ADVENT OF PEACE.

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December 8, 2024.
Second Sunday of Advent – C.

Readings: Bar 5:1-9; Ps 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6; Phil 1:4-6,8-11; Lk 3:1-6.

“Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low…” Luke 3:4s

An Ivorian wise man said: “Peace is not a mere word, but a behavior.” A Native American Lakota proverb adds: “True peace between nations will only happen when there is true peace within people's souls.”

Peace is a central theme of the Advent. The one who came two thousand years ago, the one who comes into our daily lives, and the one who will come again in glory is the Prince of Peace. He came to set man free from slavery to sin and from every enslavement and dominion.

Advent, we insistently said last Sunday, is a time of preparation for the coming of the Lord. But in that insistence, we noted that it was the time or season of the three comings, the historical, the present, and the Parousia. So, the coming of the Lord we are preparing for is not just that which took place two thousand years ago and that we commemorate at Christmas. It is also not just his daily and sacramental coming, which takes place in every Eucharistic celebration and our daily life experiences. It is above all, and most especially his coming in glory that will take place at the end of time.

Nevertheless, in these specific three comings, the Lord comes with peace. Because we all long for peace, we await with hope and love that peace. Lighting today the 2nd Advent Candle, peace is our main message.

One of the prophecies about Jesus calls him “the Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6-7). In that prophecy, the one whose coming is announced is expected to have a government that will establish peace on earth. His coming will bring about restoration.

Today's readings are a prophetic vision of restoration and peace. The Prophet Baruch speaks of the restoration of Jerusalem. The people who once were brought slaves in captivity and exile will triumphantly be brought back to their land. The Lord will restore his people's dignity, and Jerusalem will again become the City of Peace. The name Jerusalem (Yerushalayim in Hebrew) consists of two names, Yireh (meaning the Lord will provide) and Shalem (meaning peace). So, the Lord will provide peace, and Jesus coming is the true dawn of that peace. It is not so much a political, social, or economic peace but a spiritual one.

In the Gospel, the voice of the greatest of all the Prophets is heard. The Prophet of the Great Advent shouts in the desert of our hearts: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low. The winding roads shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

John brings about a message of restoration, a message of peace. And for us to receive and welcome that message, the needed attitude is repentance for the forgiveness of our sins. Peace requires a conversion, a categorical change in our way. Peace calls to make a detour, a revision of life, a sincere deep introspection.

Many times, through our words, actions, indifferences, or inactivity, we have brought chaos and confusion in our lives, in the lives of others, and in the world. Here is a calling for conversion. We should turn into instruments of peace. In this Advent Season, we should make ours, this prayer of St. Francis of Assisi for peace: "Lord make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith. Where there is despair, hope. Where there is darkness, light. And where there is sadness, joy. O divine master grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; To be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive it is in pardoning that we are pardoned. And it’s in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen."

By becoming instruments of peace in the world that surrounds us and in communities where we live, then will be also fulfilled in us the wish and prayers of St. Paul, that our love may increase ever more and more, that we may discern what is of value, so that we may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.

There is one thing we should not forget; true peace is what we bring forward from deep inside. If you are not at peace with yourself, you cannot give peace to others. Preparing the way for the Lord means being at peace with myself and with others. Replenishing the crooked, unleveled, rough ways of my heart, my selfish desires that take away from me peace and joy... Peace be with you! Be at peace with yourself and give peace to others for the Lord is coming.



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