20231205 CHRIST THE HOPE OF THE NATIONS
05 December 2023, Tuesday, 1st Week of Advent
First reading | Isaiah 11:1-10 © |
A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse
A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse,
a scion thrusts from his roots:
on him the spirit of the Lord rests,
a spirit of wisdom and insight,
a spirit of counsel and power,
a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
(The fear of the Lord is his breath.)
He does not judge by appearances,
he gives no verdict on hearsay,
but judges the wretched with integrity,
and with equity gives a verdict for the poor of the land.
His word is a rod that strikes the ruthless,
his sentences bring death to the wicked.
Integrity is the loincloth round his waist,
faithfulness the belt about his hips.
The wolf lives with the lamb,
the panther lies down with the kid,
calf and lion feed together,
with a little boy to lead them.
The cow and the bear make friends,
their young lie down together.
The lion eats straw like the ox.
The infant plays over the cobra’s hole;
into the viper’s lair
the young child puts his hand.
They do no hurt, no harm,
on all my holy mountain,
for the country is filled with the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters swell the sea.
That day, the root of Jesse
shall stand as a signal to the peoples.
It will be sought out by the nations
and its home will be glorious.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 71(72):1-2,7-8,12-13,17 © |
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
O God, give your judgement to the king,
to a king’s son your justice,
that he may judge your people in justice
and your poor in right judgement.
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
In his days justice shall flourish
and peace till the moon fails.
He shall rule from sea to sea,
from the Great River to earth’s bounds.
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
For he shall save the poor when they cry
and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak
and save the lives of the poor.
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
May his name be blessed for ever
and endure like the sun.
Every tribe shall be blessed in him,
all nations bless his name.
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps84:8 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Let us see, O Lord, your mercy
and give us your saving help.
Alleluia!
Or: |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Behold, our Lord will come with power
and will enlighten the eyes of his servants.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 10:21-24 © |
No-one knows who the Son is except the Father
Filled with joy by the Holy Spirit, Jesus said:
‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’
Then turning to his disciples he spoke to them in private, ‘Happy the eyes that see what you see, for I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see, and never saw it; to hear what you hear, and never heard it.’
CHRIST THE HOPE OF THE NATIONS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ISAIAH 11:1-10; LUKE 10:21-24]
Advent is a season of hope. The hope for justice, compassion and peace is the desire of every human person. Without justice and compassion, there can be no peace in the world. But the world as we know it is full of injustices and inequality. Whether it concerns relations among nations or within society, even in our churches and homes, there is discrimination, oppression and unfair practices. This explains why there is so much social unrest everywhere in the world because those who are suffering or deprived are fighting for a more equitable access to the world’s goods.
Israel, too, hoped for such a kingdom where justice and peace would flourish. In the responsorial psalm we say, “O God, give your judgement to the king, to a king’s son your justice, that he may judge your people in justice and your poor in right judgement. In his days, justice shall flourish and peace till the moon fails. He shall rule from sea to sea, from the Great River to earth’s bounds. For he shall save the poor when they cry and the needy who are helpless. He will have pity on the weak and save the lives of the poor.”
Indeed, the history of Israel is a sad history. King David was the one who united the Twelve Tribes of Israel into one Kingdom. He brought the northern kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah together under his reign. Because he ruled with compassion and justice, he was highly respected and brought unity to his people. However, after his reign, his son Solomon, who initially worked on the foundations laid down by his father David, soon brought disaster upon his kingdom because of his infidelity to God and the Covenant. After him, most of the kings of Israel and Judah were unfaithful to God.
The fall of the Davidic Dynasty was on account of the king and the people’s infidelity to God. David was a great king even though he sinned against God. But he was humble and quickly repented. His heart was always with God. He was the one who wrote most of the psalms in the bible. He was a man of compassion and forgiveness towards his enemies. But after him, most of the kings were not faithful to God. They cared only for their interests and not that of the people. There were injustices, corruption, cheating, oppression and worship of pagan gods. This eventually led to the collapse of the kingdom when Assyria conquered the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722 BC and when Babylon captured Jerusalem in 587 BC.
