2nd Sunday of Advent Cycle C
Baruch 5:1-9 Philippians 1:4-6, 8-11 Luke 3:1-
6
This year, I avoided Black Friday altogether. I said a few extra
prayers for all you folks who were out there stirring up the pot of
Christmas shopping. The extra prayers were said so that you wouldn’t
get crushed, like some poor fellow did at some Wal-Mart last year. I
figured as a priest my role was to lay low and pray for the safety of all
the bargain hunters. I believe my prayers were actually answered
since I haven’t read about anyone being crushed by a horde of human
bulls. Thanks be to God!
Once we get past the Black Friday Races, shall we say, and begin to
enter the more deeper meaning and reason for the season, in a
certain sense we continue our shopping. Instead of shopping for
material goods; the clothing or electronics; the jewelry; the DVD’s and
CD’s; the sports items and gift certificates for those who take the easy
way out, instead, the 2nd week of Advent is an invitation and a
challenge to deepen and enhance our spiritual
shopping.
Just like last week’s Gospel, with Jesus telling us to be vigilant, be
ready. Remember, don’t become drowsy by way of carousing and
drunkenness, or the anxieties of daily living. No, there’s a better way,
says Jesus. And the better way of spiritual shopping is to be ready,
being a choice for us disciples by way of two-fold readiness.
First, for the birth of Jesus, and accepting all the spiritual benefits that
flow from being ready for his birth. Jesus’ birth is an everlasting
power. It is a unique, everlasting gift that keeps giving. Is there
anyone here over the age of 30, or even 20, who has a Christmas gift
that remains from your childhood? Maybe a few of us, but not many I
would venture to guess. The gifts we receive at Christmas, most of
them come and go, especially for children. I’m still trying to remember
where I put my baseball glove from Little League, never mind a gift I
received as a young child! But Jesus is a 2000 year gift that keeps
giving, through his teachings that are not burdensome, and through
the sacrament of the altar. Jesus is eternal
gift.
And the 2nd form of readiness by way of spiritual shopping is us being
ready to meet Jesus in the many faces and colors and languages we
encounter each day. There’s a recent country music song I’ve heard
where the singer is singing about the birth of his child. He sings the
part of the refrain that says, “I saw God today.” And I have to say that I
also saw God the other day in my ministry at the hospital in Worcester.
As I was giving last rites to a dying elderly woman, her husband of 65
years was at her bedside holding her, touching her, and loving her in
the midst of her march towards death. I saw God that day in that
devoted husband. How ready are we to see God in the faces of
others? It’s an example of how Jesus really comes to us in the midst of
everyday life.
Today however, the spiritual shopping for the 2nd week of Advent
leads us to the spiritual business of the unforgettable, the ever
colorful, wild and crazy sort of guy, John the Baptist. The one of whom
Jesus says, “There is no one born of woman greater than he.” When
the Baptist is at center stage for the week, our spiritual shopping
always centers around repentance. Repentance is central to our
preparation for Jesus’ coming. Both in the Lord’s birth and each day in
the folks we encounter. To use an analogy reflecting the importance of
repentance, a baker can’t make a cake without the dough. It would
come out flat, along with tasting rotten. Repentance is the dough of
the cake we make with our faith. Without it, our faith tastes
rotten.
Ah, repentance. A big word that can be expressed in a number of
ways. I offer a couple of those ways. First, the sacramental form. What I’
ve noticed over the past few years as a priest is that even if a person
hasn’t been to confession for 30-40 years, there still exists within them
a familiarity with it’s purpose. (There are some things that just never
leave us Catholics!) What is the purpose of sacramental confession?
The answer is in today’s Gospel; to make straight our path that leads
to the Father; to fill every valley and lower every mountain and hill for
those who may be a little too high; to straighten our winding roads;
and to make our rough ways smooth. The Sacrament of Reconciliation
puts us back on a level playing field with the Lord. All we have to do is
cooperate with God’s grace, and be open to the great gift of healing.
That’s what I call spiritual shopping and spiritual bargain hunting at its
best! It’s all gift, and it’s all free. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is the
best sale in the world. And the red tag sale is always on,
24/7.
Secondly, repentance is so important to or lives, be it sacramental
confession or forgiving in our hearts from a distance, that it forms and
shapes our level of belief. Our belief in the teachings of the faith. Our
belief that we are loved by God, which is questioned by many today.
And our belief that, even in the midst of life’s woes and difficulties, we
are capable of loving one another. Repentance, and making it a real
element of our spiritual shopping, leads to love. And who does not
want to love?
So, the Black Friday Races are behind us now. What’s in front of us is
the opportunity to do some spiritual shopping by way of the Baptist’s
message of repentance. There’s no better way to prepare for the
coming of Jesus.