SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT – C
Baruch 5:1-9
Philippians 1:4-6,8-11
Luke 3:1-9
Once upon a time… If someone starts off like that you are alerted that what follows is not factual. However, that does not mean that what follows is not true. There might not be wizards like Harry Potter or hobbits like Frodo Baggins but what they stand for is true. The fairy tale teaches us the values of honesty and courage and fidelity and perseverance and friendship. While the story might not have happened, the truth of the story is perennial. There is another kind of truth – we might call it universal truth. “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights.” The problem is that universal truth is, all too often, it remains a nice theory but not reflected in reality. Several of the men (and they were all men) who wrote and signed the document that phrase comes from were slave owners. The truth that everyone is created equal was not lived by those professing that truth. What good is having the truth if it is not carried out? The gospel for today reminds us of another kind of truth: historical truth. The third gospel situates the story of John the Baptist at a very specific time and place. Someone can ignore the message but you can’t disagree with the fact that John, son of Zachariah, said and did certain things. He preached and baptized in 28AD in the region of the Jordan during a time of political upheaval, true that.
St. Luke goes out of his way to describe the historical moment because something momentous was happening – God was coming. This moment needed a herald because of the unexpected nature of God’s visitation. You would think that the presence of God would be accompanied by trumpet blast, fireworks, and triumphant chariots. You would think that the presence of God would require the presence of the movers and shakers all line up for the photo op. You would think that the presence of God would be covered by all the major news outlets of the day scratching away on their papyrus for the Jerusalem Sun Times and the Galilee Tribune. What do we find instead? God almost sneaks into creation – his presence is to be found among the usual, the commonplace, the every day. The herald, John the Baptist, give us some sign posts we can use to make sure that we are prepared to recognize and welcome God when the Lord comes.
The first thing to notice: to meet God go into the desert. “The word of John came to John in the desert.” The desert is the place of silence, a place where you aren’t busy. John went out into the desert so he could focus on God and the things of God. By contrast, our lives are busy all the time. There is always something we feel we should be doing. We have calls to make, people to see, chores to accomplish, meals to cook, things to clean, work to complete, shows to watch. If we aren’t busy we feel like we are slacking off. Busy-ness has become almost a virtue. I knew a rabbi who told his secretary that if anybody called to tell them the rabbi couldn’t answer the phone because he was thinking. People were irate. The secretary eventually reverted to saying, the rabbi is busy. Oh, I understand that, being busy, I won’t bother him then. However, when you go into the desert you leave busy-ness behind. You slow down, take a breath, step softly. You pay attention in the desert. Pope Francis has urged the church to go to, what he calls, the periphery. Go to the out of the way, the unnoticed, the forgotten. Those deserted places and neglected people are where God first appears.
The story of John the Baptist suggests that we will only recognize God when there is “repentance for the forgiveness of sin.” Have you ever noticed that nowadays no one makes mistakes? When some catastrophe happens those responsible say, “Mistakes were made.” It’s almost as if the mistakes made themselves. Certainly, I cannot be held responsible. St. John suggests that in order to welcome the God who comes into the world we must repent of our mistakes, we must change. We all are tempted to stay in our comfortable rut, to imagine we are stuck with our personality. “I’m just an impatient person. How can you expect me to forgive when I have been so hurt. Anger is what motivates me. I got mine and too bad for you. I’ll do my thing and you do yours.” John the Baptist shows a different path, the path of conversion. When we take responsibility for our actions, when we accept the fact that we can be better, when we take the steps to respond to transforming grace in our lives then we open ourselves to welcome the God who comes to save us. Repentance opens us to the new thing God does when God comes into our lives.
Once upon a time there was a monastery which had lost its way. The monks were dispirited and contentious, prayer was listless, no vocations were coming. The abbot went to see the wise old rabbi who lived at the edge of the monastery grounds and poured out his troubles. The rabbi said to him, I will reveal to you a great secret. The messiah to come lives in your monastery. The abbot hurried back and told the monks. They looked at one another with fresh eyes. “I’d better be more prayerful so Brother Sylvester will see it.” “I’m going to forgive Brother Paphnutius and be more kind.” “I will make sure that the chapel is kept clean and polished where Brother Fidelis sits.” The entire mood of the monastery shifted as the monks went out of their way to impress whoever the messiah to come would be. The abbot realized the truth of the rabbi’s statement. When they treated each other with love the messiah to come was in their midst.
