Memorial of Saint Ambrose, bishop and doctor of the Church
During Advent I’ve found that I’m usually so busy that it’s often difficult to find time for significant reflection on the deeper spiritual significance of the season. One thing that helps this is to keep in mind scripture that is relevant to the season. Thankfully, the readings for today present us with the illuminating and vivid image of the good shepherd.
In the first reading, Isaiah announces the coming of the Lord God. For centuries, one way that Christians have interpreted these pronouncements by Isaiah has been an announcement of the coming of Jesus. Consequently, reading Isaiah during Advent helps us to prepare to celebrate Christmas, for at Christmas we celebrate the mystery of the second person of the Trinity having assumed human nature and lived among us as a fellow human being. Furthermore, the passage also looks ahead to Jesus’ second coming as well.
One thing that’s striking about the Isaiah reading is that it presents mixed, seemingly contrasting images of God. On the one hand, God is seen as a mighty king who rules “by his strong arm”; yet, on the other hand, God is presented as a caring shepherd who never fails to tenderly lead his sheep.
The juxtaposition of these two aspects of God’s character – God’s awesome majesty together with care for the weak and the lost – are continued in the gospel reading. There, Jesus teaches the disciples about the tender concern of God for lost souls. God the Father, he says, “rejoices” on account of the one sheep who was lost and now is found even more so than he does for the ninety-nine sheep who never go astray.
As human beings, the proper attitude for understanding this dual character of God is humility. Meditating on the truths about God presented here helps us to realize that before God we are extremely insignificant: “all flesh is grass,” and our very existence seems to matter very little in the face of eternity. In the days of the Lord’s coming, Isaiah says, “every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made low.” This suggests that as a result of the Lord’s coming there will be a leveling of human beings with respect to each other. The artificial and alienating distinctions that human beings draw between different people for trivial and arbitrary reasons will no longer matter. What matters instead is their relationship with God.
Isaiah indicates that the Lord’s coming will be awesome. And that is not something that should be taken lightly; yet as Christians we put our hope in God’s mercy towards us. It is our hope that we will one day be resurrected to life with God in Christ Jesus. As Jesus states, it is not God’s will for any to be lost. God has concern even for those who are considered by others to be the least important.
This concern of God for human beings is reflected in Jesus’ life and ministry. He chose to minister to those who were marginalized by society and those who were outside of his social group. Think of Jesus’ encounters with the Samaritan woman at the well, the Roman centurion, and lepers, in addition to “tax collectors and sinners.” If we are indeed followers of Christ then we too should have active concern for those who are in need. Furthermore, if we are honest with ourselves we’ll realize that we too are “lost sheep.” Today let’s think about what it means to be carried and led like ewes by the Lord.
Joel Schickel