The Gospel of the Day - Luke
3:1 – 6
Gospel Acclamation - Lk3:4,6
Second Reading - Philippians
1:4-6,8-11 ©
Responsorial Psalm - Psalm
125(126) ©
First Reading - Baruch
5:1-9 ©
(NJB)
Integrity and Mercy, these Are the Splendor of God
Bear this in mind:
In the scripture reading for today, from the Prophet
Baruch to the Apostle, Saint Paul, we must take Jerusalem and Israel as
representative of the whole people of God, we must see these images as humanity
writ large.
The hope expressed in the scripture, from the
Psalms to the Gospel, is a hope for the whole human race, it is not selective,
it cannot be limited to a select group of people in a specific time and place.
Remember this, the splendor of God is not the
splendor of royalty. We must not seek the honor of princes or of queens and
kings.
The glory of God is the glory of service, we
should not expect any reward other than peace.
Though it may be true that our work is met
with enmity, remember this, God, the creator of the universe, God has no
enemies, and we may not regard those who oppose us as such. They are God’s
children, even as we are. They are equal recipients of God’s love.
The path of God’s servant may be arduous, but
at the end of the day there is rest.
Do not expect God to prepare the way, for God
does not intervene in the affairs of human beings, set those vain notions aside
and take up the mission in faith and trust
It was not God who released the Jews from
captivity, from bondage in Egypt or in Babylon. It was Moses and Joshua. It was
the Emperor of Persia.
Those were great deeds, marked by heroism and
courage and mercy.
The clemency offered to the Jews, which led to
the diaspora, honored the fellowship that all human beings share. Insofar as
all good deeds have their origin in the goodness of the creator, then yes, God
deserves the credit.
Nevertheless, it was the free choice of the
Persian King to release those who had been enslaved and allow them to return to
their homes. That was Cyrus not God who exercised that agency.
Many of those who were freed by the Persians never
returned Judea, they remained living in the diaspora, carrying on their
traditions in foreign lands, becoming citizens, building synagogues sharing the
faith of their ancestors among them.
Some of those who were released returned to Judea,
and chose to regard their neighbors and cousins as gentiles, as impure and as outcasts.
This
was unjust, and out of alignment with the will of God. It is a mistake that has
been repeated over and over again, in their history. It is an error they are
living through in the modern day.
Listen to the Prayer of
the Apostle
Listen
to the Apostle, we are the objects of God’s love, every single one of us.
The
creator of the universe loves us.
God
has set out to make a good work through our agency, God will see it through.
God will not abandon anyone.
The
work will be completed and no-one shall be lost.
This
is the hope of the Gospels, this is the good news.
Listen,
the Apostle prays for you, he prays for everyone, in so doing the Apostle
echoes the prayer of Jesus, the prayer of God’s own self; it is a prayer of
love, a prayer of hope and a prayer of faith.
God
has placed God’s trust in us. God trust is not a façade.
God
has placed God’s hope in us, God’s hope is without measure.
God
has placed God’s love in us, like a fruit that will flower forever.
To Emulate Jesus We Must Practice
Forgiveness
Understanding
of history is a crucial component of understanding the gospel. The Christian
tradition has always attempted to root itself in historical realities; but with
greater and lesser degrees of success, often with outright failure, and
intentional malfeasance.
Nevertheless,
the study of the tradition gave birth to modern historical criticism; without
which we would have no understanding of the uses and limitations of history
whatsoever
That
only took eighteen hundred years of scholarship to develop.
Our
narrative about the life and mission, the arrest and killing of Jesus are a
part of the testimony of our faith.
Our
understanding of these events is aided when we are able to locate the point in
time, the singular moment when our commitment to the teachings of Jesus took
place.
Jesus
was born during the reign of Tiberius, heir to Augustus, and during the Herodian
dynasty’s, he came of age and started his mission when Pontius Pilate was
governor of Palestine.
We
recall the role that Pilate played in the killing of Jesus, we shout it out at
every hour of every day in all parts of the world; we proclaim that Jesus
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified and buried.
This
story is told unceasingly and without end.
