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Homilies are posted no later than during the week
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2 Advent
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Second Sunday of Advent - Cycle C
Luke 3:1-6
A story is told of a soldier who asked a monk, "Teach me the difference between
heaven and hell." The monk said, "You are an obvious coward, not a warrior.
Furthermore, I believe you do not know how to use that gun." The soldier was so
enraged that he drew his revolver from his holster to shoot the monk.As he
prepared to squeeze the trigger, the monk said calmly, "That's hell." The
abashed soldier immediately came to his senses and placed his gun back in its
holster. And the monk said quietly, "That's heaven."
In twenty-one days, we shall salute the feast when heaven came to earth as a
Child. As a fitting preparation for that feast this second week of Advent, why
doesn't each of us attempt to reproduce heaven on earth in the here and now?
Why need we wait for Christmas day itself?
I met a person today who was busy doing such. She makes barely above a minimum
wage at her job.Her employer gives her neither medical plan nor pension. Yet,
despite my words of caution, she mailed a check for $200 to the Red Cross for
the victims of a major hurricane. She was giving not from her surplus but from
her household funds. It was you might say her birthday gift to the Christ.
Using Matthew (25:34-37) as a yardstick, I wager Jesus will never forget it.
And Matthew 19:29 promises He will return the gift to her a thousandfold. The
Master will not be outdone in generosity.
I submit the monk of the opening story would say to that valiant woman, "While
the hurricane damage is hell, your gift is heaven." That generous woman
deserves not only our commendation and admiration but also imitation in some
form by ourselves these next several weeks. She is what this season of Advent
is all about. The Son was generous enough to leave the heavens to become what
we are. Why then are we not generous enough to reproduce the heavens
immediately in our own corner of this global village?
Luke in today's Gospel tells us John went about the whole Jordan district
preaching repentance for the forgiveness of sins. We like to think that the
Baptizer was speaking to hardened sinners.
But, as William Bausch points out, he was doing nothing of the sort. The record
shows he was preaching not to criminals but to the Pharisees, Scribes, and
Publicans. These were, as we like to say, good church-going folk.
In a word, he was excoriating people who are stand-ins for our own
selves.Bausch's insight brings us up short, for most of us privately look upon
ourselves as just about the salt of the earth.Unhappily John the Baptizer would
not be a member of our fan club. In Matthew's Gospel (1:7-8), the Baptizer is
on the record saying to the same audience as well as ourselves, "You vipers'
brood!...prove your repentance by the fruit it bears." I think one of the few
he might exempt from his indictment would be the woman of the above who gave
the $200 to the hurricane's victims. But the rest of us could expect to receive
hot tongue and cold shoulder from him. John the Baptist is certainly no man to
mess around with.John, our decidedly unamused mentor this season, commands,
"...prove your repentance by the fruit it bears."
William Bausch offers some suggestions as to how we might accommodate the
Baptizer. "Make friends with someone you're at odds with. Pick up the phone and
talk to somebody you haven't talked to in months or years. Be the first to hold
out the hand of reconciliation even though it gets slapped or rejected. Don't
turn your head at shady dealings. Be willing to put some of your possessions on
the line. Tithe, not out of your excess, but out of your substance. Add up your
Christmas spending bills that you chalked up for presents and then slice off 10
percent and give it to the poor. Give evidence that you mean to repent."
Sally Koch reminds us that great opportunities to help others seldom come but
small ones surround us every day. It takes only a minute to be kind, but the
prophet reminds us the end result can remain forever and a day.
This Advent put a wraparound smile on the face of John the Baptist. He sounds
as though he needs some cheering-up.
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http://www.st.ignatius.net/pastor.html
2 Advent
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Second Advent: The Word of God Came to John
Today's Gospel begins with a solemn introduction."In the fifteenth year of the
reign of Tiberius Caesar, while Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea and Herod
was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip had a similar job, and so also
some guy named Lysanius, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas..."
something momentous is about to happen. You would think that this was the
announcement of the birth of Jesus.But it isn't.Yet the event that is announced
is earthshaking. The event is this: The Word of the Lord came to John the
Baptist.And then John went proclaiming a baptism of repentance and calling
people to prepare the way of the Lord.
What St. Luke is saying is that at a specific time and place, God intervened in
human history.He did it by inspiring John the Baptist to proclaim his
presence.How did he convince John to do this? Was there a bolt of lightning, a
vision in sky, a miraculous event?Or did John simply respond to the voice
within him telling him to go into action?I would think that scripture would
have noted some sort of marvel.I also think that scripture is telling us here,
as in many other places, that God often works his wonders in whispers.
John the Baptist may very well have been a member of the Qumran Community.This
was a group of hermits who lived in the desert, studied scripture and longed
for the Messiah.We learned about this community the middle of the last century
when a child shepherd came upon a cave filled with ancient pottery in which he
found the Dead Sea Scrolls.The way the John dressed, his desire for a change in
the world are in line with the teaching of Qumran.But the hermits of Qumran,
stayed within their community.If John had been one of them, he had to have made
the decision to set off by himself to proclaim the message he heard so
silently, yet so clearly in his life.
