Homily, Second Sunday of Advent

December 9, 2007

God Bless

Fr. Brendan

·  Homily

Waiting the Right Way

There are different types of waiting. For example, waiting to get a job complete or finished: we can be waiting in line at the grocery store, or waiting in a line at a bank. Then there's the waiting with a little bit more anxiety: for example, we wait for the results of an exam at school or we wait in the waiting room for a dentist or doctor's appointment. Then there's another type of waiting where we are waiting for the end: for example, when we have guests over that we really did not want and we just cannot wait until they leave.

But then there is another type of waiting; in this type of waiting there is great excitement, anticipation. Often the waiting is as much fun as the event itself that we are waiting for: for example, a vacation. When one waits for a vacation, one has an excitement, anticipation of what it is we are going to go to or what we are going to see and the anticipation is as much fun as the event itself.

Another example of this type of waiting is something that happened about 6 months ago; you might remember this event: people waited in line over night and some even longer 24 hours. They waited outside the store and there was great excitement and anticipation of this new product that was going to change the world. You know what it was? Yes. It was the Apple iPhone. There was great anticipation and excitement indeed. Some people waited 24 hours, other people waited 48 hours in a line outside a store.

Indeed, another occasion happened even more recently: it was for the latest book from J.K. Rowling: Harry Potter. The people waited over night for this book as well and they waited in great anticipation. And, indeed it happens every year for shopping bargains. After Thanksgiving Day we have Black Friday where stores give the best Sale Price all year to kick of the Christmas season. Everybody waits for these latest sales and there's great anticipation. And there is great excitement. People are willing to do almost anything for those items on sale. Some people wait up all night long.

Of all the people waiting in those lines for their new iPhone, some are genuinely anticipating this wonderful new product and can't wait for this latest Apple cell phone. But there are others who are waiting in those same lines who just want to get the phone, so they can make a quick profit and sell it. They go online to the web with eBay within seconds of having had it and sell it for twice, three times, four times the cost that they paid for it. They are really not after the product, they are really not after the event itself. They are just after a quick profit. Indeed, the same thing happens with Rowling's book, Harry Potter: some people were selling the copy minutes after receiving it. I am sure the same thing happens every Black Friday with those products.

As we continue to celebrate Advent season, our season of waiting for the Lord, we are called to see this waiting as excited anticipation. Not the waiting in a dentist room, not the waiting in a line or in a grocery store, not even the waiting of a vacation We are called to wait in anticipation with great excitement like the advent of a new product. Now, it is not a 2nd iPhone coming. But it is a 2nd coming of Christ Jesus.

And as we wait, we are not like John in today's gospel - where he accuses those waiting for Jesus who are inauthentic to be a brood of vipers. Oh what strong words ! I mean he warns them to not be inauthentic; that if we are real about this waiting for this the Messiah, the Christ, then we will repent, we will change our ways, we will turn back to our God and we will make straight our paths. Very strong language. It leaves no room for doubt as exactly how we are meant to wait. We are meant to wait by repenting our sins, we are called to a conversion of heart - what we call a Metanoia-a change of heart -- to move back to the Lord Jesus who we claim to follow.

That means putting away old things. This moment and this period of waiting is a time of excitement yes, a time of anticipation, yes, but a time of preparation to cleanse our heart. To make ready in our own hearts the 2nd coming of Christ. That means for us we are called to make pure our hearts in some way; to let go of old resentments; to make promises and to make action - as John says in today's gospel, to be fruitful. We must produce evidence of our repentance-good fruit. We must act out our faith, we must find ways to do justice, to do charitable works this season. This is not an optional extra for us. This is a constitutive element of the gospel of Jesus Christ and John foretold us today as we are called to produce evidence. And when we hear in the reading by the Prophet Isaiah today, is the exact same thing. We are to be part of this world of peace. We are the ones who bring this justice.

Yes, we, you and I are the ones who prepare the way of the Lord by making our actions today to be actions of justice, to be actions of charity. In so doing, we go through a conversion of heart, a Metanoia, a repentance of ourselves. So today, as we leave here; let us grab a hold of the anticipation, yes; let us grab a hold of the excitement, yes; but also let us grab a hold of this time of preparation and to make ready the way of the Lord in our own hearts by acts of charity, by actions of justice by actions that produce evidence and bear good fruit.

·  Footnotes

·  Scripture Readings

Psalm: Sunday 42

Reading 1
Is 11:1- 10

On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,
and from his roots a bud shall blossom.
The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him:
a spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
a spirit of counsel and of strength,
a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD,
and his delight shall be the fear of the LORD.
Not by appearance shall he judge,
nor by hearsay shall he decide,
but he shall judge the poor with justice,
and decide aright for the land's afflicted.
He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
Justice shall be the band around his waist,
and faithfulness a belt upon his hips.
Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
the calf and the young lion shall browse together,
with a little child to guide them.
The cow and the bear shall be neighbors,
together their young shall rest;
the lion shall eat hay like the ox.
The baby shall play by the cobra's den,
and the child lay his hand on the adder's lair.
There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the LORD,
as water covers the sea.
On that day, the root of Jesse,
set up as a signal for the nations,
the Gentiles shall seek out,
for his dwelling shall be glorious.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 72:1-2, 7- 8, 12-13, 17

R. (cf. 7) Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,

and with your justice, the king's son;
he shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Reading II
Rom 15:4- 9

Brothers and sisters:
Whatever was written previously was written for our instruction,
that by endurance and by the encouragement of the Scriptures
we might have hope.
May the God of endurance and encouragement
grant you to think in harmony with one another,
in keeping with Christ Jesus,
that with one accord you may with one voice
glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Welcome one another, then, as Christ welcomed you,
for the glory of God.
For I say that Christ became a minister of the circumcised
to show God's truthfulness,
to confirm the promises to the patriarchs,

but so that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.
As it is written:
Therefore, I will praise you among the Gentiles
and sing praises to your name.

Gospel
Mt 3:1- 12

John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea
and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"
It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said:
A voice of one crying out in the desert,
Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.
John wore clothing made of camel's hair
and had a leather belt around his waist.
His food was locusts and wild honey.
At that time Jerusalem, all Judea,
and the whole region around the Jordan
were going out to him
and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River
as they acknowledged their sins.

When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees
coming to his baptism, he said to them, "You brood of vipers!
Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.
And do not presume to say to yourselves,
'We have Abraham as our father.'
For I tell you,
God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones.
Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees.
Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit
will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
I am baptizing you with water, for repentance,
but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I.
I am not worthy to carry his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
His winnowing fan is in his hand.
He will clear his threshing floor
and gather his wheat into his barn,
but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."

Holy Spirit Parish

1200 Redmond Avenue

San Jose, California 95120

bmcguire@holyspiritchurch.org

http://www.holyspiritchurch.org