I caught a strange virus, and people can catch it very quickly. Here are some symptoms of the Advent virus:
frequent attacks of smiling;
episodes of appreciation of others;
a loss of interest in negative judgements; and
an uncontrollable urge to reach out with a helping hand to other people.
If you have some of these symptoms, good!
Advent is a season of hope. And we have many opportunities to spread that contagious hope. For example, our parish survey shows more than 40 percent of respondents are newer parishioners, here less than 10 years. This Advent season, we might invite newcomers and even oldcomers who forgot or lost our address to our worship!
The word of God takes us back to an eighth century prophet in Ancient Israel, Isaiah. Here Isaiah speaks about an ideal king who possesses wisdom, intelligence, courage and empathy, good judgment, and respect for our all-mighty God. Would that leaders everywhere manifested these traits. This ideal leader, Isaiah says, will usher in a kingdom of peace, justice, truth and freedom.
Isaiah might be asking us how we exemplify these baptismal gifts of the Spirit in our everyday lives: wisdom (to recognize what truly matters), intelligence (to see what's true), courage (to stand up for what's right), empathy (for the needy), good judgment (to do the right thing), and wonder and awe (to worship the great God of this universe).
Paul in his letter to the Christian community in Rome calls for reconciliation and harmony among the different factions in that community. Paul asks them to accept, love and support one another as Jesus unconditionally accepts, loves and forgives them. Why? So that they can live and work together to make their community even better.
Paul asks us to practice virtue; virtue is the key organizing principle of a good society! What is virtue? A habitual firm disposition to do good. When we have people doing good, we have better relationships and a better world.
In the Gospel according to Matthew, John the Baptizer appears in the wilderness with a message of immediacy. He proclaims repentance: a turning away from a self-centered to an other-centered, God-centered life. Why? Because the Messiah, John says, is about to come.
John the Baptizer challenges us to: “Prepare the way for the Lord.” That is also our mission: to focus on God and the things of God. That’s what Advent is all about—preparing for the birth of the messiah by living a God-centered, other-centered life.
During Advent the word of God focuses on three biblical personalities: Isaiah, John the Baptist, and the Virgin Mary. All three, in their encounter with God, delivered a special message.
Isaiah spoke about a future Messiah, a liberator, a savior for us.
John the Baptist pointed to Jesus as the Lamb of God. The lamb, of course, references the Hebrew Passover meal, the Seder that Jews celebrate to this very day. Jesus is the Lamb who through his bloody death and glorious resurrection creates a glorious future for us.
The Virgin Mary is the living temple of God, the ark of the covenant, because she carried within herself THE very presence of God, the Word made flesh, a child, Emmanuel, God with us.
The word of God in Advent also references Joseph, who appears ever so briefly. Joseph had a dream in which the angel said, “Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife.”
Think about what couples dream when they learn they will be parents. Their first dreams are usually for a safe birth, a healthy child. Then parents may dream that their son or daughter will excel: in sports, sciences, arts, music, etc. They may even dream that their child may one day be a star quarterback for the Buccaneers, an opera singer, or a politico.
Along the way, of course, dreams may change. Mom and Dad may settle for their child passing courses in biology or math. Their dream of a World Series baseball champ may be forgotten when they wait and hope that their child will recover from an illness. Their dream of a tech whiz may all but disappear as they pray their child will overcome an addiction of one kind or another.
Yes, as I think of Joseph’s dreams, I think of the dreams of so many people. Sometimes disappointments, or tragedy may change our own dreams. But as Joseph learned, the most important things we can dream for children are these: that they will know we love them dearly, that we accept them unconditionally for who they are in God’s eyes, that we are always ready to forgive their so-called “peccadilloes” (as we hope they will forgive ours), and that we are always praying that God will shed his grace upon them.
Like Joseph, let us pray for the grace to see God’s presence in all things; to do things as best we can; to accept people as a gift from God even if they’re not quite the gift we hoped for; and to be a source of affirmation and support to one another.
I close with a quote from a favorite poem of mine about an old violin up for auction. It goes like this: “It was battered and scarred and the auctioneer thought it scarcely worth his while to waste much time on the old violin. What am I bid, good folks?, he cried. And going and going for two, three dollars, but no!’ From the room far back a gray-haired man came forward and played a magnificent melody. The music ceased and the auctioneer said, ‘What am I bid for the old violin?’ Three thousand dollars once, three thousand twice. And going and gone!, said he. But some wondered, we don’t quite understand. What changed its worth from three dollars to three thousand dollars?’ Quick came the reply: ‘The touch of the master’s hand.’ The point is: many a man or woman with life out of tune and battered and scarred is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd, much like the old violin. They’re going and almost gone. But the Master comes and the foolish crowd never can quite understand the worth of the soul and the change that’s wrought by the touch of the Master’s hand.”
As we prepare ourselves for the birth of the child Jesus, let us pray that the Master’s hand will change us into ever more faithful disciples of Jesus. And may our hands in service be a channel of grace to others, especially those whose lives are out of tune this season. Amen.
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