Homilies

2nd SUNDAY OF ADVENT: GLADLY WAIT FOR GOD

THERE WAS A KID whose mother before she goes to market would always tell him, “do not get soiled and clean your room and I will bring you “pasalubong” (edible gifts) when I return.” The word pasalubong had been always music to his ears, but also “a pain in the ass” because it would also mean several things. For one, it can be boring because the child had to wait more than two hours before his mother returns. The painful part was seeing his playmates enjoying “tumbang preso” (a children’s game) while he could not join it. But the exciting part which made his mouth water was the thought of the biko, binignit or gulaman at sago (Filipino food) that his mother would be carrying home for him. He would then enjoy it as if he had never eaten for days.

The Lord and Savior is sure to come to us, but “when” is a sure question. Nobody knows! But for us Catholics, we just have to wait for it and the season of Advent is a certain venue. While waiting for the Lord, we are expected to prepare a place for him in our lives. Just like the kid’s mother, Jesus will come bringing along for us a pasalubong which we would certainly enjoy, provided that we follow the warning that John the Baptist tells us today. John states, “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.”

John speaks about making straight the way of the Lord. This way points to our crooked ways in life that block the birth of the Lord in our hearts. It is indeed very difficult because there is a lot of crookedness in our life that need to be straightened. The “valleys,” for instance, to be filled are our works that are empty of sincere kindness and are merely conditional love. They need to be purified. Our “mountains” point to our self- centeredness keeping us from extending our arms to those in dire need. These things need to be made plain and that only humble acceptance of our mountainous pride and making resolve for a genuine change would melt them down.

We do not run out of time doing our daily routines and it is unfortunate that many of us would say, “I have no time” when it comes to God. There is no such thing as “no time” in re-thinking our relationship with God and reflecting it in our lives. Let us set moments to meditate about God and his love waiting to be poured out upon us. Only if we learn to break down our valleys and lower our mountains of pride can the grace and love of God reign in our hearts. Like the kid who humbly denied himself of his bodily desires (breaking down the valleys and melting his pride) and apparently putting in order everything in his room in preparation for the return of his mother, we are also invited to make sacrifices in mending our crooked lives and cleaning the room of our hearts where Jesus wants to be born. Like the kid, it is certain that we will suffer boredom in waiting and experience pain in uprooting our sinful ways yet the enjoyment in having our pasalubong (that is, salvation) would be worth the while. Waiting on our part might be long and boring, but it is nothing compared to the joy that the Lord Jesus brings. As John assures, “all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” The joy of seeing the Lord face to face is sure to those who gladly wait for his coming and prepare well.

                                               [Fr. TOPHIE AMOROSO, MSP
                                                  Diocese of Naha, Japan]

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