Big Sugar Buddha: A Homily – The Second Sunday of Advent (Year C)

Sunday, December 8, 2024

A Homily – The Second Sunday of Advent (Year C)

First Reading - Baruch 5:1-9 ©

Responsorial Psalm - Psalm 125(126) ©

Second Reading - Philippians 1:4-6,8-11 ©

Gospel Acclamation – Luke 3:4,6

The Gospel According to Luke 3:1 – 6

(NJB)

Listen!

In the readings for today, from the prophet Baruch to Paul, it must be understood that Jerusalem and Israel are metaphorical figures that are representative of the entire people of God…we are speaking of humanity writ large. The hope expressed here in scripture, from the Psalms to the Gospel, is hope for the whole human race; it is not selective and cannot be limited to a select group of people in a specific time and place.

Remember.

The splendor of God is not the splendor of royalty. God is not a king or prince; the divine comes to us as a counselor and a friend. The glory of God is found through service, and for our service to one another we should not expect any reward other than peace.

Though our work in the service of the divine may be met with enmity, scorn and derision always keep in mind that God, the creator of the universe, that God has no enemies, and we may not regard those who oppose us as such. Everyone is a child of God, and as such are equal beneficiaries of God’s love.

If you take up the work of God you may the an arduous one, but in the end there is rest.

Do not expect God to prepare the way, God does not intervene in the affairs of human beings, set those vain notions aside and take up the mission in faith and trust.

Know this.

It was not God who released the Jews from captivity, either in Egypt or Babylon, it was Moses and Joshua who led the people through the desert and into the promised land (if you believe it). It was Cyrus, the Persian emperor, who released them from captivity in Babylon. Great deeds accompanied those migrations, deeds of heroism and courage and mercy, as well as unspeakable horror and villainy.

The clemency offered to the Jews, which led to the diaspora in the 5^th century BCE, honored the fellowship that all human beings share as children of God. Insofar as all good deeds have their origin in the goodness of the divine, then yes…God deserves the credit.

Nevertheless, it was the free choice of the Cyrus to release those enslaved by the Babylonians (whom he subsequently conquered) allowing them to return to Judea. It was Cyrus not God who exercised that agency.

Many, in fact most of those who were freed by the Persians never returned Judea, but remained living in the diaspora, carrying on their traditions in foreign lands, becoming citizens, building synagogues sharing the faith of their ancestors among them.

Only some returned to Judea, and when they did they chose to regard their neighbors and cousins who had never left as gentiles, as impure and as outcasts.

This was unjust and out of alignment with the will of God, who desires that all people live together in peace. This mistake that has been repeated over and over again, an error we are still living with in our time, and the consequences are catastrophic for those embroiled in them.

Consider the wisdom of the apostle who teaches that we are all the objects of God’s love…every single one of us.

Here in the world God works through our agency, speaking to us in the secret chamber of our hearts, and yet the promise remains, God will not abandon anyone. The divine work will be completed and no-one shall be lost.

This is the hope of the Gospel; this is the good news.

The apostle prays for you, as he prays for everyone, in so doing the he echoes the prayer of Jesus, the prayer of God’s own self; it is a prayer of love, a prayer of hope and a prayer of faith.

God has placed God’s trust in us; God’s trust is not a façade.

God has placed God’s hope in us; God’s hope is without measure.

God has placed God’s love in us, like a fruit that will flower forever.

Be mindful.

If we set out to emulate Jesus and follow the way, we must practice forgiveness, exhibit humility, demonstrate mercy…all in the pursuit of justice.

Consider the Gospel reading for today.

The Christian tradition has always attempted to root itself in historical realities; with greater and lesser degrees of success, often with outright failure, and intentional malfeasance, but understanding history is a crucial component of understanding the gospel.

The study of our tradition is what gave birth to modern historical criticism; without which we would have no understanding of the uses and limitations of history whatsoever; it only took eighteen hundred years of scholarship to develop.

Our narrative about the life and mission, the arrest and killing of Jesus are a part of the testimony of our faith. Our understanding of these events is aided when we are able to locate the point in time, the singular moment when our commitment to the teachings of Jesus took place.

With that being said we can articulate this:

Jesus was born during the reign of Tiberius, heir to Augustus. He came of age during the Herodian dynasty, beginning his mission when Pontius Pilate was governor of Palestine.

We recall the role that Pilate played in the killing of Jesus, we shout it out at every hour of every day in all parts of the world when we proclaim that Jesus suffered under him before he was crucified and buried.

This story is told without end.

It is long since time that we, as heirs to the ministry and teaching of Jesus, forgive Pilate for the role he played in that political murder...Jesus did, even when he was dying on the cross.

John the Baptist taught us to repent and be forgiven, but Jesus taught us simply to forgive, as he himself forgave those who played a role in his killing; it is time we do the same. This is the character of mercy that we are called to. The promise of Isaiah, which John echoed in the wilderness, cannot be fulfilled until we do.

Remember.

God is the author of our salvation but we are its agents, and it is incumbent on us to proceed with the healing, if the human race is to be made well.

First Reading - Baruch 5:1-9 ©

God Means to Show your Splendour to Every Nation

Jerusalem, take off your dress of sorrow and distress, put on the beauty of the glory of God for ever, wrap the cloak of the integrity of God around you, put the diadem of the glory of the Eternal on your head:

Since God means to show your splendour to every nation under heaven, since the name God gives you for ever will be, ‘Peace through integrity, and honour through devotedness.’

Arise, Jerusalem, stand on the heights and turn your eyes to the east:

See your sons reassembled from west and east at the command of the Holy One, jubilant that God has remembered them.

Though they left you on foot, with enemies for an escort, now God brings them back to you like royal princes carried back in glory.

For God has decreed the flattening of each high mountain, of the everlasting hills, the filling of the valleys to make the ground level so that Israel can walk in safety under the glory of God.

And the forests and every fragrant tree will provide shade for Israel at the command of God; for God will guide Israel in joy by the light of his glory with his mercy and integrity for escort.

Responsorial Psalm - Psalm 125(126) ©