20231210 THE CALL TO BRING ABOUT A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH
10 December 2023, Sunday, 2nd Week of Advent
First reading |
Isaiah 40:1-5,9-11 © |
The glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all mankind shall see it
‘Console my people, console them’
says your God.
‘Speak to the heart of Jerusalem
and call to her
that her time of service is ended,
that her sin is atoned for,
that she has received from the hand of the Lord
double punishment for all her crimes.’
A voice cries, ‘Prepare in the wilderness
a way for the Lord.
Make a straight highway for our God
across the desert.
Let every valley be filled in,
every mountain and hill be laid low.
Let every cliff become a plain,
and the ridges a valley;
then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed
and all mankind shall see it;
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’
Go up on a high mountain,
joyful messenger to Zion.
Shout with a loud voice,
joyful messenger to Jerusalem.
Shout without fear,
say to the towns of Judah,
‘Here is your God.’
Here is the Lord coming with power,
his arm subduing all things to him.
The prize of his victory is with him,
his trophies all go before him.
He is like a shepherd feeding his flock,
gathering lambs in his arms,
holding them against his breast
and leading to their rest the mother ewes.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 84(85):9-14 © |
Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.
I will hear what the Lord God has to say,
a voice that speaks of peace,
peace for his people.
His help is near for those who fear him
and his glory will dwell in our land.
Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.
Mercy and faithfulness have met;
justice and peace have embraced.
Faithfulness shall spring from the earth
and justice look down from heaven.
Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.
The Lord will make us prosper
and our earth shall yield its fruit.
Justice shall march before him
and peace shall follow his steps.
Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.
Second reading | 2 Peter 3:8-14 © |
We are waiting for the new heavens and the new earth
There is one thing, my friends, that you must never forget: that with the Lord, ‘a day’ can mean a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord is not being slow to carry out his promises, as anybody else might be called slow; but he is being patient with you all, wanting nobody to be lost and everybody to be brought to change his ways. The Day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then with a roar the sky will vanish, the elements will catch fire and fall apart, the earth and all that it contains will be burnt up.
Since everything is coming to an end like this, you should be living holy and saintly lives while you wait and long for the Day of God to come, when the sky will dissolve in flames and the elements melt in the heat. What we are waiting for is what he promised: the new heavens and new earth, the place where righteousness will be at home. So then, my friends, while you are waiting, do your best to live lives without spot or stain so that he will find you at peace.
Gospel Acclamation | Lk3:4,6 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Prepare a way for the Lord,
make his paths straight,
and all mankind shall see the salvation of God.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Mark 1:1-8 © |
A voice cries in the wilderness: prepare a way for the Lord
The beginning of the Good News about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It is written in the book of the prophet Isaiah:
Look, I am going to send my messenger before you;
he will prepare your way.
A voice cries in the wilderness:
Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight.
and so it was that John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. All Judaea and all the people of Jerusalem made their way to him, and as they were baptised by him in the river Jordan they confessed their sins. John wore a garment of camel-skin, and he lived on locusts and wild honey. In the course of his preaching he said, ‘Someone is following me, someone who is more powerful than I am, and I am not fit to kneel down and undo the strap of his sandals. I have baptised you with water, but he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit.’
THE CALL TO BRING ABOUT A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ISAIAH 40:1-5,9-11; 2 PETER 3:8-14; MARK 1:1-8]
“Console my people, console them, says your God.” Indeed, there is so much misery in this world and in this life. We live with so much anxieties and fears. We live with past hurts and brokenness. Many of us feel discouraged and on the brink of despair. Our loved ones have abandoned us. Our marriage is not working well. Our jobs are at stake and we are afraid that we might be retrenched. Some of us suffer much injustice in our organizations and in the office. Indeed, we are all looking for hope and for consolation.
But it is also true that many of us are in self-imposed prisons. We know that it is our sins, folly and failures that have caused so much pain to our loved ones, our colleagues and ourselves. We feel barren. In such times, we begin to lose faith in God and in people, especially ourselves. Some of us feel there is no light at the end of this long tunnel. At times, we may have even contemplated suicide to end the pain and worries in our hearts.
