My friends, today we begin the short fourth week of our Advent — two plus days as we conclude our time of waiting. And what are we waiting for? It seems that we might best answer this question by considering what our good God “was up to in the Incarnation.”
I have stressed the point throughout Advent that God choosing to become, “One-with-us” in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, who would later become “the Christ,” was all about love—love for us created ones, desiring to show us “the way.” The notion that many, if not all of us heard throughout our lives, that Jesus would come to “save us,” was accomplished not by “dying,” but by “living” for us, showing us the way to do that well.
Our chosen readings for today speak, in many ways about “little ones” being called to do great things. The first of these “little ones” the prophet Micah speaks of, is in fact, “a place”—Bethlehem—out of this seemingly insignificant place will come One who will “stand firm” and “shepherd” the people. This One will be about “peace.”
My friends, we who would follow our brother Jesus must be about what he was about and the writer to the Hebrews articulates the response that we must have in following our brother, “Here I am. I have come to do your will.”
The remainder of this homily, I would like to focus on two significant women, our sisters, Mary and Elizabeth as “little ones” who came in response to their God’s call stating with truth and love, “their presence,” “here I am” and their intention of doing God’s will in their lives.
These two don’t get much “press-time” throughout the Church Year, but they are ones who should because of their steadfastness amid all that life can call forth from any of us!
This past week, Robert and I watched an American Masters presentation on the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder and her “Little House” books. The presentation lifted up the truth that she and her daughter, Rose Wilder Lane worked as “companions” in the writing and editing of these well-known books. I raise this simply to mention something that will serve us well as we read the Scripture story today of our sisters, Mary and Elizabeth.
Rose, as her mom’s secret editor encouraged Laura in the writing of her books, “to stay in the mind of Laura” when writing—write in that vein, she seemed to be saying, and what you write will be much more interesting to your readers.
For us then, my friends, not only today, with Mary and Elizabeth, but with Scripture stories in general, we should try to stay in the “minds” of those being discussed, to get the full benefit that then can be applied to our own lives.
Let’s begin, “in the mind” of Mary in today’s selection from Luke. The text says, [she proceeded] “in haste.” Why do you think that would have been? Remembering the earlier text that Mary had said “yes” to becoming the mother of the long-awaited, and foretold, Messiah, and hearing that her relative, Elizabeth, in her old age was also, “with child,” Mary is compelled to “go quickly” to be with her aunt.
Now, it would have been common for a younger relative to go and assist an older one; but I would suggest a deeper urgency here in Mary’s flight.
Keeping “in her mind” and additionally, her heart, and thinking about Mary’s own condition of being pregnant before she was formerly married—not against the law, as she was espoused to Joseph, but just the same looked down on in respectable society. Add to that, the heavenly, and mysterious component of this, “being with child,” Mary’s haste was probably as much about getting acceptance and confirmation from her aunt to the wonder of what had taken place as it was to support and assist Elizabeth—and in the end, her long-awaited baby would prove to be significant too, in God’s plan.
Thus the two women were gifting each other with “time and presence” in order to understand their blessed pregnancies, more through their hearts, than their minds. This Scripture reading friends, as all of Scripture, for the most part, becomes “alive” when we try and stay, “in the minds” (and hearts) of the characters presented. And additionally, when we read on this “heart level,” it becomes so much easier to apply the life lessons learned there to our own lives.
Let’s briefly turn from Mary and Elizabeth to look at all the prophets who foretold the “coming of the Messiah,” but never lived to see their God-given message come to reality—they merely planted the seeds of hope that others would see come to fruition. In our own lives my friends, we do the same—we plant seeds too as teachers, parents, counselors, friends that we may never see fully grown, but we know it is our call too, like prophets before us to do our part.
Moving back then to Mary and Elizabeth, we “see and hear” that, “when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby stirred in her womb.” Up until this time, Elizabeth, considered beyond the years when giving birth would have been possible, had not yet felt her baby move. It would have been understandable, “in her mind” and heart to think that “this time too” it may not happen.
The Scriptures tell us that upon Mary’s greeting, not only did the baby stir, but it stirred “for joy!” Those who have been blessed to have given physical birth know “that joy” the first time their own babies stirred! So, my friends, if we simply read without fully engaging with the words of Scripture, trying to be “in the minds” and hearts, of those we read about, in order to understand as fully as we can what they are experiencing, we miss so much.
Mary’s canticle, in Elizabeth’s presence, is all about proclaiming in strength and power, the greatness that her God has bestowed upon her, for the good of the world. She prays her Magnificat with humility, yes, but strength too!
One final idea that I will simply mention, because I will speak more of it at Christmas, is the way we believe Jesus, our brother, came into this world. One might think that it would be with a good deal of pomp and circumstance, as in the past we have used such titles as Lord of Lords, King of Kings, even creating Christmas Crib scenes depicting Mary and Joseph in royal robes. But no, God’s plan was to incarnate within the poverty and the announcement of God’s glory was first made not to those “in power,” but to those “with no power” on the hillsides of Bethlehem…to be continued…
Amen? Amen!

