Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight His paths. This was the call that John the Baptist made to the people, and it has not changed. As we prepare for the birth of our Lord in this Advent season, we too need to fill in the valleys and level the peaks to even the path for His coming so that He will find us ready.
The Baptism of John was one of repentance, it called the people to change their ways and to follow God’s law so that they would be found ready when Jesus came to us as man. The baptism that each of us has received is quite different, we have received our Lords spirit, and have been granted the grace of redemption through His sacrifice for all of us on The Cross. The baptism we have been given brought us back to the Father, yet we are still inclined to sin, and so need to prepare ourselves nonetheless so that when our Lord comes again, we are ready. We think of this now in particular because this season of Advent reminds us of our Lords coming among us the first time, and in doing so, also tells us that there will be another coming among us, but this time as King and Judge.
In our first reading we hear of God’s children being gathered from the East and the West and were rejoicing that they were remembered by God. This goes without saying, our Lord never forgets any of His children, even those who do not really know Him yet. This brings me to another call that we have received as brothers and sisters in Christ, the call of evangelization. As we prepare for our Lords coming amongst us, I can think of no greater gift that we could lay at His feet, that that of other souls that have come to a knowledge of Him through our efforts. All other gifts to the infant Christ, would I think, pale in comparison to this. As part of our call to prepare the way of the Lord in this season, I believe we are given plenty of opportunities to draw others closer to Him. When we greet others in this season, do we wish them a merry Christmas, or have we fallen into the pit of societal correctness and say something like happy holidays? Do we openly acknowledge what it is that we celebrate in this season, or do we actually spend more time promoting the idea that it’s about a rotund guy with a white beard, poor taste in winter attire, and an odd mode of transportation? The season is about Jesus Christ, the rest is commercialized and politicized fiction that is great for selling greeting cards and other retail items, but not much else. The closest this comes to any sort of useful depiction is perhaps a loose resemblance to the workings of generosity attributed to Saint Nicholas, but even there we have taken it in directions that I suspect he would be appalled at. His devotion of giving was for the alms needed by the people year-round, in order to fulfill the call of Jesus Christ to care for one another. Remember, the reason for this season is Jesus, and our greatest gift to him is our love for Him, and one another, both with our generosity in the temporal needs of those we encounter, and in our bringing them to know Him through our words, actions, and examples.
As we progress through this season of Advent and make our way toward Christmas when we will celebrate His birth among us as man, we need to be cognizant of our actions as we busy ourselves with preparations. We need to be perhaps a bit less busy with our own tasks, and take a bit more time to look after those around us. To show courtesy, respect, patience, and love to those who we may not even know yet, and in doing so to emulate Jesus. In the sometimes hectic and rushed preparations of this season that we seem to self-impose, this kind of thing does not go un-noticed by others. It can even make for a great segue to a conversation about the real reason for this season, and why we believe and put into practice what we believe. If you can make such an impression on even one person, I think you have already picked up the most important present on your shopping list, the one for our Lord.
The Deacons Bench 