The ancient history of the people of Israel revolved around two pivotal times of liberation through God's divine intervention. The first one was the Exodus from Egypt. After the Patriarchs of Israel moved to Egypt, the Israelites grew to be numerous and prosperous. The Egyptian Pharaoh became jealous of their success and started to oppress them and, in time, he even wanted to destroy them completely. But God raised up Moses and Aaron to lead the Israelites out of Egypt into the Promised Land.
The Israelites settled in their new homeland and eventually established a prosperous kingdom. But they continually deviated from the Torah, the law God had given them through Moses. They often broke faith with God and worshipped the gods of other nations. In response, God allowed the enemies of Israel to subdue them. The northern lands were conquered by the Assyrians and then, in early 6th century BC, Jerusalem itself was taken by the Babylonians, who destroyed the Temple and carried off the sacred objects. They also deported the leading families of the Israelites to Babylon, thereby ushering in the decades long period known as the Babylonian Captivity.
But God did not abandon the Israelites to punishment forever. After they repented, he rescued his people again. The Persians overthrew the Babylonians and God used Cyrus, the Persian Emperor, as his anointed one, under whose rule the Israelites would be able to return to the Promised Land. In the texts from Baruch and Isaiah, we see how God prepares the way for the Israelites to return home. After their return, they rebuilt the Temple and the walls of Jerusalem.
However, their woes were not yet over in that foreign powers were allowed to continue to rule over them. The Persians, though they permitted them to return home, retained control over the land. Then, when the Persian Empire fell, the Greeks took over and after them came the Romans, who ruled the land of Israel at the time of Christ.
During these centuries of oppression, God spoke through the prophets of Israel, promising the coming of the Messiah, who would liberate them from bondage. As discussed in prior reflections, the Israelites assumed that the Messiah would be a military king, who would subdue the oppressors by force and establish an earthly kingdom. But instead, Christ came as the suffering servant, who freed humanity from the bondage of sin, not by force, but through self-sacrificial love.
Both of the liberation narratives from the Old Testament prefigure the redemption of humanity and the restoration of the world. In the Exodus from Egypt, the sacrifice of the lambs to save the Israelites from the angel of death points toward the self-sacrifice of Christ as the Lamb of God to save humanity from death, in all meanings of the word.
The return of the Israelites to Jerusalem prefigures the gathering of the nations into the New Jerusalem, the new home of humanity after Christ will transform the world following his Second Coming. In the New Jerusalem, Christ will reign completely. There will be no more strife or war or death or disease or suffering of any kind.
In the reading from the Book of Baruch and in the quote from Isaiah in the Gospel passage, we see God leveling nature itself to create an easy path for the Israelites for their return to Jerusalem from the Babylonian Captivity. While on the face of it, the passage is poetic hyperbole, the image points to the remaking of creation itself by Christ in the building of the New Jerusalem. The image also foreshadows the leveling of society itself. The current order of humanity, which is marred by various forms of inequality, will be replaced by the full equality of the human race before the throne of Christ, who will reign directly in all hearts in Heaven, filling all people with complete, eternal joy and peace.
We see another intimation of the heavenly transformation of the social order in today's Gospel passage. Luke lists the various rulers of the Jewish people at the time of Christ. However, the Word of God does not go to any of the mighty movers and shakers of society but to an ascetic holy man, who has no special social status, living in the dessert, far from the centers of power. He is the one chosen for the immediate preparations for the coming of the Messiah.
Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, who, though she would in time become the Queen of Heaven, was a humble, unknown peasant woman during her earthly life. St. Jospeh, the foster father of Jesus, was likewise a simple villager, who provided for his family through his work as a carpenter. The birth of Jesus took place in a stable, among the animals. The angels first proclaim the Good News of the birth of the Messiah to shepherds, who were considered to be among the lowest members of society.
God's grace does not come through earthly power. God's grace is about self-sacrificial love. True power is in giving of ourselves to others selflessly. We should not look to influential politicians, acclaimed celebrities, or the fabulously wealthy for our role models. Instead, we should look to the humble, self-giving love of Christ.
People have often asked me how we can make a difference in the world. What do we do when the Church is beset with problems, as during the time of the abuse crisis? What do we do when the world is turned upside down, as during the years of Covid? How can we possibly have an impact with our small, individual lives.
My answer is always that we need to focus on becoming saints. We need to align our lives completely with the love of God. On our own, we are helpless. But if the grace of Christ fills us and works through us, God can accomplish great things through our little lives, as he had done through many saints in history. We do not need to aim for grand and glorious things. As Mother Teresa so beautifully put it, "Do small things with great love." Let us focus on bringing the love of Christ into the lives of all the people whom God has placed into our lives. If we do so, our little lives will matter greatly. We will also be helping to prepare the world for the Second Coming of Christ, which is one of the main aspects of the Advent season.
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The readings for the Second Sunday in Advent, Cycle C are:
Bar 5:1-9
Ps 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6
Phil 1:4-6, 8-11
Lk 3:1-6
The full text can be found at the USCCB website.
Photo Credit: Advent Wreath from Wikimedia Commons.