Because John listened to that voice, the stage was set for the entrance of the
Messiah.
Sometimes God gives us a whack on the head to get us into action. We might have
a heart attack or be diagnosed with cancer and realize that we have to do more
of his work while we still have time. Yes, sometimes he gives us a whack, but
not most of the time. Most of the time, God's Word comes to us in a quiet way,
in a gentle inspiration to reach out to bring his love to others.
We might notice that someone is having a bad day, so we stop by to cheer him or
her up.We give a call to someone who is hurting.We stop by a hospital.We offer
a smile and a wink to a child. Little things.Perhaps, they might seem to hardly
have any weight in the world, but the Word of the Lord can work marvelous
changes when it is allowed into someone's life.The person having a bad day
feels love and starts seeing his or her day in perspective.The call to someone
who is hurting results in that person realizing that he or she is not alone,
that God is with him or her.The sick person in the hospital sees his visitor in
a new light and thanks God for this.The frightened child is strengthened by a
wink.
The Word of the Lord comes to each of us, daily.We are share the mission of
John to prepare the way for the Lord.We are a significant part of the process,
even if our particular action might seem trivial.
John proclaimed the Word of God because he listened.We also have to listen.Now,
during the busiest season of the year, when we all have so many things to do to
prepare for Christmas, now more than ever, we have to slow ourselves down,
perhaps even stop ourselves for fifteen minutes and listen.
In today's second reading, St. Paul tells the Philippians, and us, "This is my
prayer: that your love may increase ever more and more."
Faith is about the integration of the spiritual and the physical. The little
deeds of our lives, the little acts of charity we might perform, become great
actions of the spiritual.
What we need to do is pray.Pray that we might listen when the Word of God comes
to us.And pray that we might respond to the Word of God by going into action as
Christians.Jesus Christ is coming again.Like John the Baptist the Word of God
comes often to us so that we might prepare the Way of the Lord.
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http://www.geocities.com/seapadre_1999/
* available in Spanish - see Spanish homilies
2 Advent
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Connect with the Ocean
(December 6, 2009)
Bottom line: John the Baptist calls us to connect with the ocean of God's
mercy.
This Advent we begin a new cycle of Scripture readings, called "Year C." St.
Mark's Gospel dominated last year, Year B and St. Matthew, Year A. We now focus
on the Third Gospel: The Gospel according to St. Luke.
St. Luke has his particular emphasis. For example, he takes care to situate his
Gospel in the context of human history. He introduces the ministry of John the
Baptist (and subsequently Jesus) by saying, "In the fifteen year of the reign
of Tiberius Caesar..." Then he goes on to mention other secular rulers: Pontius
Pilate, Herod, Philip and Lsyanias. He also includes religious authorities:
Annas and Caiphas.
This location in time and place has importance. Sometimes you and I feel
constrained by time and place. I'd be a rich man if I had a dime for every time
someone told me, "Father, I wish I could fly away to to some distant place."
The story is told about a young monk who approached an experienced desert
father. He expressed his frustration, "I feel so restricted. I am stagnating
like a pond or a puddle." The elderly monk responded, "Then do not be a pond.
Be a bay."*
A bay of course is joined with the immense ocean. Each day it has a fresh
exchange of water. It rarely stagnates.
St. John the Baptist was like that. He was in an extremely lonely spot - the
Judean desert. He had a bland, unexciting diet. No TV, no Internet, no
newspaper, no book of the month. But he did not stagnate. He connected with the
great ocean - God's mercy.
Today's Gospel states that John proclaimed a "baptism of repentance for
forgiveness of sin." Next Sunday I will explain in more detail what sin is.
This sunday I ask you to open your heart to the ocean of God's mercy.
The first reading speaks about taking off the "robe of mourning and misery."
All of us wear a robe of misery because of our sins. But God wants to take away
that restricting garment.
In Peru (and many other countries) people wear black clothes after the death of
a loved one. The Peruvians will wear mourning garments for three years. Then
after a three-year Mass, they go to a side chapel and take off their black
clothes. Beneath they have white and colored shirts. And once again, they take
part in community fiestas and dances.
This Advent God wants to take from us the robe of misery and "put on the
splendor of glory". As St. John say, to fill the valleys and make low the
mountains. That is, bring down the mountains of arrogance and lift up the
valleys of despair. Make a direct path for the Lord. Connect with the ocean of
God's mercy.
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*Illustration from El Evangelio Dominical y Festivo by Tomás Spidlík
General Intercessions for Second Sunday of Advent, Cycle C (from Priests for
Life)
Spanish Version
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2 Advent
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2 Advent
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Dec, 06, 2009
Luke 3: 1-6
Demetrius R. Dumm, O.S.B.
Second Sunday of Advent
Gospel Summary
Luke's elaborate attempt to locate the arrival of John the Baptist in the
context of secular history seems to be the answer to every historian's prayer.
In fact, however, these references are very imprecise, and none more so than
the apparently decisive "fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar." The problem is
that the Roman emperor Tiberius shared power with Augustus for two years and we
do not know when Luke is beginning his count of the years of Tiberius' reign.
