20211224 GOD IS THE EMMANUEL
24 December, 2021, Friday, 4th Week of Advent
First reading |
2 Samuel 7:1-5,8-12,14,16 © |
Your House and your sovereignty will always stand secure before me
Once David had settled into his house and the Lord had given him rest from all the enemies surrounding him, the king said to the prophet Nathan, ‘Look, I am living in a house of cedar while the ark of God dwells in a tent.’ Nathan said to the king, ‘Go and do all that is in your mind, for the Lord is with you.’
But that very night the word of the Lord came to Nathan:
‘Go and tell my servant David, “Thus the Lord speaks: Are you the man to build me a house to dwell in? I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be leader of my people Israel; I have been with you on all your expeditions; I have cut off all your enemies before you. I will give you fame as great as the fame of the greatest on earth. I will provide a place for my people Israel; I will plant them there and they shall dwell in that place and never be disturbed again; nor shall the wicked continue to oppress them as they did, in the days when I appointed judges over my people Israel; I will give them rest from all their enemies. The Lord will make you great; the Lord will make you a House. And when your days are ended and you are laid to rest with your ancestors, I will preserve the offspring of your body after you and make his sovereignty secure. I will be a father to him and he a son to me; if he does evil, I will punish him with the rod such as men use, with strokes such as mankind gives. Your House and your sovereignty will always stand secure before me and your throne be established for ever.”’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 88(89):2-5,27,29 © |
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord;
through all ages my mouth will proclaim your truth.
Of this I am sure, that your love lasts for ever,
that your truth is firmly established as the heavens.
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
‘I have made a covenant with my chosen one;
I have sworn to David my servant:
I will establish your dynasty for ever
and set up your throne through all ages.
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
‘He will say to me: “You are my father,
my God, the rock who saves me.”
I will keep my love for him always;
with him my covenant shall last.’
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
Gospel Acclamation |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Morning star, radiance of eternal light,
sun of justice,
come and enlighten those who live in darkness
and in the shadow of death.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 1:67-79 © |
'You, little child, shall be the prophet of the Most High'
John’s father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:
‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel
for he has visited his people, he has come to their rescue
and he has raised up for us a power for salvation
in the House of his servant David,
even as he proclaimed,
by the mouth of his holy prophets from ancient times,
that he would save us from our enemies
and from the hands of all who hate us.
Thus he shows mercy to our ancestors,
thus he remembers his holy covenant
the oath he swore
to our father Abraham
that he would grant us, free from fear,
to be delivered from the hands of our enemies,
to serve him in holiness and virtue
in his presence, all our days.
And you, little child,
you shall be called Prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord
to prepare the way for him,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins;
this by the tender mercy of our God
who from on high will bring the rising Sun to visit us,
to give light to those who live
in darkness and the shadow of death
and to guide our feet
into the way of peace.’
GOD IS THE EMMANUEL
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [2 Sam 7:1-5,8-12,14,16; Luke 1:67-79]
On this last day of the eight “O antiphons” preparing us for the birth of our Lord, the Church cries out, “O Emmanuel.” Indeed, this is the most appropriate way for us to welcome the Lord Jesus into our midst and history. Jesus is the fulfilment of God’s promise made to Abraham and King David. Stretching over 4000 years, at last, the fulfilment of God’s covenant with the Fathers of Israel is being realized.
What is of paramount importance is to understand that the God of Abraham and King David is a God who is close to His people. He lives in their midst and journeys with His people. He was with Abraham throughout his journey to Canaan, showing him the way and promising that in him, he would be the Father of nations. God said to Abram, “No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you, and to your offspring after you, the land where you are now an alien, all the land of Canaan, for a perpetual holding; and I will be their God.” (Gn 17:5-8)
God too was with the Hebrews when they were in Egypt and during their time in the Sinai Desert. God sent Moses saying to him, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites.” (Ex 3:7f) He journeyed with the Hebrews in the desert as they prepared themselves to occupy Canaan. He tolerated their disobedience and infidelity to Him again and again. In spite of the ingratitude of the people, God showed Himself to be a God of compassion. He appeared to Moses declaring, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.” (Ex 34:6f)
Finally, this God is so close to His people that He made it possible for Israel to eventually become a kingdom with King David as the model king. God told David when he wanted to build a house for Him, as he felt guilty since he was living in a house of Cedar whereas the Lord was in the Tent, “Are you the man to build me a house to dwell in? I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be a leader of my people Israel; I have been with you on all your expeditions; I have cut off all your enemies before you. I will give you fame as great as the fame of the greatest on earth. I will provide a place for my people Israel; I will plant them there and they shall dwell in that place and never be disturbed again; nor shall the wicked continue to oppress them as they did, in the days when I appointed judges over my people Israel; I will give them rest from all their enemies.”
