Reflections for Advent

The Christmas story is actually two stories woven together.  The first is a very familiar human story of the birth of a baby. The circumstances are difficult, the parents aren’t married; they are far from home as a result of some bureaucratic process imposed from so far on high that the reason for it is […]

Today we hear the audacity of Isaiah’s prophecy at its most outrageous (Isaiah 35:1-6a, 10). He had no reason to hold out those expectations of joy and splendor, of vindication and healing to people uprooted by war, people in misery far from home, despised by those around them.  That reading is complemented by the ever

We listen to Scripture week after week. Why?  We know pretty much what it says. What’s the point of going back over and over the same ground? Sometimes the familiarity may be comforting, sometimes it’s irritating, maybe more often we simple zone out and it washes over us.  Paul this week gives us one good

As we enter into another church year we are reminded once again that God’s decisive involvement with our world starts with a baby. This may seem a huge leap from last week when we were celebrating how Jesus was king of the whole universe. But really it isn’t. Whether we think about kings or babies

Yes Christmas is about a baby – and at last, on our fourth Sunday of Advent we finally get to the baby (Lk 1:39-45). In fact not just one baby but two. And perhaps almost more importantly, for this moment, two mothers.  Mary and Elizabeth couldn’t really be more different. Elizabeth is much older, past

The Book of Zephaniah that gives us our first reading today is very short, three brief chapters. The first two and a half are a dire prophesy of death and destruction, about to happen in the Babylonian invasion. The final section we hear today (Zep 3:14-18a) couldn’t be more different, giving us the name of

Today’s readings draw heavily on those familiar images of filling valleys and leveling mountains, making straight roads in the wilderness (Bar 5:1-9).  If you’ve been on a road trip and seen a major highway, bridge, or railway under construction you will know the scale of that sort of project. It’s pretty awe inspiring. The ancient

Well, we got through the end of the year (the end of the world), and through Thanksgiving, and even Black Friday. We’re now on the glide path to Christmas, right?  So what’s with today’s readings? Our first reading, if you squint a bit, might be looking forward to a merry Christmas – and since it’s

We arrive at the fourth week of Advent, and Christmas is close. This year, given the vagaries of the calendar, only one day away. Our readings now change character and emphasize that closeness, not so much as a matter of timing, but rather that God’s actions are now positioned clearly and directly within our day

Sometimes Advent is presented as a penitential season, almost a mini-Lent, a time for reflection on our inadequacy or unworthiness in the face of the incomprehensible gift that God gave us by sending His son. But today’s readings don’t fit in any way with that mindset. It’s all about rejoicing! Maybe rather than penance, we