Homily For The Fourth Sunday In Advent, Year A, December 18, 2022
Sunday Readings
“Let us then joyfully celebrate the coming of our salvation and redemption. Let us celebrate the festive day on which He who is the Great and Eternal Day came from the Great and Endless Day of eternity into our own short day of time.” –St. Augustine.
My Dearest Friends,
With joy, I welcome you into the Presence of God on this Fourth Sunday of Advent. Christmas is a week from today. The stage is already set, the stars and the moon are aglow with their shining rays, our homes are beautifully decorated,I believe also are our hearts, as we prepare to receive Him. All in Heaven and earth rejoice because Mary will bear a Son whose name is Jesus. He will save His people from their sins. A great gift! A great promise!!
The readings of today announce the coming of Jesus the Savior of mankind. In Him, God fulfilled the promise He made of Old.
Many Promises Are Never Fulfilled
Many times, promises are made and not fulfilled. We often disappoint people with our promises and prove how unreliable and irresponsible we are. It hurts when we promise and fail people who placed their hope in us for a favor. God’s promises are always fulfilled because He never disappoints. Jesus is the Favor promised to men and in Him lies the hope of men and women. He is the long-expected Savior.
God’s Promises Are Fulfilled When Humans Cooperate With His Divine Plan
The fulfillment of God’s Promise to man would not have come to fruition without the positive cooperation of man. Three important figures played a vital role in the preparation for the coming of our Savior Jesus Christ. They are John the Baptist, His precursor who carried out the message in humility, Mary the Virgin who said “Yes” despite the uncertainties, and Joseph who, without hesitation, obeyed the revelation which came to him in a dream. Let us reflect today on the mission of John and Joseph. Mary and Jesus will be the subject of our Christmas reflection.
The Mission of John and Joseph
John the Baptist appeared in the desert preaching repentance and preparation for the One coming after him; the One mightier than himself. Joseph, on the other hand, had the great task of being the custodian of the Child and the Mother, a task that began with the miraculous conception of the Child. These two men prepared the way. God came to save mankind, but He also desires that we freely cooperate in the accomplishment of His mission.
In the Gospel, the angel announced the Birth of Christ and instructed Joseph to take in his wife instead of carrying out his earlier plan to divorce her. It took a righteous man like Joseph to listen to the Word of God through the angel, and thus become an instrument used by God to bring about the realization of God’s plans. The part played by Joseph is very remarkable and stands as an example to every Christian man and woman.
Marriage in Judaism and Joseph’s Decision
In ancient Judaism, it was the case that when you were betrothed to a woman you were legally married to her, therefore any separation from her would be described as divorce, even if you had not yet lived together nor consummated the marriage. Mathew in 1:19 reports Joseph as a righteous man who is unwilling to expose Mary to shame. Until the Angel of God intervenes in a dream, when Joseph learned that she was pregnant he had resolved to send her away quietly. As stipulated in the Deueteronuc Code, Jobseph’reaction as a pious Jew should have been to hand Mary over to the judges for prosecution. Were Mary to be found guilty she would have been stoned to death. So his decision to divorce her privately was interpreted by the Church Fathers as suggesting that he was obviously troubled by the situation and that he didn’t think she had committed adultery because if he did, he would be obliged by the law to have her condemned. Joseph is not self-righteous, a quality that would cause him to demand harsh justice. He resolves to divorce Mary quietly so that he might not cause her unnecessary pain. In doing so, he models Christ-like compassion, as Jesus does with us when we sin. He also demonstrates a Godly balance between the Law of the Torah and the Law of Love. Can we desire not to cause pain to others today even if the marriage ends in adultery or divorce? In life, when you encounter an unfamiliar or uncertain situation do not be in haste to act. Ask for God’s direction first.
God Chooses The Right People For His Mission. His Plan Cannot Be Frustrated.
God’s plans are never to be frustrated and God chooses the people who live according to His dictates to bring to fruition His eternal plans for the redemption of man. The way Joseph reacted and handled this situation is very uncommon, little wonder he deserves the title of foster father of Christ. If you recall the incident of the woman caught in adultery in John 8:3-11 and how the crowd was poised to stone her, then you are able to imagine how the Jews would have reacted in Mary’s case. Not even an angel would have been able to convince the Jewish authorities that Mary conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. They would have been aghast to learn that she is pregnant with the Messiah that they long had been expecting for the deliverance of Isreal. In the end, God’s plan is never frustrated.
God Needs People Like John, Joseph, and Mary In Our Time.
In every age and time, God will always find faithful people, like Joseph, to safeguard the mysteries and God’s plan for His people. We are all called to embrace this same role in our age. Christmas is here already. A time to bring good news to the poor through the gift of ourselves and our material gifts. A time to show compassion and forgiveness to people who have hurt us and whom we have been avoiding this year. It is never a good thing to condemn others harshly nor demand immediate justice for whatever wrong we perceive others have done. As in the case of Joseph and Mary, we may not fully understand whatever is behind the problem; to be righteous means to seek to protect others in the face of impending danger or harm. St. Paul tells us today that as God’s children we are all called to be holy. Let us live in holiness, in prayer, and in obedience to the Word of God, as exemplified by Joseph. By so doing, we shall tread on the right path in our journey to Eternity.
Be The Instrument To Bring God’s Salvation To Many
I enjoin you to be that instrument God will use this Christmas to bring joy and put a smile on many faces. God’s great Promise was fulfilled in Christ. It took human persons to bring that promise to fruition. Be the person God will use this Christmas to set prisoners free, to liberate those in bondage, to bring sight to the blind, food to the hungry, shelter to the homeless, and healing to the sick. God first gave Himself to us, so let’s reciprocate God’s gift by being a gift to others. Humanity is one big neighborhood. Let us work together to bring down the walls of separation and to unite together in love.
If God didn’t disappoint us with His Promise of a Savior, let us not be a disappointment to anyone; fulfill the promise/s you made to others. May the peace and Love of Christ be with you all.
Prayer: Dear God, you fulfilled Your promise by giving unto men a Savior. God dwelt among us sinners to save us from eternal damnation. May the celebration of His coming to us as newborn infant at Christmas purify our sins and make us an instrument of His Love and Peace. Amen
I keep you and your family always in my prayers. ©Clem C. Aladi (2024)
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