Q. 245: John the Baptist seems to be giving a set of guidelines to follow, to prepare for Jesus coming (Lk 3:10-18).   Is this a formula to gain God's favor when he comes?

A. 245:  There are two dangers to watch out for during Advent.   One is to think we can "earn" God's favor by being "a good little Catholic."   Pelagius was a monk from the fifth century who thought and taught that we could be perfect, all by ourselves.   We just had to have the will power and determination to live a good moral life.   Of course, that heresy (Pelagianism) was destroyed by St. Augustine's arguments and eventually condemned by the Church, because at its root it challenged our need for redemption, for Christ, and even our need for a sacramental Church.   [This is also one of the many flaws in Buddhism, Islam, etc.]   God's grace is freely offered, freely given; we cannot "earn" it or "gain God's favor."

The second danger during Advent is "memory loss."   We need to avoid getting wrapped up in "end time worries" and apocalyptic fears which make us lose sight of a terribly important point during Advent.   That important point is that Christ already dwells within us from our Baptism!   By his life, death and resurrection he has cleared the way between us and God.   He has already leveled those mountains and filled those valleys, making our journey back to God possible, and now we wait with joyful and hopeful expectancy for his second coming.

As we reach the midpoint of Advent, it is time for to check the "travel weather."   Is our Advent journey superficial, focused only on "methods" and external actions?   Or have I made a deliberate effort to change my behavior and also seek Jesus Christ at a "deeper," interior level?   Do I recognize that I need his grace every moment of my life?   Is my effort to grow closer to Jesus this Advent coming from a sense of love or a sense of fear?   Have I even made a real effort in the first place?   It is not too late to start.

Know Your Catechism!  God never forces himself on anyone.   He offers us a relationship, and even gives us the grace necessary to make the right response - - but the free will choice to accept or reject Him and his ways is still ours (CCC #1730).   Since we have this free will, it demands responsibility on our part (CCC #1734), because the root of sin is still in the heart - - the free will - - of man, as the Lord teaches us (CCC #1853; Mt 15:19-20).   Pray earnestly that His kingdom come, and that we respond from our hearts to his actions and invitations as we await his second coming (CCC 2816-18).

Deacon Paul Rooney
Mary Our Queen Parish, Omaha

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