My friends, I was reminded today that I haven’t yet put out a Christmas Schedule, which I will do following sending out the homily (: Pastor Kathy

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My friends, we began the holy season of Advent uplifting the notion that these four weeks, and a short four weeks at that, are about “joy” and a joy that builds throughout this time. Our color is royal blue, even though in most Catholic churches, you will see purple as the predominant color.
Our Catholic church is a ritualistic one—something I have always most appreciated, as the signs and symbols that we use connect us back to our daily lives. As Catholics, we have over the years praised those who have helped us to make “rich” the times of the Church Year through signs and symbols that are meaningful to each particular season. because Advent is about “joy realized” in our God who loved us enough to send our brother Jesus to be, “one-with-us,” Emmanuel, we rightly see this season being about “joy in our God,” not guilt for our sinfulness which is depicted, as in the season of Lent with the color purple.
Every one of our Scripture readings for today, are virtually “exploding” with joy, so for us to not “get that” is simply, to me, mind-boggling! As I look around our world today, I see so many places and situations that need the remedy of “joy proclaimed,” and acted upon, and to spend any more time “feeling bad about ourselves,” than necessary, seems to me, a waste of precious time. Our God created us, I believe, for joy—a joy that moves into our world, with love and care—fixes what is broken, cures those who are ill, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and genuinely works to help those treated unjustly.
It would seem that cultivating a “joy-filled heart” would give us the strength we need as Jesus’ followers to do the hard work that it takes to be about “loving” as opposed to “guilting” ourselves and others in this life.
As always, let’s look to the Scriptures for the best guidance. The prophet Zephaniah tells us to “fear not” for [our] “God is in our midst.” “Fearing” what we don’t know—how others may think of us—will we still be liked or accepted if we say or do this thing? –seems to go with the human condition. But the prophet clearly says, “Fear not” [!] Zephaniah continues, not only will, “God rejoice over you,” but “God will rejoice”… “with gladness!”
Paul, in his letter to the Philippians, says it not only once, but twice, “rejoice in the Savior always” [!]
Luke, through John the Baptist, gets at the “hard work” that it will take to be true followers of our brother Jesus. Coming at any “hard” problem with joy, coupled with a good measure of faith, as opposed to any of the more negative emotions; guilt, anger, remorse, etc. seems a much better way to go, because in reality, “stepping up and out,” doing the thing, speaking the truth that no one else seems to want to do, is in fact, “a fearful” thing, because we all want to be loved—to be accepted.
In John the Baptist’s day, he was calling out those “with means,” to share with those needing clothes and food—that of course, fits for us as well. He tells the tax-collectors “to exact no extra,” and that “soldiers should not bully.”
We, my friends, can add to, “doing the hard work,” in our lives by “speaking truth to power” in Church and State, demanding that those in both places do what they were “given that power” to do, serving and caring for others, especially the neediest among us. In my understanding of the work of the Thursday letter-writing group that Nancy informs us of every week, this is what they do. I believe that whenever “joy” brings us to a task, it goes better.
And finally, in this surface look at today’s Scriptures, I lift up David, known as the composer of the Psalms who is “crying out with joy,” so I would say, our mission as Jesus’ followers is clear—we are to be about joy!
