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Second Sunday of Advent
December 10, 2000
Jerusalem, take off your robe of mourning and misery;
put on the splendor of glory from God forever:
Wrapped in the cloak of justice from God,
bear on your head the mitre that displays the glory of the eternal
name.
For God will show all the earth your splendor:
you will be named by God forever the peace of justice, the glory of
God's worship.
Up, Jerusalem! stand upon the heights;
look to the east and see your children Gathered from the east and the
west at the word of the Holy One,
rejoicing that they are remembered by God.
Led away on foot by their enemies they left you:
but God will bring them back to you borne aloft in glory as on royal
thrones.
For God has commanded that every lofty mountain be made low,
And that the age-old depths and gorges be filled to level ground,
that Israel may advance secure in the glory of God.
The forests and every fragrant kind of tree have overshadowed Israel
at God's command;
For God is leading Israel in joy by the light of his glory,
with his mercy and justice for company.
Second Reading--(Philippians 1:4-6, 8-11)
I pray always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.
For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer: that your love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception, to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert. He went throughout (the) whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one crying out in the desert: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low. The winding roads shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"
Pastor's Message: Road
Often, life is very much like a highway full of cloverleaf intersections
with no road signs pointing-out just where the exits lead to. But
prudent folks can always tell when they are on the right road --
it's upgrade. And surely, the three most famous highways on this earth
are the primrose path, the straight and narrow road and the road
to everlasting ruin. Politicians in the State of Virginia have come to
actually realize that, since they cannot leave their footprints in the
sands of time, what they can best do for posterity is to leave more roads.
Isn't it really amazing how a hundred years ago our forebears blazed the
trails and now their descendants burn up the roads? In Northern
Virginia, all the main roads are now surfaced with concrete and
cars. Whereas, the federal highway system allows us to drive all over America
and to see practically nothing. And, while our superhighways have made
driving a whole lot faster and a whole lot easier, they always seem to
take their "toll."
During the winter of 1965, singer-songwriter, Roger Miller, had a mega-hit
record called KING OF THE ROAD: "Trailer for sale or rent / Rooms
to let fifty-cent / No phone, no food, no pets / Ain't got no cigarettes
/ But two hours of pushing broom / Buys an eight by twelve foot room /
I'm a man of means -- by no means / King of the road / Third boxcar
midnight train / Destination Bangor, Maine / Old worn-out suit and shoes
/ Don't pay no union dues / I smoke old stoggies I have found / Short but
not too big and round / I'm a man of means -- by no means / King of the
road."
Our gospel on this second Sunday of Advent quotes from the book of
the words of Isaiah the prophet: "Make ready the way of the Lord, clear
Him a straight road. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain
and hill shall be leveled. The windings shall be made straight and the
rough roads smooth, and all humankind shall see the salvation of
God." (LK 3,4-6) This was the very job description for John the Baptizer
-- for sin has a deliberate way of creating immense mountains and hills
between ourselves and God. And sin also digs some very deep holes and valleys
between human beings and God's love. Sin actually makes us prisoners of
darkness, unable to enjoy freedom, peace and happiness. John the Baptist
wanted to wake-up the Jews before it was too late for them. The Jews really
needed to rid their lives of sin -- of those mountains and valleys -- and
thus to smooth-out God's road into their hearts and lives. And our
story is the very same one! We surely need to fully buy into all that God
has revealed to us. For with Him, we have everything; without Him, we have
nothing. Advent beckons us to prepare ourselves for the coming of Christ
at Christmas. We need to cast-out those things in our lives that Jesus
would not ever approve of and to really acquire those virtues that are
entirely appropriate for ourselves as Christians. Surely, this is the very
best gift we can really give to Jesus Christ this coming Christmas!
Fr. George Griffin