Tuesday, December 13, 2016

3rd Sunday of Advent, Cycle C - December 11, 2016

3rd Sunday of Advent
Cycle A
December 11, 2016     

 

 

John the Baptist


Back in the first century in Palestine, there is a man named John the Baptist.

John is a fiery preacher.  People like his talk about God’s terrifying wrath. 

They figure that God’s wrath will come down heavy on the Romans who are occupying their country and oppressing them.  They want the Romans to get their just desserts and John seems to be saying that God will take vengeance on them.

John points to Jesus as the one who will lead his people in all of this.  He refers to Jesus as “one more powerful than I.”

Jesus


Jesus has listened to John and even been baptized by him.

But then, Jesus goes in a very different direction.  He doesn’t talk about wrath or about God as punishing or vengeful.

Instead, Jesus introduces a whole new language about God.  He speaks in terms of compassion and mercy.

Jesus even speaks about the forgiveness of enemies.  He speaks of union with God and with one another and not of division.

Jesus emphasizes that God comes to save us from what oppresses the human spirit.  He does not speak of God in political or military terms.

Jesus replaces John’s austere life in the desert with a lifestyle centered on meals.  He replaces John’s good guy/bad guy, insider/outsider mentality with an approach that is open to people.

Jesus doesn’t push away or condemn people.  He eats dinner with those labeled as sinners and he talks with them about God.

And beyond all this, Jesus does something that John the Baptist never does.  He heals people and his physical healings, while real, seem to point to something deeper – to the healing of the deepest hungers and hurts of the human spirit.

Very remarkably, Jesus directs a lot of his attention to the lost and the last and the least of society.  And that includes women and children.

A Revolution

This is the background of today’s gospel.

This is why John sends some of his followers to ask Jesus: “Um, are you really the One we’ve been waiting for?  You’re looking pretty different from what we expected.”

Jesus responds by going back to Isaiah, to what we heard in our first reading.  He knows that Isaiah gives the accurate idea of what this Savior will do, and he knows that this is revolutionary.

So Jesus says: “Tell John what’s happening.  The blind now see a vision and purpose for their lives.

“The deaf now hear a message of unconditional acceptance and self-worth.  The lame are now able to walk through the challenging bumps of life.

“Those as good as dead are now alive and have something to live for.  And the poor now have their deepest hunger satisfied.”

So what he’s telling John is that a revolution is taking place.  He is bringing a whole new understanding of God and our relationship with God.

The Revolution Continues

Today we still need to hear what Jesus says because sometimes we still hang on to John the Baptist and his understanding. 

Sometimes we see faith only as a checklist of truths that have to be believed.  We can miss faith as an alive, personal relationship with Jesus.

Sometimes we see Church as a club with members, with the need to determine who’s in and who’s out.  We can miss Church as a community of persons who can be at different places in their journey with the Lord, a community where there can be unity without complete uniformity.

Sometimes we see God as punishing and condemning those who don’t measure up.  We can miss God, as revealed by Jesus, as reaching out and even including those whom we think are doing wrong.

Maybe it all boils down to this.  We need The Joy of the Gospel. 

That’s what Pope Francis is talking about in a recent and refreshing statement called The Joy of the Gospel.  The Pope has expressed the way of understanding God that Jesus presents on this Third Sunday of Advent. 


He calls us to embrace this more fully.  And my bet is, if we do, then the One whose birth we celebrate at Christmas will come much more fully into our world.