But Israel never gave up hope that their kingdom would be restored to its glory. It was within this context that Isaiah prophesied that a shoot will spring from “the stock of Jesse, a scion thrusts form his roots: on him the spirit of the Lord rests, a spirit of wisdom and insight, a spirit of counsel and power, a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.” Indeed, the future Davidic king would be so filled with the Spirit of God that He would be a just judge and peacemaker, full of compassion for the poor. “He does not judge by appearances, he gives no verdict on hearsay, but judges the wretched with integrity, and with equity gives a verdict for the poor of the land. His word is a rod that strikes the ruthless, his sentences bring death to the wicked. Integrity is the loincloth round his waist, faithfulness the belt around his hips.”
Indeed, there will be justice and unity among all diverse peoples and nations as well. What was thought impossible for certain peoples to co-exist, and more, to live in love and unity, would be possible. Isaiah illustrates the kind of unimaginable peace that the future Davidic King would bring. “The wolf lives with the lamb, the panther lies down with the kid, calf and lion cub feed together with a little boy to lead them. The cow and the bear make friends, their young lie down together. The lion eats straw like the ox. The infant plays over the cobra’s hole; into the viper’s lair the young child puts his hand.”
This, too, is our hope and dream! We all long for peace and unity in our homes, society, country and among nations. Despite what is happening in society and in the world today, like Israel, we must never give up hope even when we seem to have lost everything. We might have lost our loved ones, suffered a failed relationship, lost our job or our business, succumbed to a serious and even terminal illness and, like Israel, we feel cut to the stump, but still, we must never lose hope for revival and renewal. Indeed, as the prophet said, from the stump a new shoot would spring up. So too from the ruins of our lives, God will raise us up as He did for Israel by sending us a new Davidic King in the person of Jesus.
Truly, Jesus is the hope for all of humanity in our pursuit of justice, true peace and joy. He is the One that Jesus told His disciples, “Happy the eyes that see what you see, for I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see, and never saw it; to hear what you hear, and never heard it.” Earlier on, His disciples were sent out to proclaim the gospel. They were told to “cure the sick who are there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.'” (Lk 10:9) And they had just returned from their mission full of excitement and rejoicing, saying, “Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!” (Lk 10:17) They were ordinary people but because they trusted in the Lord Jesus, God made them powerful and effective channels for the work of healing and liberation. The Lord said, “See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you.” (Lk 10:19). But more than just seeing the power of our Lord at work through them, healing the sick and delivering those from all sorts of oppression, the Lord said to them, “Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Lk 10:20)
Indeed, this was possible only because Jesus is the promised Messiah, the shoot from the stock of Jesse, the realization of the promise of God to Israel. This promised Messiah is not just the son of David but the Son of God. In the gospel, Jesus revealed His true identity when He prayed to His Father thus, “Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” Jesus is one with the Father in mind and heart, in knowledge and in will. Only because He is in the bosom of His Father, He is able to reveal to us who our Father is. St John wrote, “No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.” (Jn 1:18)
Today, we can continue to hope in the salvation of God, especially when we have lost all hope in life, in restoring a broken relationship, in finding a job or growing our business, or in overcoming an incurable or terminal illness. Just as God had used weak and sinful people to extend His kingdom, He will use situations and peoples to come and help us beyond our imagination. David was just a boy, the youngest and most insignificant in his family, a shepherd taking care of the sheep, but the Lord called him from among all his physically better-built brothers. The Lord also called the apostles of whom many were uneducated and great sinners like St Matthew, yet the Lord counted them worthy to be among the Twelve. So too, we must believe and trust in the Lord who can work wonders for us and restore justice, peace and equilibrium to the world.
What is required of us is a humble faith in Him. “Filled with joy by the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do.” Only those who are humble will be able to see the mystery of God revealed in Jesus and His plan for us in life. So long as we allow our pride to blind us, we will not be able to see the face of God and His love at work in us, and through others that He sends to us.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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