But the Lord wants to give us hope and let us know that our “time of service is ended, that her sin is atoned for, that she has received from the hand of the Lord double punishment for all her crimes.” This is the good news of Advent, a season of Hope. Advent means that God is coming and therefore we need not give up hope. “Here is the Lord coming with power, his arm subduing all things to him. The prize of his victory is with him, his trophies all go before him. He is like a shepherd feeding his flock, gathering lambs in his arms, holding them against his breast and leading to their rest the mother ewes.”
How can this hope be realized? He promised us a new heaven and a new earth. St Peter wrote, “What we are waiting for is what he promised: the new heavens and new earth, the place where righteousness will be at home.” This is the dream that God is offering us. “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing for joy. For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water; the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp, the grass shall become reeds and rushes.” (Isa 35:5-7)
But how can this new earth and heaven be brought about? Christ’s coming is the beginning of the fulfilment of this dream. Remember what He told the disciples of John the Baptist, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them” (Mt 11:4f) This dream is already being fulfilled in our midst because the Church continues to make this dream a reality. “And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (Mk 16:17f)
This is what announcing the Good News is all about. It is not about some doctrines or some rituals, but it is about God who is making news new in our lives. “And he who sat upon the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.'” (Rev 21:5) As joyful messengers, let us “Go up on a high mountain, joyful messenger to Zion. Shout with a loud voice, joyful messenger to Jerusalem. Shout without fear, say to the towns of Judah, ‘Here is your God.'”
The question is, whether Jesus is your Good News. How much faith do you have in Jesus? Have you welcomed Jesus in your life yet? Unless we allow Jesus to come into our hearts, we will not be able to share the joy of the Church. For this reason, Isaiah says, “Prepare in the wilderness a way for the Lord. Make a straight highway for our God across the desert. Let every valley be filled in, every mountain and hill be laid low, let every cliff become a plain, and the ridges a valley.” Let the Lord come into our lives, “then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all mankind shall see it.” Otherwise, our sins of pride and selfishness will prevent us from seeing the miracles that are at work in our midst.
Consequently, we must live a blameless life. St Peter said, “So then, my friends, while you are waiting, do your best to live lives without spot or stain so that he will find you at peace.” We must live a life of justice and truth. This is what the life of God is all about. The psalmist prays, “Kindness and truth shall meet; justice and peace shall kiss. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and justice shall look down from heaven. The Lord himself will give his benefits; our land shall yield its increase. Justice shall walk before him, and prepare the way of his steps.”
Let us find peace and joy by going for the Sacrament of reconciliation. St Mark wrote, “Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight, and so it was that John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. All Judaea and all the people of Jerusalem made their way to him, and as they were baptised by him in the river Jordan they confessed their sins.” We must begin by humbly confessing our sins. Unless we recognize our sins and ask for forgiveness, we will not be able to find rest in our souls. Many of us are pretending to be happy and at peace with ourselves, claiming that we have confessed our sins directly to God. But deep within ourselves we are not too sure that we have been forgiven because we have not heard the Lord speaking to us through His church. Thus, we carry unnecessary burdens of guilt within. If we want to straighten the path for the Lord to enter into our lives, we must find courage to make a good sacrament of reconciliation.
Once we confess our sins, we can be assured of a fresh renewal of the Holy Spirit, the love of God that is poured into our hearts. (cf Rom 5:5) This is what John the Baptist promised us. “In the course of his preaching he said, ‘Someone is following me, someone who is more powerful than I am, and I am not fit to kneel down and undo the strap of his sandals. I have baptised you with water, but he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit.” St Paul wrote, “he has put his seal upon us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.” (2 Cor 1:22) With the Holy Spirit in us, “we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us.” (Rom 5:3f)
With hope in our hearts, we can be patient as we pray for the fulfilment of God’s ultimate dream. St Peter urges us to be patient, “There is one thing, my friends, that you must never forget: that with the Lord, ‘a day’ can mean a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord is not being slow to carry out his promises, as anybody else might be called slow; but he is being patient with you all, wanting nobody to be lost and everybody to be brought to change his ways. The Day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then with a roar the sky will vanish, the elements will catch fire and fall apart, the earth and all that it contains will be burnt up.” Until then, let us live as people of faith and hope. We need to go to the desert, like John the Baptist, to pray. It is there that we will encounter God so that we can let go of false hopes and securities and rely on God alone who is our dream and our hope. With the psalmist we say, “The Lord proclaims peace to his people.”
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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