Advent 2B.12; Isa 40:1-11; 2Pet 3:8-14; Mark 1:1-8
A voice cries out in the desert …..
To hear that voice we must listen.
What is that voice saying to us?
More than ever, people are sending you/me a message. Though they are probably not aware of it, they are indirectly giving witness to the Gospel. For within the message the people of our time are sending us, there is a profound challenge for you & me to embrace a life rooted more fully in the example & teachings of Jesus. Their message is clear, unmistakable, and disarmingly simple. Our siblings, parents, & children are sending us this message, as are our friends, neighbors, colleagues and enemies.
They are saying, whispering, crying out, “Don’t tell me-show me!”
Their plea comes from a longing deep within them. They don’t want to see another television evangelist, they don’t want to read another book or hear another CD about Christianity, & they don’t want to hear your amazing story of conversion. They want the real thing.
They want to witness someone, anyone, living an authentic life; someone whose words are supported by the authority of their actions. Someone striving, humbly but heroically, to live by what is good, true, & noble in their world, where they live.
They are not sending us this message merely to sound the childish cry of “Hypocrite!” Rather, theirs is a natural cry, a cry for help. They are saying to us, “Don’t tell me-show me!” because they hunger for a courageous example of the authentic life, a life lived to the fullest,
… in this day & age. (Source: Rediscover Advent, Kelly)
Where are our hearts today? In accordance with God’s promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home. Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish. 2 Pet 3:13-14
Consider this, what is most striking about the visions of the world’s future is that they are independent of Christian thinking which is preeminently future 2 oriented. Those powers which are gaining ground in a hardened world, which cry out for a new age, a new world, can find no roots in Christianity. Many Christians were so were so preoccupied with themselves, they lost sight of a growing need for salvation outside of Christianity. This suggestion, Christians, often regarded as merely naïve, lawless & immature.
And yet, Fr. H. Nouwen, suggests that “you are Christian only …
so long as you look forward to a new world,
so long as you constantly pose critical questions to your society,
so long as you emphasize the need of conversion for yourself & the world,
so long as you stay unsatisfied with the status quo & work for a world yet to come.
You are a Christian only when you believe that you have a role to play in the realization of this new kingdom, & when you urge everyone you meet with a holy unrest to make haste so that the promise might soon be fulfilled. So long as you live as a Christian you keep looking for a new order, a new structure, a new live.” (Source: The Lord is Near, Nouwen)
Gandhi, through nonviolent resistance, defeated British Imperialism.
Dr. M.L. King, Jr., dreamed of a nation where people would not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
Archbp. O. Romero in El Salvador heard the cry of the poor & acted to bring hope & justice to a society dominated by wealth and power.
Nelson Mandella & Bishop Tutu in South Africa lead their nation out of the nightmare of apartheid to freedom, not revenge for all citizens.
Like, John the Baptist, they made straight the way of the Lord.
There is more to do, yet … The Lord does not delay his promise, as some regard “delay”, but he is patient with you….”
Does our life reflect that we believe in the Good News?
What is our witness? Do we show the world an authentic & loving life?
Are we living a hope filled future?
My friends, the path is being blazed …. (Parish: mention local projects)
At this Advent Liturgy, let us listen & act for our God who asks us to Comfort, give comfort to my people, and in doing so transform ourselves into prophets of hope making a straight path ready for the Messiah.
Let us build Love, let us build Justice, let us build the City of God!
A voice cries out in the desert …..
To hear that voice we must listen.
What is that voice saying to us?
More than ever, people are sending you/me a message. Though they are probably not aware of it, they are indirectly giving witness to the Gospel. For within the message the people of our time are sending us, there is a profound challenge for you & me to embrace a life rooted more fully in the example & teachings of Jesus. Their message is clear, unmistakable, and disarmingly simple. Our siblings, parents, & children are sending us this message, as are our friends, neighbors, colleagues and enemies.
They are saying, whispering, crying out, “Don’t tell me-show me!”
Their plea comes from a longing deep within them. They don’t want to see another television evangelist, they don’t want to read another book or hear another CD about Christianity, & they don’t want to hear your amazing story of conversion. They want the real thing.
They want to witness someone, anyone, living an authentic life; someone whose words are supported by the authority of their actions. Someone striving, humbly but heroically, to live by what is good, true, & noble in their world, where they live.
They are not sending us this message merely to sound the childish cry of “Hypocrite!” Rather, theirs is a natural cry, a cry for help. They are saying to us, “Don’t tell me-show me!” because they hunger for a courageous example of the authentic life, a life lived to the fullest,
… in this day & age. (Source: Rediscover Advent, Kelly)
Advent is a time to … “Prepare the way of the Lord.” How?
Rev. Billy Graham, who has often played the 20th century role of John the Baptizer, had these comments about the disease running rampant in our world: "We're suffering from only one disease in the world. Our basic problem is not a race problem. Our basic problem is not a poverty problem. Our basic problem is not a war problem. Our basic problem is a heart problem. We need to get the heart changed, the heart transformed." (Source: esermons.com)Where are our hearts today? In accordance with God’s promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home. Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish. 2 Pet 3:13-14
Consider this, what is most striking about the visions of the world’s future is that they are independent of Christian thinking which is preeminently future 2 oriented. Those powers which are gaining ground in a hardened world, which cry out for a new age, a new world, can find no roots in Christianity. Many Christians were so were so preoccupied with themselves, they lost sight of a growing need for salvation outside of Christianity. This suggestion, Christians, often regarded as merely naïve, lawless & immature.
And yet, Fr. H. Nouwen, suggests that “you are Christian only …
so long as you look forward to a new world,
so long as you constantly pose critical questions to your society,
so long as you emphasize the need of conversion for yourself & the world,
so long as you stay unsatisfied with the status quo & work for a world yet to come.
You are a Christian only when you believe that you have a role to play in the realization of this new kingdom, & when you urge everyone you meet with a holy unrest to make haste so that the promise might soon be fulfilled. So long as you live as a Christian you keep looking for a new order, a new structure, a new live.” (Source: The Lord is Near, Nouwen)
Listen to the voice in the desert. They did:
Gandhi, through nonviolent resistance, defeated British Imperialism.
Dr. M.L. King, Jr., dreamed of a nation where people would not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
Archbp. O. Romero in El Salvador heard the cry of the poor & acted to bring hope & justice to a society dominated by wealth and power.
Nelson Mandella & Bishop Tutu in South Africa lead their nation out of the nightmare of apartheid to freedom, not revenge for all citizens.
Like, John the Baptist, they made straight the way of the Lord.
There is more to do, yet … The Lord does not delay his promise, as some regard “delay”, but he is patient with you….”
Does our life reflect that we believe in the Good News?
What is our witness? Do we show the world an authentic & loving life?
Are we living a hope filled future?
My friends, the path is being blazed …. (Parish: mention local projects)
At this Advent Liturgy, let us listen & act for our God who asks us to Comfort, give comfort to my people, and in doing so transform ourselves into prophets of hope making a straight path ready for the Messiah.
Let us build Love, let us build Justice, let us build the City of God!