Responsible not Privileged

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The first reading today again comes from the Prophet Isaiah. In yesterday’s post there is some background on the prophet and his writings which might prove insightful in this first week of Advent readings. But in today’s reading the messianic hope which began to be expressed in Isaiah 7:14 (Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign; the young woman, pregnant and about to bear a son, shall name him Emmanuel) and which was amplified in 9:1–6 (The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Upon those who lived in a land of gloom a light has shone…) comes to full flower. Continue reading →

Questions At The Beginning

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This coming Sunday is the 2nd Sunday of Advent. Mark begins his writing with a statement by the narrator: “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ (the Son of God).” For the people in Mark’s narrative the realization of who Jesus is will come only in starts and stops. As readers of this gospel, right from the beginning, we are given the answer to the question, “Who is he?”  We already know this narrative is good news for us; news about what will happen to us and for us. Yet even as the opening answers big questions, we are left with other important questions, ones that will help us to plumb the depth of this good news. Continue reading →

The Highest Mountain

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Here in the first week of Advent the readings from the Old Testament are taken from the Prophet Isaiah, a book that is quoted and referenced more than 300 times in the New Testament. The days of readings are not taken from a sequence, but are a collection of well-known passages from Isaiah. So, I thought it good to provide a context for the readings with a few notes on the Monday reading. Continue reading →

A Reminder about the Readings of Advent

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This coming Sunday is the 2nd Sunday of Advent. As noted in last week’s commentary, the season of Advent has its own goals, purpose, and sense. That does not include jumping right into the infancy narratives. While one might argue that is where the story of Jesus begins in “time,” it is not a complete idea to describe what is unfolding in “time” but has been planned since the foundation of the world. The danger of beginning with the infancy narratives is that the real story of salvation can get lost in the all-too-familiar Christmas scenes. Those scenes will be celebrated in their own time and place – the Christmas season. But this is Advent. Continue reading →

The Wilderness

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This coming Sunday is the 2nd Sunday of Advent in Lectionary Cycle B. As noted in a previous commentary, the gospels of the Season of Advent follow a particular pattern.  For the Second Sunday of Advent the Gospel readings focus on the preaching and ministry of John the Baptist as the precursor or forerunner of Jesus, the one who came to “Prepare the Way of the Lord,” by calling the people to turn back to God. The readings often include passages from the Old Testament, particularly from the book of Isaiah. This Sunday the first reading is taken from Isaiah 40 and succinctly proclaims: “A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the LORD! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!” All of these first reading OT prophecies are associated with John the Baptist, and his role as the one who fulfills these prophecies is emphasized. Like Isaiah, John the Baptist’s message was one of repentance and conversion, a fitting Advent theme. Continue reading →

Talking about missionaries….

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Ideograms for Rabban Bar Sauma

Writing earlier about St. Francis Xavier, I was reminded about a Franciscan missioner, John of Montecorvino, whose feast was November 29. Mention John of Montecorvino and most people – even most Franciscans – will say “who?” John was the first Catholic missionary to China, centuries before the efforts of other Catholic religious orders. It is a compelling story.  If you would like to read an interesting and accessible account of the travel within the context of an art historian comparing 13th century Italian and Chinese art, read Lauren Arnold’s: Princely Gifts & Papal Treasures: The Franciscan Mission to China & Its Influence on the Art of the West, 1250-1350 – fascinating book.

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St. Francis Xavier SJ

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Tomorrow should be Feast of St. Francis Xavier SJ, however, the 1st Sunday of Advent is celebrated. I remember in March of 2013 while returning from a meeting of the priests of the deanery, the radio announced that Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, a Jesuit, had been elected and taken the name Pope Francis. My first thought was, “that’s a great choice” to take the name of one of the amazing saints of the Jesuit order, Francis Xavier, one of the church’s most widely traveled missionaries. I remember thinking that it was a sign that the universal (katholica) church would increasingly focus its attention on the world of the southern hemisphere.

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Chaos and Kingdom

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In this 34th week of Ordinary Time, in the shadow of the Solemnity of Christ the King of the Universe, we have been reading from the Book of Daniel, a book used in conjunction with Revelation to conjure predictions of the end of the world… depending on whether you are post-millennial, pre-millennial, or amillennial…but then that is a topic for another post. Continue reading →