In the first reading, God promised King David that He would fulfil the promise He made to Abraham. The prophet Nathan was sent to tell King David, “The Lord will make you great; the Lord will make you a House. And when your days are ended and you are laid to rest with your ancestors, I will preserve the offspring of your body after you and make his sovereignty secure. I will be a father to him and he a son to me. Your House and your sovereignty will always stand secure before me and your throne be established forever.” How could this become a reality, knowing that from King David until the time of Jesus, the kingdom was destroyed many times, from the exile and even after the return from exile?
Certainly, the Jewish conception of the fulfilment of the promise made to David was to a great extent political even during the time of Christ. The people, including His apostles, were imagining that Jesus would be the political Messiah to liberate Israel from the control of the Romans. This is very much captured in the first part of the hymn of Zechariah about God sending His Messiah to liberate them. “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has visited his people, he has come to their rescue and he has raised up for us a power for salvation in the House of his servant David, even as he proclaimed, by the mouth of his holy prophets from ancient times, that he would save us from our enemies and from the hands of all who hate us. Thus he shows mercy to our ancestors, thus he remembers his holy covenant, the oath he swore to our father Abraham that he would grant us, free from fear, to be delivered from the hands of our enemies, to serve him in holiness and virtue in his presence, all our days.” The Jews thought that the Messiah, whoever he was, would come from the Davidic Dynasty and he would be as powerful as King David. Only he could save them from their enemies, presumably the Romans so that they could practise their faith without hindrance and, most of all, live out the Covenant as in the days of old.
Yet, the truth is that the Jews had only a partial and mistaken understanding of the Messiah who would come to deliver them. This messianic king would not have an army to fight His battle. He would not have soldiers or arms. He would be a lowly king, born in a stable and later on ride on a donkey. His kingdom, as He would declare to Pilate, is not of this world. The real enemies of the Jews were not political enemies but their sins of pride, arrogance and hypocrisy. He has come to take away our sins and reconcile us with God and with each other. The gospel He came to proclaim is one of compassion for the poor, giving hope to the downtrodden, liberation for those under the oppression of the Evil one, and forgiveness for those who had turned away from God. Jesus was a man of non-violence. He submitted humbly even unto an unjust death for proclaiming the truth.
Tonight, we will celebrate His nativity. Indeed, God comes to us in human flesh to be with us on our journey to the kingdom life. He comes to show us the way by assuming our humanity. The scripture reading for the midnight Mass from Titus sums up how God is the Emmanuel in our Lord. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ. He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.” (Titus 2:11-14)
In celebrating Christ as the Emmanuel, let us not fall into the temptation of the Israelites and King David in trying to domesticate God and locking Him up in the Temple or in the Church. This God does not live in the Temple or the Church only. He lives in the midst of His people. There is no dichotomy between God and life. This is what the world wants us to do. Secularism is an attempt to take God out of human life and human history. They want us to put that God we worship in a little cupboard or in a statue. But this God we worship is present not just in human form but in every man, for the Lord Himself reminded us, “just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” (Mt 25:40)
Let us be like John the Baptist who announced the Lord to us, preparing us to receive Him. Zechariah said, “And you, little child, you shall be called Prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way for him. To give his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins; this by the tender mercy of our God who from on high will bring the rising Sun to visit us, to give light to those who live in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.” We too must do the same, proclaiming the forgiveness of our Lord in our lives, and showing the way to those who walk in darkness and in despair by giving them hope in our Lord, the Rising Sun. Let us visit the poor and needy so that they can see God visiting them and find hope and life again.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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