I am the One for You: The Third Sunday in Advent

  I am the One for You:

The Third Sunday in Advent

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December 15, 2019

Isaiah 35:1-10; Psalm 146; James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11

Are you the one? One can detect the expectation in the voice of John the Baptist as he sits in his prison cell and wonders about the man he recently baptized. It is clear, that in this passage, he does not know much about Jesus though he certainly met him at the Jordan River. The reputation of Jesus began to grow after his baptism and when news reached John about the miracles of Jesus, he knew in his heart that Jesus was the one. Jesus affirms John by letting him know all his hopes in God is coming true. Scripture is being fulfilled; John’s mission is validated.

Don’t we have the same type of wondering at times? Sometimes we meet a stranger that says something profound and touches us personally in a way no other words could do. We know it is a message from God. Or, we have been working so hard on an initiative and the work seems formidable and then one day, we get unexpected cooperation that makes the path forward seem so much easier, and we know God’s hand is at work.

This passage is about believing in those miracles. The story, the scripture of your life is being fulfilled. For John the Baptist, it was the healing of the lame, the deaf, and the blind, as this indicated the advent of the Lord. For us, the miracles will be something different. It might be a sense of abiding peace that you’ve been missing for a long time, a child who reaches out to you as a peace offering, a parent who asks for forgiveness, or a friend who pays back a debt. Perhaps it is a miraculous rebound in one’s health where cancer is stopped or a long-time sufferer makes great strides in her health overnight.

We may come to know more about Jesus through these moments and we understand the quality of his voice, which is expressed more than through words. We seek Jesus in many ways, and we often restrict how we think we might encounter him. We want to hear his voice, his actual voice, and yet we miss all the signs around us. The presence of Jesus is greater than his voice. Listen again to the indirect way he addresses John’s specific question: Look at all the signs, he says, and the poor have the good news preached to them. We have to pay attention and listen in new ways, which means we must quiet the voices in our heads that compete for attention.

The quiet time of John the Baptist was forced upon him by King Herod, but we can choose our quiet time, a time apart from work and family demands, a time apart from sports and the busyness of life, a time apart from worries and medical appointments. We need time to be ourselves in our own little sphere of life where we can step back and see the signs. We need space and time and place to be our best selves once again. We need to see how God is working in our favor. We need to see how Christ is always our best supporter. When we wonder in prayer, “Are you the one?,” we will be delighted in the answer.  

Scripture for Daily Mass

First Reading: 

Monday: (Zechariah 2) Rejoice, O daughter Zion. I am coming to dwell among you. The Lord will possess Judah and he will again choose Jerusalem.

Tuesday: (Zephaniah 3) On that day, I will change and purify their lips that they may call upon the name of the Lord. You shall not exalt yourself on my holy mountain.

Wednesday: (Isaiah 45) I am the Lord; there is no other; I form the light and create the darkness. Turn to be and be safe all you ends of the earth for I am the Lord, your God.

Thursday: (Isaiah 54) Raise a glad cry, you barren one who did not bear, break forth in jubilant song you who were not in labor.    

Friday (Isaiah 56) Observe what is right; do what is just; for my salvation is about to come; my justice is about to be revealed.

Saturday (Genesis 49) Jacob said: You Judah, shall your brothers praise. The scepter will never depart from you, or the mace from between your legs.  

Gospel: 

Monday: (Luke 1) The angel Gabriel was sent to a virgin betrothed to Joseph to announce that the Holy Spirit would overpower her and she would conceive a son. 

Tuesday: (Matthew 21) A man had two sons – one who said no, but did what his father asked; the other who said yes, but did not do what he asked. Which son was better?

Wednesday (Luke 7) The Baptist sent his disciples at ask: Are you the one who is to come? Look around: the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, and the poor hear the good news.

Thursday (Luke 7) Jesus asked: Why did you go out to see the Baptist? He is the greatest of men born to women.   

Friday (John 5) The Baptist was a burning and shining lamp, and for a while you were content to rejoice in his lift, but I have greater testimony than John’s.

Saturday (Matthew 1) The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus.

Saints of the Week

Saints are not celebrated during the octave leading up to Christmas.

December 17 - O Wisdom, coming forth from the mouth of our God Most High, guiding creation with power and love: come to teach us the path of knowledge.

December 18 - O Adonai, and leader of the house of Israel, who appeared to Moses in the fire of the burning bush and gave him the law on Sinai: come to rescue us with your mighty power.

December 19 - O root of Jesse's stem, sign of God's love for all the people, before you the kings will be silenced, to you the nations will make their prayers: come to save us without delay!

December 20 - O key of David, and scepter of the house of Israel, opening the gates of God's eternal kingdom: come and free the prisoners of darkness.

December 21 - O radiant Dawn, splendor of eternal light, sun of justice: come and shine on those who dwell in darkness and in the shadow of death.

This Week in Jesuit History

·      Dec 15, 1631. At Naples, during an earthquake and the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, the Jesuits worked to help all classes of people.

·      Dec 16, 1544. Francis Xavier entered Cochin.

·      Dec 17, 1588. At Paris, Fr. Henry Walpole was ordained.

·      Dec 18, 1594. At Florence, the apparition of St Ignatius to St Mary Magdalene de' Pazzi.

·      Dec 19, 1593. At Rome, Fr. Robert Bellarmine was appointed rector of the Roman College.

·      Dec 20, 1815. A ukase of Alexander I was published banishing the Society of Jesus from St Petersburg and Moscow on the pretext that they were troubling the Russian Church.

·      Dec 21, 1577. In Rome, Fr. Juan de Polanco, secretary to the Society and very dear to Ignatius, died.