THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT
17 DECEMBER 2017
The
son of Zechariah and Elizabeth was attracting a lot of attention in his
day. We met him last Sunday when we
heard the beginning of the Gospel of Saint Mark. Instead of preaching in the Temple, he is
drawing crowds to the desert. Instead of
wearing the priestly vestments of his father, he is clothed in the camel’s hair
garment of the Prophet Elijah. Instead
of eating fine food at the table with the other priests in Jerusalem, he easts
locusts and honey, the food eaten by his ancestors as they left Egypt for the
Promised Land. He attracts so much
attention that the authorities in Jerusalem send priests and Levites to find
out who does he think he is!
He responds
by saying who he is not. At a time of
heightened expectations of the coming of the messiah, he insists that he is not
the Christ. He is not Elijah, the
prophet who returned to God in a fiery chariot.
He is not the Prophet who would equal Moses. Instead, he defines himself in the words of
Isaiah the Prophet: “I am the voice of
one crying out in the desert, make straight the way of the Lord.” Responding to the Pharisees, the lay leaders
of the people, he explains why he baptizes.
He is inviting people to immerse themselves in a river of repentance to
make a straight path for the true Messiah, Jesus Christ.
The Gospel
of Saint John clarifies his identity. While
the priests and Levites were sent by the religious authorities in Jerusalem,
John was sent from God. The Greek word
for “sent” comes from the root word for “apostle.” John knows exactly who he is: the first Apostle whose role is to point the
way to the light. He is to give
testimony to the true Messiah, because he is a witness who is not worthy to
untie the sandal strap of the light that has come into the world.
John the
Baptist invites us to be witnesses to the light of Christ dispelling the
darkness of our world. Each of us knows
who we are not. We may not have the
loving kindness of a Mother Teresa. We
may not have the moral courage of a Nelson Mandela. We may not have the preaching skills of
Martin Luther King. But, like John the
Baptist, each of us has a calling from God.
Each of us is called to make people aware of God’s love. Each of us is called to live a life that
points to God’s amazing grace.
As we
prepare to celebrate the Lord’s First Coming in the Flesh, all three Scripture
readings call us to be authentic witnesses of the power of God’s love in the
world. Isaiah says that authentic
witnesses are mindful of the needs of the brokenhearted, captives, and those
imprisoned in any way. Saint Paul
insists that authentic witnesses must have the ability to test what appears to
be the will of God. Once we have done
that, then we must embrace it fully to make us blameless for the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ. Paul understands from
his own experience when as Saul of Tarsus he was breathing murderous threats
against the Christian community. He did
not see himself as evil. He saw himself
as right, only to discern later that he was dead wrong. John the Baptist shows that authentic
witnesses do not point to themselves and boast about their
accomplishments. They point beyond
themselves.
On this
Gaudete Sunday, we can sense a real joyful spirit in all of these readings from
the Word of God. In particular, Saint
Paul tells us to rejoice always. He is
not talking about a feeling of happiness or of pleasure rooted in our
senses. It is impossible to have a
feeling of happiness or pleasure all the time.
In fact, there are times when we have feelings of great sadness, grief,
or disappointment. Instead, he is
talking about a state of our souls. The Incarnation
of Jesus Christ which we celebrate at Christmas and his death and resurrection
which we celebrate at Easter display the power of God’s love to give meaning to
everything in our life. So, rejoice
always! Pray without ceasing! In all circumstances, give thanks!
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