Reconciliation of families

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve and families will be gathering some to go to Church, for dinners, and some will open presents. But there will also be those missing family members, not just those separated by war or work, but those separated by problems, those who are in some way astanged, isolated. 

On this last full day of Advent, The Prophet Elijah speaks of the sending of a Messenger. And the purpose of his message is:

To turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers.

The original messenger was of course St. John the Baptist,  who came preaching a message to reconcile us all to God, but also, as Elijah points out, to reconcile us to one another, to reconcile families. 

Now we are called to be those messengers. No, I am not suggesting that one phone call can magically heal years of separation. But I am suggesting that as Christians we have a duty to at least take a first step. Whether it’s text, call or email, there is still time to in some way reach out to those who find themselves on the periphery of the gatherings of families and friends. It may be a bit awkward, but that’s ok too. 

At our baptism we are all baptized into Christ (priest, prophet, and king) today our hearts are turned to Elijah and his message of reconciliation. 

Holy Wisdom

While today is Gaudete Sunday, the Sunday on which the color rose is used to symbolize rejoicing, this year it is also the first day of the O Antiphons which are sung on the last seven days of Advent. These ancient antiphons focus our attention on images for the messiah taken from the Prophet Isaiah. The last, the one to be sung on December 24th is the most famous, Emmanuel. 

Today we begin with wisdom:

O Sapientia, quae ex ore Altissimi prodiisti, attingens a fine usque ad finem, fortiter suaviterque disponens omnia: veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.

O Wisdom, Who came out of the mouth of the Most High, reaching from end to end and ordering all things mightily and sweetly: come and teach us the way of prudence.

Khakam in Hebrew, Sapientia in Latin or Sophia in Greek, the concept of wisdom is not particular to Christianity. But today’s antiphon reminds us that there is a particularly Christian understanding of wisdom. For us Christians, wisdom is not something which comes to you simply by virtue of getting old. While there is the saying “with age comes wisdom”,  there is also the saying “there’s no for like an old fool.”

The wisdom which Isaiah prophesied is not a thing it is a person. The wisdom of God which has come forth is the Messiah, the word made flesh. Knowledge we can acquire from reading and listenin; true wisdom, Holy Wisdom, comes only as a free gift of God, it comes from grace. It comes from prayer and the reception of the sacraments, instruments of grace. 

How do we know we are growing in wisdom? The antiphon links it to another virtue, the “way of prudence.”  As we look at our day to day choices, do we see in our choosing signs of prudence? Do we thoughtfully act or do we react?

Prudence is understood to be the mother of all other virtues. It is the ability to choose the right course of action, often in spite of our feelings at that moment. It is more than a general desire to do good. For the Christian, prudence is the ability to apply our Christian principles to the concrete situation in front of us. When it becomes habit we call that virtue. 

It is not easy for us to stay on, what the antiphon calls the via prudentiae, the path of prudence. We know the priciples when we are sitting in church. But then when we are at home or at work, our feelings or expediency, or profit or promotion get in the way. 

Today, and perhaps for these last seven days of Advent, it would be a good time to pray for the gift of wisdom, that we may daily know and choose the right path. 

What about the others

Today’s gospel is the familiar story of the friends whonlower the paralyzed man through the roof. At first glance it is a beautiful story about the power of intercession. Jesus sees the faith of the friends and cures the paralyzed man. 

But what about the other characters in the story? The reason they have to open the roof is that even the friends with all their faith can’t get past the crowd   .  One individual would be no problem but when the individuals come together and form a crowd, it is too much to handle. 

Advent, like Lent,  is a time to examine our lives. In particular, we are called to ask how prepared we are for the second coming of Christ.

 Like the friends, if you are reading this, you are probably already a person  of faith. But all of could draw closer to Christ. So we must ask: Is there a “crowd” in my life? The crowd can be people but can also be things, things that so occupy our attention that there is little time for Jesus. 

As we prepare the way of the Lord in Advent, perhaps we can take a few minutes to clearly identify the crowd in our lives, so that we do not have to climb on the roof, we can thin out the crowd that stands between us and Jesus so we can enter his house with a pure heart, and be ready to receive him.

Starting Over

Today we begin our reading of the Gospel of Mark, the shortest and, some would argue, the oldest of the gospels. 

He opens quote the prophets, “Behold, I send my messenger ahead of you...”

Messenger in Greek is “angelos”, from which we get the word angel.  In fact, the word is used in two ways. 

Yes, we do believe in the spiritual beings we call angels and they are in fact messengers. But we also believe that humans can serve as angels/messengers in the second sense of the word. 

As Christians, we are all called to be angels in that sense. We are called to be the messengers who go before the Lord’s second coming.  

Being angels does not simply mean we buy Christmas presents for poor children once a year. Being angels in this sense is meant to be a way of life, 24/7/365. That is the great struggle.

Last week we began not only Advent, but we began a new liturgical year. Perhaps as we start this new liturgical year, we can begin where St. Mark begins. We can focus on becoming the angels/messengers of the gospel that we are meant to be.