Contemplating today's Gospel
Today's Gospel + homily (in 300 words)
Then the sacrifice of Judah and Jerusalem will please the Lord, as in the days of old, as in years gone by. Lo, I will send you Elijah, the prophet, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and terrible day, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers. Lest I come and strike the land with doom.
Good and upright is the Lord; thus he shows sinners the way. He guides the humble to justice, he teaches the humble his way.
All the paths of the Lord are kindness and constancy toward those who keep his covenant and his decrees. The friendship of the Lord is with those who fear him, and his covenant, for their instruction.
“‘What, then, will this child be?’ For surely the hand of the Lord was with him”
Fr. Miquel MASATS i Roca (Girona, Spain)Today, in the first reading we read: “Now I am sending my messenger he will prepare the way before me” (Mal 3:1). John the Baptist fulfills Malachi’s prophecy. He is one of the main characters in the liturgy of Advent. He invites us to prepare ourselves with prayer and penance for the arrival of the Lord. As the collect of today's Mass says: “Your Son's birth is near; may the love of He who is the Word made flesh who became man in the Virgin's womb to live among men, welcome us”.
The Precursor's birth speaks of the proximity of Christmas. The Lord is at hand!: let's get ourselves ready! When asked who he was by the priests who had come from Jerusalem, he said: “I am ‘the voice of one crying out in the desert, Make straight the way of the Lord.’” (Jn 1:23).
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, [then] I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me” (Rev 3:20), we read in the Communion antiphone. It is necessary to examine ourselves to see how we are preparing ourselves to receive Jesus this Christmas: God, more than anything, wants to be born in our hearts.
The Precursor's life teaches us the virtues we need to receive Jesus properly; fundamentally, humility of the heart. He acknowledges himself as an instrument of God, to fulfil his vocation, his mission. As Saint Ambrose says: «Do not boast that they call you son of God —let us acknowledge His grace without forgetting our human nature—; do not become proud if you have served well because you have done just what was expected from you. The sun does its job, the moon obeys, and the angels of the Lord do their duty. The instrument chosen by God to serve the Gentiles said: “For I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God” (1Cor 15:9).”
We are looking for the glory of God only. The virtue of humility will help us to prepare ourselves appropriately for the coming festivities.
Thoughts on Today's Gospel
“Elizabeth is aware of Mary’s presence, but John is aware of the Lord’s: a woman aware of a woman’s presence, the forerunner aware of the pledge of our salvation. The women speak of the grace they have received while the children are active in secret, unfolding the mystery of love with the help of their mothers.” (Saint Ambrose)
“John announces a greater one who comes after him. His own role is to prepare a path for this mysterious Other, his whole mission is directed toward him. Great things are about to unfold.” (Benedict XVI)
“John the Baptist is ‘more than a prophet’ (Lk 7:26). In him, the Holy Spirit concludes his speaking through the prophets. John completes the cycle of prophets begun by Elijah. He proclaims the imminence of the consolation of Israel; he is the ‘voice’ of the Consoler who is coming (Jn 1:23). As the Spirit of truth will also do, John ‘came to bear witness to the light’ (Jn 1:7). In John's sight, the Spirit thus brings to completion the careful search of the prophets and fulfills the longing of the angels.” (Catechism Of The Catholic Church, Nº 719)
