Friday of the Fourth Week of Advent
In today's gospel, we read the Canticle of Zechariah. Each day in Morning Prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours, the Church invites us to pray with Zechariah, father of “the prophet of the most high”, the one who “will go before the Lord to prepare his way”, St. John the Baptist. This song of praise we sing today gives glory to our good God. Zechariah manifests much of what we can experience in our own faith life. Zechariah fell victim to doubt, to complacency in his unwillingness to believe the angel when he was told that Elizabeth was pregnant in her old age. But what we witness today in his rejoicing after nine months in silence is profound rejoicing–the discovery of deep, clear, articulate and insightful knowledge that God “has raised up for us a mighty Savior.” He has recognized that his child would be the one who would announce the coming of the Lord–the one to prepare the way.
John the Baptist is the anchor of the advent season–how fitting that we sing Zechariah’s canticle this morning on the last day before the advent of Christmas! The word “advent” is derived from the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming,” hence our identification of it as a season of preparation. Today, we find ourselves in a somewhat similar situation to the time of Zechariah, waiting and hoping in prayerful expectation for the coming of the Lord. We look back upon the birth of Jesus–Christ’s “coming”--in celebration while also looking forward in eager anticipation to the coming of Christ once again. Truly we sing, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. As we celebrate the Nativity of the Lord tomorrow, may we ready our hearts and lives to receive Jesus. May the Holy Spirit fill each of us so that, like Zechariah, we too might glorify God and spread praise of Him throughout the world.
“In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.” (Lk 1:78-79) May we forever sing the goodness of the Lord (Ps 89:2) and be filled with the Holy Spirit to glorify God, spreading peace, hope, joy, and love throughout the world.
Peace,
Brandon Meyer