever feel discouraged, for Jesus is your friend. And if you lack for knowledge, he’ll ne’er refuse to lend.” These struggles and the subsequent triumph of good over evil put this third week of Advent in perspective for us.  

And so, we are encouraged to rejoice but to be patient at the same time. The birth of Christ will change the course of our lives. Jesus is truly the Messiah John the Baptist preached about. There is no reason to doubt that or be discouraged because things do not work out as we planned. God is still in control! Let us pray at this Mass that we may rejoice in the Lord always for He is near. For we know that “Affliction produces endurance, and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us.” (Rom. 5:3-5). May this Christmas truly be the beginning of all that is good in your life. For He who is coming is Emmanuel, God with us. With Him nothing shall ever be impossible for God to do in our lives. May the birth of Christ open our hearts to receive his peace, hope, love and joy. Amen.  

Points to ponder:

·      Have read St. Luke’s Gospel today? You should have read 14 chapters already and getting ready for the 15^th. If not, why not?

·      If you have doubts like John the Baptist, feed your doubt with the word of God, don’t be sad, trust!  

“Don’t forget to pray today because God didn’t forget to wake you up this morning”

December 08, 2019: Homily for the second Sunday Advent; Year (A)

Readings: Isaiah 11:1-10; Romans 15:4-9; Mt. 3:1-12

A Prophet Like No Other – John the Baptist.

On this second Sunday of Advent the Church presents us with a man by the name of John, meaning ‘Gift of God’. He was a prophet like no other. He came to prepare the way for the Messiah. John lived in the desert and wore camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locust and wild honey. His appearance was frightening, and his message: direct and urgent, demanding immediate action. John knew there was no time to waste on frivolities. For him, everything else in life can wait, but the search for God cannot wait. “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap…Be vigilant at all times and pray…” (Lk. 21:34). John warned us that God was coming in search of us, therefore, we should pay attention, stop running after material things and turn our life to Him. Why should we delay in forgiving others? To postpone acts of kindness or not be compassionate and merciful are leisure Christians cannot afford. Procrastination is a theft of time, so, one must act now. Putting off repentance can spell disaster, and not doing what is right is a delay of justice that Christians should not tolerate. Why put off till tomorrow what should be done today! The time for repentance is now. “If today you would listen to his voice, harden not your hearts.” (Ps.95:8). Paul warned: “It is the hour now for you to wake from sleep.” (Rom.13:11-14). “Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.” (Matt.24:42).

 John was the voice of one crying in the desert, prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. People went to him to be baptized in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins. He called them ‘brood of vipers’ and urged them to repent of their sins and flee from the coming wrath. He demanded that they produced good fruit as evidence of their repentance. They should not delude themselves that they were Abraham’s children, “God can raise up children from Abraham from these stones. Even now the axe lies at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” (Matt.3:9-10).

John the Baptist was not a pleasant prophet to be with. He is not on any of the Christmas cards you will receive, or could you recall the one you got last year, with John calling you to repentance and wishing you a merry Christmas! He would properly remind you of the beggars on the street. Yet, without John the Baptist and his message we would not have Christ in our hearts; and Christmas would properly make no sense. To enjoy a fruitful Christmas, we must be confronted by this crazy prophet out of the desert, with his difficult message that must be heard, whether we like it or not.

It is only by taking the message of John the Baptist seriously that the first reading makes sense to us. Isaiah prophesied of a king who will be the living embodiment of the qualities which are to be expected of one worthy to govern. This king will spring like “a shoot from the stump of Jesse.” Jesse was the father of King David, and, by this time, the Kingship in Jerusalem was barely surviving as the word ‘stump’ indicates. These are the virtues that God requires in a leader. Wisdom and Understanding, are the essential intellectual qualities of a judge or ruler. Counsel and Might represent the practical application of wisdom, the gift of decisiveness in judgement and moral energy to carry it out. Knowledge and the Fear of the Lord, are the religious characteristic of leadership. He who must rule others must himself be ruled by knowledge of God and be constraint to live according to God’s moral demands. “If the electorate of the nations would demand of those who seek office, intellectual power, moral force with practical sagacity, and religious faith we should be better governed.” (The Interpreter’s Bible). When such individuals mount the throne of leadership and governance, the picture of a perfect and just, and equitable government will be experienced. For the leader will not judge by appearances, nor decide by hearsay, but act with justice to the helpless, and decide fairly for the humble. He will strike down the ruthless with his verdicts and slay the unjust with his sentences. Justice shall gird him for action, he shall be belted with trustworthiness. Herein, then, lies the fruit of repentance demanded by John the Baptist. “The ideals of democracy can be vindicated only through character. Men do not sufficiently consider that where democracy has failed, it has not been because of constitutional weaknesses or faults in administrative procedure, but because of moral defects in the governors and the governed.” (The Interpreter’s Bible).

The outcome of right judgment and leadership according to the mind of God, such that the Messiah will usher in by his birth, will be reconciliation even in the world of nature, and the ancient enmity between man and beasts shall be done away with. There will be peace and “There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord.” (Is.11:9). Therefore, “Justice shall flourish in his time and fullness of peace forever.” (Ps.72:7).

Isaiah and John the Baptist were prophets who spoke God’s message to His people and called them to repentance and faith. Their messages were difficult, but some listened and put them into practice, so must we. John the Baptist warned that repentance was not enough, we must bear its fruit. It is not enough to tell people that we are Christians, we must demonstrate it by our deeds. It is by doing simple tasks of love that we bear good fruit. Let me conclude with this exhortation from the letter of St. James: “Therefore, put away all filth and evil excess and humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you and is able to save your souls. Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror. He sees himself, then goes off and promptly forgets what he looked like.” (James 1:21-25). May we be Christians in word and in deed and may God find in our hearts a well-prepared dwelling place for His Son at his birth. Amen!

Points to ponder:

·      Are you reading St. Luke’s Gospel? You should have read 7 chapters already and getting ready for the 8^th. If not, why not?

·      How are you preparing for the birth of Christ?

·      What would you do for Christ this week?

·      The Sacrament of Reconciliation will be celebrated on Thursday, Dec.13, at 6:00 pm. This is one way to prepare for the birth of Christ, will you be there?

“Don’t forget to pray today because God didn’t forget to wake you up this morning”