Now, fine-tuning these Scriptures, let’s take a deeper look at “why” we should be joy-filled. The Latin word for “joy” is “Gaudete” and prior to the Second Vatican Council, we were very much a “Latin” Church in our liturgical language. With the “opening of windows and doors” that Pope John XXIII said he wanted to do, we “lost” Latin, actually by then, a dead language, as the Church’s main liturgical language, in deference to the individual languages of peoples throughout the world, even though today, in some places, there are those trying to once again elevate Latin.
We know that Jesus’ languages were Hebrew and Aramaic, and “joy” in Hebrew is “Simcha”—and perhaps as we look back more and more at the words of Jesus, rather than those of the “Roman” church, we might do well to re-name this Sunday, “Simcha Sunday” –all about joy—in fact “Simcha” has been used as a personal name for obvious reasons. Just a thought (changing the name of this feast) that I think the Church fathers won’t take me up on.(:
But more so, let’s look further, as to “why” we should be about “joy,” especially today, and really, throughout all of Advent. If we can leave behind the notion, really ill-conceived, that Jesus came, “to save us from our sins by dying on the cross,” than we can be open to a God who simply “loved us,” first and foremost, and who wants “only good and not bad” for us in this life.
In my previous ministry as a chaplain, I would many times hear from patients that they “didn’t believe in God.” When I asked them to tell me, “who God was for them,” it was often a “mean and vengeful God just waiting to pounce when they failed.” I could most assuredly tell them that I didn’t believe in that God either! Then I would remind them of who Jesus told us his Abba God was, in the stories of the “Good Shepherd” and the ”Prodigal Child”—stories that both depict a God who loves in an over-the-top way, and who will go to any length “to find us and bring us home.”
But if the terminology of “saving us” is meaningful in your life, then a more positive way to envision Jesus’ coming might be to see his life actions, his words, as showing us the “best ways” to live out our one, wonderful life, and in that way, he “saves” us from our human tendency to be less than we can be.
So my friends, the Scriptures today clearly tell us to be “people of joy,” to “fear not” to do what God, through Jesus is asking of us—the hard, at times, work of love, and remembering that this same God, “is in our midst,” always showing us the way, and comforting us in the ups and downs of life.
A final thought my friends comes from the words of John, the Baptist, that today’s reading doesn’t include, but are important for all of us, especially ministers and pastors, “He (meaning Jesus) must increase, while I (meaning John) must decrease.” In today’s gospel, John says that there is one coming whose sandal strap John is not worthy to loosen.”
The words spoken by John that he must “decrease” while Jesus must “increase,” clearly speak to the place we as followers of Jesus must keep. We, as John, must never get in the way of the message –all that we do should be about, “shedding more light on Jesus!” So there you have it—
Amen? Amen!

My friends, today brings us to the 2nd Sunday of Advent, a time of increasing joy and light, as we walk, day by day, toward the beautiful feast of Christmas—the Incarnation of our loving God into humanity, in the person of our brother, Jesus of Nazareth, who would become the Christ—a God, big enough for all of creation—for all belief systems.

I said that Advent is “a season of joy and light.” All our Scriptures for today speak of this fact. Beginning with the Old Testament prophet, Baruch, the joy of the season continues as he basically says, that if we practice living peacefully, acting justly, showing mercy, “we will be glorified,” and all this brings, “joy,” because we are doing what is right.

