Reflection for Sunday – December 8, 2024

Ruth MarchettiSunday Readings Homilies

Readings: Baruch 5: 1-9; Philippians 1: 4-6, 8-11; Luke 3: 1-6 
Preacher: Ruth Marchetti

Many of us are struggling with hope right now. The world’s painful problems appear increasingly unresolvable and the always-imperfect vision of our country as a beacon of justice and refuge for the persecuted seems more distant than ever. Climate change, immigration, inflation, rent hikes and housing shortages, war and violence throughout the world, political polarization in our own nation — where is the joy in any of that?

Today’s beautiful readings speak of joy and splendor, laughter and rejoicing. Luke’s Gospel story of the beginning of John the Baptist’s ministry echoes Baruch’s prediction of a time when the “way of the Lord… will be made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” Paul prays “always with joy” for the disciples in Philippi. Was everything rosy for God’s people in those times? Not at all.

The prophet’s words encourage a conquered people living in exile to remember that God has not forgotten them. There will be a time when they will return and freely practice their faith. The Psalm celebrates that occasion, reminding us all that joy can follow sorrow.

Paul is writing from prison at a time of persecution for followers of the Gospel. Like John the Baptist, his execution is imminent. Where is the joy in any of that?

Like the earth around us where life lies dormant waiting for the warmth of spring, we can find seeds of hope all around us —in the buds that prevail through the winter, in the birds and other creatures that continue to search for and find nourishment, in a sunny day where warmth breaks through, in the kindness of others, the love of family and friends, and the tenacity of those who work for justice.

As the solstice approaches and we enter into a deeper darkness, we know that the days will again grow longer and spring will come. It’s not a time to wish for days to pass more quickly. Rather, it’s a time to enter into the darkness, not denying its existence, but like the roots of a tree, taking nourishment and building strength in the darkness of the earth.

Jesus was born into a harsh world, an occupied country where Rome’s justice was not at all just, but cruel and capricious. God chose that time and that place to be born into the world and experience all that being human entails. Not that God needed an education, but as a sign to humanity that God is one with us in all of life’s messiness.

May your Advent be a time of hope, of gathering strength for the journey secure in the knowledge that God makes no promises that life will be easy, but that God will be born to the earth again and again in every act of justice and mercy. That alone is cause for rejoicing.

Ruth Marchetti
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