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| “St John the Baptist in the Desert” by Jusepe de Ribera, 1644-47 |
Reading 1: Isaiah 54:1-10
Raise
a glad cry, you barren one who did not bear,
Break
forth in jubilant song, you who were not in labor,
For
more numerous are the children of the deserted wife
than
the children of her who has a husband,
says
the LORD.
Enlarge
the space for your tent,
spread
out your tent cloths unsparingly;
lengthen
your ropes and make firm your stakes.
For
you shall spread abroad to the right and to the left;
your
descendants shall dispossess the nations
and
shall people the desolate cities.
Fear
not, you shall not be put to shame;
you
need not blush, for you shall not be disgraced.
The
shame of your youth you shall forget,
the
reproach of your widowhood no longer remember.
For
he who has become your husband is your Maker;
his
name is the LORD of hosts;
Your
redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,
called
God of all the earth.
The
LORD calls you back,
like
a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
A
wife married in youth and then cast off,
says
your God.
For
a brief moment I abandoned you,
but
with great tenderness I will take you back.
In
an outburst of wrath, for a moment
I
hid my face from you;
But
with enduring love I take pity on you,
says
the LORD, your redeemer.
This
is for me like the days of Noah,
when
I swore that the waters of Noah
should
never again deluge the earth;
So
I have sworn not to be angry with you,
or
to rebuke you.
Though
the mountains leave their place
and
the hills be shaken,
My
love shall never leave you
nor
my covenant of peace be shaken,
says
the LORD, who has mercy on you.
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Commentary on
Is 54:1-10
The prophet provides an analogy
of the New Zion (New Jerusalem) using the sterile wife image seen many times in
Old Testament scripture (see also Sarah in Genesis 15:2; 16:1, Rachel in Genesis 29:31,
Manoah’s wife in Judges 13:2 and Anna in 1 Samuel 1:2). All of
these women bore children through God’s special intervention. Likewise the
Heavenly Father would give his special providence to barren Jerusalem if her
people return to the faith of their holy forebears. For the Christian, we are
also reminded of Elizabeth, the mother of St. John the Baptist who brought the
last prophet forth from a barren womb to fulfill yet another prophecy.
The reference relevant to the
Hebrews reflects upon the Babylonian exile (“For a brief moment I abandoned
you …“). It is understood by the Christian faithful to refer to the New
Jerusalem, Zion the Church, God’s heavenly kingdom. In this oracle the Prophet
speaks of the everlasting covenant that would be the Messiah (Galatians 4:27).
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Responsorial
Psalm: Psalm 30:2 and 4, 5-6, 11-12a and 13b
R. (2a) I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
I
will extol you, O LORD, for you drew me clear
and
did not let my enemies rejoice over me.
O
LORD, you brought me up from the nether world;
you
preserved me from among those going down into the pit.
R. I will praise you, Lord,
for you have rescued me.
Sing
praise to the LORD, you his faithful ones,
and
give thanks to his holy name.
For
his anger lasts but a moment;
a
lifetime, his good will.
At
nightfall, weeping enters in,
but
with the dawn, rejoicing.
R. I will praise you, Lord,
for you have rescued me.
“Hear,
O LORD, and have pity on me;
O
LORD, be my helper.”
You
changed my mourning into dancing;
O
LORD, my God, forever will I give you thanks.
R. I will praise you, Lord,
for you have rescued me.
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Commentary on
Ps 30:2 and 4, 5-6, 11-12a
and 13b
Psalm 30 is an
individual hymn of praise. In this selection we find the singer praising God
for deliverance. In the second part, others are asked to join in the hymn and
then there is a return to thanks and praise in the final strophe. The image of
resurrection is clearly evident in the first strophe: “O Lord, you brought
me up from the netherworld; you preserved me from among those going down into
the pit.”
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Gospel: Luke 7:24-30
When
the messengers of John the Baptist had left,
Jesus
began to speak to the crowds about John.
“What
did you go out to the desert to see -- a reed swayed by the wind?
Then
what did you go out to see?
Someone
dressed in fine garments?
Those
who dress luxuriously and live sumptuously
are
found in royal palaces.
Then
what did you go out to see?
A
prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.
This
is the one about whom Scripture says:
Behold, I am sending my
messenger ahead of you,
he will prepare your way
before you.
I
tell you,
among
those born of women, no one is greater than John;
yet
the least in the Kingdom
of God
(All
the people who listened, including the tax collectors,
who
were baptized with the baptism of John,
acknowledged
the righteousness of God;
but
the Pharisees and scholars of the law,
who
were not baptized by him,
rejected
the plan of God for themselves.)
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Commentary on
Lk 7:24-30
St. Luke records the aftermath of
Jesus’ discourse with the disciples of St. John the Baptist. The description
uses almost identical language to that in Matthew 11:8-11. Jesus
asks the rhetorical question: “What did you go out to the desert to see...?”
His question implies that those who now follow him (Jesus) once followed the
Baptist. Jesus reaffirms the prophetic status of St. John, confirming that it
was of him the Prophet Malachi was speaking as he quoted from Malachi 3:1 [and Exodus 23:20]. As in
St. Matthew's Gospel, the Lord tells those that follow him that the Baptist is
the greatest person living “born of woman.” Yet, those who are faithful
and join the angelic choirs in the Kingdom of God are greater than he,
indicating the exalted status of the faithful in God’s eyes.
The passage concludes with a
parenthetic reference to those so exalted in faith (having repented their sins
in the baptism of St. John), and those condemned, the Pharisees and scholars
who felt no need of repentance and therefore rejected baptism.
CCC: Lk 7:26 523, 719
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Reflection:
If
the words of the Gospel sound familiar, it is because we have heard them before
in this Advent Season. However, they came
from St. Matthew’s Gospel, not St. Luke’s.
After the disciples of St. John the Baptist had asked Jesus to confirm
his identity as the Messiah, and had received their answer and left, Jesus
turned to the crowds and confirmed that the predictions of the prophets were
being fulfilled in their presence. He
challenged their image of what a prophet should be. His words fell on the Pharisees and Scribes
present like hammer blows.
Someone dressed in fine
garments?
Those who dress luxuriously
and live sumptuously
are found in royal palaces.
Then what did you go out to
see?
They
were the supposed custodians of faith.
They were the ones in fine garments, living in fine houses. Jesus essentially told the people gathered
that they would not find the true revelation of God’s will with them.
The
Evangelist’s words come to us as we walk upon our Advent Journey as well. As we dash from store to store, or from party
to party, the question echoes in our ears: “What
did you go out to see?” Our constant
reminder is that the Lord came humbly, without fanfare, to a tiny stable in a
dinky village. He does not love the
attitudes of conceit or pride, but rather repentance and a sincere offering of
a contrite heart.
Our
entire Advent journey culminates in a birthday that reminds us that God has
sent us a gift that allows our change of heart to mean something. Without the Lord, our contrition would serve
nothing. Today we rejoice once
more. Our plea for forgiveness has been
answered and the gates of heaven are open.
We are reminded of what we have come to see.
Pax
[2]
The picture is “St John the Baptist in the Desert” by Jusepe de Ribera, 1644-47
[3]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the
Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This
re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
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