It
is long since time that we, as heirs to the ministry and teaching of Jesus,
forgive Pilate for the role he played in that political murder.
Just
as the Apostle prays for us.
John
the Baptist taught us to repent and be forgiven, but Jesus taught us simply, to
forgive.
Jesus
forgave those who killed him, even as they were killing him, asked God to
forgive them when he was up on the cross.
It
is time we do the same. This is the character of mercy that we are called to.
The
promise of Isaiah, which John echoed in the wilderness cannot be fulfilled
unless we do.
Remember,
God is the author of our salvation, but we are the agents. It is incumbent on
us to proceed with the healing, if the human race is to be made well.
First Reading - Baruch
5:1-9 ©
Jerusalem,
take off your dress of sorrow and distress, put on the beauty of the
glory of God for ever, wrap the cloak of the integrity of God
around you, put the diadem of the glory of the Eternal on your
head:
Since
God means to show your splendour to every nation under heaven, since
the name God gives you for ever will be, ‘Peace through integrity,
and honour through devotedness.’
Arise,
Jerusalem, stand on the heights and turn your eyes to the east:
See
your sons reassembled from west and east at the command of the Holy One,
jubilant that God has remembered them.
Though
they left you on foot, with enemies for an escort, now
God brings them back to you like royal princes carried back in
glory.
For
God has decreed the flattening of each high mountain, of the
everlasting hills, the filling of the valleys to make the
ground level so that Israel can walk in safety under the glory of God.
And
the forests and every fragrant tree will provide shade for
Israel at the command of God; for God will guide Israel in joy by
the light of his glory with his mercy and integrity for escort.
Responsorial Psalm - Psalm
125(126) ©
What marvels the Lord
worked for us! Indeed we were glad.
When
the Lord delivered Zion from bondage,
it seemed like a dream.
Then
was our mouth filled with laughter,
on our lips there were songs.
What marvels the Lord
worked for us! Indeed we were glad.
The
heathens themselves said: ‘What marvels
the Lord worked for them!’
What
marvels the Lord worked for us!
Indeed we were glad.
What marvels the Lord
worked for us! Indeed we were glad.
Deliver
us, O Lord, from our bondage
as streams in dry land.
Those
who are sowing in tears
will sing when they reap.
What marvels the Lord
worked for us! Indeed we were glad.
They
go out, they go out, full of tears,
carrying seed for the sowing:
they
come back, they come back, full of song,
carrying their sheaves.
What marvels the Lord
worked for us! Indeed we were glad.
Second Reading - Philippians
1:4-6,8-11 ©
May You Become Pure and Blameless
in Preparation for the Day of Christ
Every
time I pray for all of you, I pray with joy, remembering how you have helped to
spread the Good News from the day you first heard it right up to the present. I
am quite certain that the One who began this good work in you will see that it
is finished when the Day of Christ Jesus comes; and God knows how much I miss
you all, loving you as Christ Jesus loves you. My prayer is that your love for
each other may increase more and more and never stop improving your knowledge
and deepening your perception so that you can always recognise what is best.
This will help you to become pure and blameless, and prepare you for the Day of
Christ, when you will reach the perfect goodness which Jesus Christ produces in
us for the glory and praise of God.
Gospel Acclamation - Lk3:4,6
Alleluia, alleluia!
Prepare
a way for the Lord,
make
his paths straight,
and
all mankind shall see the salvation of God.
Alleluia!
Gospel Reading - Luke
3:1-6 ©
The Call of John the
Baptist
In
the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar’s reign, when Pontius Pilate was governor
of Judaea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of the lands
of Ituraea and Trachonitis, Lysanias tetrach of Abilene, during the pontificate
of Annas and Caiaphas the word of God came to John son of Zechariah, in the
wilderness. He went through the whole Jordan district proclaiming a baptism of
repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the
sayings of the prophet Isaiah:
A
voice cries in the wilderness:
Prepare
a way for the Lord,
make
his paths straight.
Every
valley will be filled in,
every
mountain and hill be laid low,
winding
ways will be straightened
and
rough roads made smooth.
And
all mankind shall see the salvation of God.
The Second Sunday of
Advent