Paul, in his letter to the Philippians continues the theme of “joy coming out of action” in saying, “I rejoice” because of how you are [living] the gospel. “It is my hope that you be found rich in the harvest of justice.”
And finally, in Luke’s gospel, we hear “urgency” in John the Baptist’s words to, “Make ready the way for our God”—make [in fact], “a straight path.” And if we believe Baruch and Paul’s words that “doing the right thing” brings “joy” into our personal lives, then the Baptist’s call for us to “prepare” a straight path for the Messiah, which will be “paved” with our good works, as we just sang so beautifully in our gospel verse, will bring “joy” as well.

If you think of the Creed by John Shea that we use here, you will recall that he speaks of the Messiah’s coming as, “God risking in sending Jesus.” That line has always “struck me” when we say these words, because if we think of God as all powerful, wonderful, and perfect, really—“the act of risking” almost seems below who God should be –yet the truth is there, if we can get our “hearts,” rather than our “heads” around this idea. The truth is, our God loved us that much in sending Jesus to be one of us, and one-with-us, Emmanuel, for no other reason but that we could see through his life, how each of us is to be in our lives.

And at this point, it would be good to reflect on another important event celebrated in our Church on December 8th each year—that of the Immaculate Conception. First off, it is important to reflect on the words, in order to truly understand what they really mean. Secondly, this feast only came about in 1854, so we didn’t always “believe” what it seems to be saying. The words very simply say that Mary was conceived “pure” (immaculate) from original sin which the rest of us presumably are “stained” with.
To say that Jesus’ mother was conceived without sin is to say that she was not human as the very definition of humanity is that we are not perfect and the best part, is that our God loves us anyway! Or, in other words, God made us this way—imperfect! So, if the only way that Jesus could be part of us, and our humanity was that his mother needed to be perfect, or not human, then where did the human component in Jesus come from? Clearly, the theologians and clerics would do well to clean up their act on this one. And if they can do that, then some of the negative thinking around sexuality might be able to be done away with as well. The beauty of the Incarnation is the realization that God loved us from the get-go and chose to be immersed in our humanity that is not an “original sin,” but an original blessing! Talk about risking!

Having put forth the idea that our loving God chose, “to risk” and become One-With-Us, the next piece to consider in today’s readings is what Jesus, living among us wanted us to know about our own human experiences in life. From Baruch in the Old Testament to Paul and Luke in the New Testament, it seems evident that Jesus wants us—each of us, to live lives of mercy and justice. The psalmist prays, “God has done great things for us” [and this should make us glad and help us to persevere, in times of trouble]. Additionally, Paul, writing to the Philippians affirms this notion, “the One who began [this] good work in you, will keep perfecting it.”

And in our world today my friends, we are truly called to be people of mercy and justice, always looking for the ways that we can make a difference in the lives of those needing the very basics in life that we often take for granted. When I was growing up, even though we didn’t have a lot of extras, and even if I didn’t always like the food choices, I can honestly say that I never knew what it was like “to go hungry,” unless I chose that option. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be a mom or dad in this world and have nothing to feed my children or to be unable to keep them physically safe from constant bombs flying overheard destroying what they once called home. A newscaster this past week documenting the suffering in the Middle East and speaking specifically of a very young child said, “She and other children here have known nothing but war their entire lives.” I can’t imagine, nor probably can you, what that is like to endure.

Paul encourages us today to try and “understand, to discern” basically, situations that are bigger than our own, and when we do that, we have to realize that simple, black and white answers, such as, “peace is the absence of war,” or “love is the absence of hate,” just don’t cut it when we are trying to follow in Jesus’ footsteps.

Going back to John Shea’s notion of “God risking” in sending Jesus into the mess that our human lives can sometimes be, was not about showing God’s “powerfulness,” but really, God’s “vulnerability” in doing whatever it might take to show us that we are truly loved, with all our “imperfections.” And friends, if we can follow our God’s lead here, reflecting, always reflecting on Jesus’ life, then these days of preparation can truly be ones of joy! Amen? Amen!