Fourth Sunday of Advent
We are a week away from Christmas and today’s scripture readings get as close to the events of Christmas. There is something special about the stories in these readings. As we read them, we realize that ordinary people were integral to the main plot. Somehow, their stories of these people converge with the story of the birth of Jesus. There are characters in these stories who are models for us and those that we do not want to imitate. I would like to approach today’s scriptures through the characters in the story of Jesus.
The characters that I would like to focus on are Ahaz, Joseph, and Paul. And of course, there is also Mary.
1. Ahaz. As king of Judah, Ahaz and the nation were being threatened by the Assyrians. What should he do in response to the threat? He had two options: to trust God against his enemies or to make a political alliance with smaller nations (the Syro-Ephramite Alliance) as a defense against the Assyrians. As the prophet of the time, Isaiah’s advice was clear. He wanted Ahaz to trust God unconditionally. His rationale was simple. If God had come through for the Israelites against the Pharaoh and the mighty Egyptians, then God could do the same for Ahaz. Thus Isaiah tried to persuade Ahaz to ask for a sign from God as assurance of God’s fidelity. Ahaz refused – not because, as he says, he did want to tempt the Lord, but because in reality he’d rather trust the political alliance. Somehow he found himself incapable of trusting God’s fidelity. Even though Ahaz was not faithful, God promised him that God will be faithful. Thus the prophecy, “A virgin shall conceive and bear a son…” (Is 7:14). There is no point in condemning Ahaz. The ability to trust God unconditionally is a common obstacle for many people. If I look at my own life, there are several areas in my life where I find it easier to rely on my own abilities and judgments rather than taking the time to discern what God might have to say; or, I do what I want rather even though I realize it may not be what God wants. There is an Ahaz in everyone of us. To the extent we recognize the Ahaz in us; to that extent that we will work on our ability to trust God unconditionally; to that extent we become increasingly integral to the God’s ongoing story of salvation.
2. Joseph. The hero of today’s gospel is Joseph. His story is very different from that of Ahaz. Jewish Law and pure commonsense told him to divorce Mary since she was with child. Faith, on the other, told him to trust the message from God. Unlike Ahaz, Joseph does not guess God’s will. The gospel tells us that he was a righteous man. Unlike Ahaz, Joseph trusted God’s fidelity. He believed that the child within Mary was from the Holy Spirit. He believed that this child within her womb was Emmanuel. He had developed an ability to trust God unconditionally. As the gospel tells us at the end, “When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home” (Mt 1:24). If I look at my own life, I realize that Ahaz and Joseph coexist in me. In fact, if we look at ourselves, we will realize that sometimes we are like Ahaz and at other times we are like Joseph. Advent spirituality is about turning the Ahaz in us to Joseph. The quiet of Advent is meant as an invitation to grow to be more and more like Joseph. Our story and God’s story must converge like that of God and Joseph.
3. Paul & Mary. The third person in the readings todays is Paul. In this reading, Paul calls himself a “slave of Christ Jesus.” To make this declaration at a time when slavery was till in practice is rather shocking. Slavery is radically undesirable. It robs people of their dignity and freedom. Yet, Paul freely surrenders his freedom. As far as Paul is concerned, there are not two stories - the story of Paul and the story of Jesus. For him there is only one story - that of Christ Jesus. That brings us to Mary. Perhaps Mary’s willingness to be available to God unconditionally is the same attitude that Paul had. Mary said to the angel, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” In these words, Mary allowed God to have a free reign in her. She set God loose in her life. Mary story irrevocably becomes one with God’s story. From the womb, to the manger, to the cross, to the tomb, and to the resurrection - Mary’s story is the same as Jesus’ story. Perhaps we can ask these questions: How do I imagine my life in relation to God’s story? If many years from now, the story of our life was to be written by someone who knew us well, what will the story look like?
The Eucharist is a great way to bring our story to Jesus. Communion tells us that two lives, two stories become one. Let us pray that in this Eucharist we can make an honest attempt to let our story converge with the story of Jesus. “May it be done according to your word.” Amen.
- Fr. Satish Joseph