One must wonder whether Luke is not perhaps smiling to himself as he teases
historians in this way.
Be that as it may, there is no doubt that Luke is very much interested in
history. But it is a history that includes God's intervention to bring final
salvation from the human scourge of sin and death. This divine "taking charge"
of history will be announced by John the Baptist and brought into being by
Jesus. However, only those who are ready to embrace God's gracious purposes
will participate in the final victory.
John's "baptism of repentance" is a ritual that signifies one's readiness to
remove all obstacles to the coming of the Lord. Such obstacles would be, first
and foremost, a prideful self-will that wishes to dictate where and how and
when the Lord should come. "Making straight the way of Lord" is, therefore, a
metaphor for personal conversion from prideful controlling tendencies to humble
and grateful acceptance of God's sovereign rights in human life.
Life Implications
The most certain way to miss the promised "salvation of God" is to be too busy,
too engrossed in one's work and too distracted to think about God or to prepare
for his coming. It is true, of course, that Christ came some 2000 years ago.
But that is no guarantee that we have welcomed him. For Christ continues to
come to each generation of us humans and to challenge us to let his ideals
govern our lives. In that sense, God is always coming and we are constantly
being asked to welcome him.
This does not mean that we need to devote large amounts of time to welcoming
Christ into our lives. It is more a matter of quality than of quantity. The
ideal is set forth in the famous, "Hear, O Israel," of Deuteronomy 6:4. We are
told there that we should never be totally unmindful of the reality and the
presence of God in our lives. In time of explicit prayer, God is at center
stage, as it were, while at other times he moves into the wings but never far
from full consciousness on our part.
I like to think of this consciousness of God's presence as a "benign
distraction" which, far from interfering with our work, actually helps us to
focus more clearly on what we are doing. Moreover, it should not be surprising,
when we think of God's love for us, that a smile should play occasionally
across our faces, as is customary with those who are in love. Such a benign
distraction not only makes us more productive but it also gives us a deep sense
of peace and security.
It is our recognition of the presence of God in our world, whether in the
fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, or in December 2009, that constitutes the
true meaning of history for us.
Demetrius R. Dumm, O.S.B.
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Meeting Christ in the Liturgy
2 Advent
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Second Sunday of Advent
Baruch 5, 1-9; Psalm 126; Philippians 1, 4- 6. 8-11; St. Luke 3, 1-6
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
John the Baptist is the figure of Advent, this season of the coming of the
Lord, for he prepares the path of the Redeemer so that Isaiah's prophecy may be
fulfilled:
"The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make
his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill
shall be brought low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough
ways shall be made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God."
(Isaiah 40. 3-5)
John the Baptist is "more than a prophet." (Lk 7:26) In him, the Holy Spirit
concludes his speaking through the prophets. John completes the cycle of
prophets begun by Elijah. (Cf. Mt 11. 13-14) He proclaims the imminence of the
consolation of Israel; he is the "voice" of the Consoler who is coming. (Jn 1.
23; cf. Isa 40. 1-3) As the Spirit of truth will also do, John "came to bear
witness to the light." (Jn 1. 7; cf. Jn 15. 26; 5. 35) In John's sight, the
Spirit thus brings to completion the careful search of the prophets and
fulfills the longing of the angels. (Cf. 1 Pet 1. 10-12) "He on whom you see
the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.
And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God...Behold,
the Lamb of God." (Jn 1. 33-36) (CCC 719)
"All flesh shall see the salvation of God" because God will come in the flesh.
Why did the Word become flesh? With the Nicene Creed, we answer by confessing:
"For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the
Holy Spirit, he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and was made man." (CCC
456)
The Word became flesh for us in order to save us by reconciliating us with God,
who "loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins": "the Father
has sent his Son as the Savior of the world," and "he was revealed to take away
sins": (1 Jn 4. 10; 4. 14; 3. 5)
Sick, our nature demanded to be healed; fallen, to be raised up; dead, to rise
again. We had lost the possession of the good; it was necessary for it to be
given back to us. Closed in the darkness, it was necessary to bring us the
light; captives, we awaited a Savior; prisoners, help; slaves, a liberator. Are
these things minor or insignificant? Did they not move God to descend to human
nature and visit it, since humanity was in so miserable and unhappy a state?
(St. Gregory of Nyssa, Orat. catech. 15: PG 45, 48B.) (CCC 457)
The Word became flesh so that thus we might know God's love (CCC 458) to be our
model of holiness (CCC 459) and to make us "partakers of the divine nature"
(CCC 460)
I look forward to meeting you here again next week as, together, we "meet
Christ in the liturgy," Father Cusick
(See also paragraphs 535, 719, 720, 1224 in the CCC.)
Meeting Christ in the Liturgy
(Publish with permission.) http://www.christusrex.org/www1/mcitl/
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2 Advent
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Father Bonar will not be posting homilies for Cycle B to allow himself time for
other projects. His collection of homilies (including homilies for Cycle B) is
available at www.clydebonar.com.
2 Advent |
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These homilies may be copied and adapted for
your own use;
however, they may not be commercially published without permission of the
author.
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