By Fr Antony Christy, SDB.
THE WORD IN ADVENT – Third week Saturday
December 23, 2023 – Malachi 3:1-4,23-24; Luke 1: 57-66
We began this week with a call to celebrate the Reign. When the Messiah had to come, there were prophets sent and messages delivered. And more were promised. Elijah was promised as a preparation, and John the Baptist came, as we see in the Gospel today, as a messenger before the Son of Man. Today, the promise remains alive, that even before the second coming, or that day of Lord, we will be made to know. That is why St. Paul said – it is not as if we are in the darkness that the day should surprise us (1 Thess 5:4). We have known it. We know it. Hence, the question: how prepared are we?
Malachi today speaks of the refiner’s fire and the fullers’ alkali—that is the type of preparation we need to take on. We are called to sit in front of that fire and purify ourselves, for the time is near. We are challenged to make a clinical evaluation of our beings. We are very close to the day – if we miss this moment, we shall soon be in the midst of the festivities, and we shall celebrate certainly, but without a lasting effect on our internal selves.
John the Baptist is given to us as a sign, a reminder, a warning—like a virus alert that comes from a computer system. The alert is only an alert; it will not set right the impending disaster. If we wish to, we have to take action, avail of all the antivirus possibilities, and purge our life of those elements that are affecting our lives in God. This is the moment, and this is the day! We are called to take stock of our journey thus far and prepare ourselves for a true and meaningful celebration—our prayers, novenas and wreathes, eucharistic celebrations, and the sacrament of reconciliation—are they not sufficient measures?
The Antiphon once again calls upon Emmanuel, the God with us. God is here, now, near, and just beside us! Are we prepared to behold the presence, the power and the grace of the imminent God, the incarnate Word, the life-giving Spirit? Are we prepared enough to stand erect, hold our heads high, and encounter our Saviour who is already here on our thresholds?
We are at a checkpoint—to check ourselves, not in the sense of a judgement and a sentencing, but in the sense of an ongoing journey. We are here to take stock, shed unnecessary baggage, refill the right energy, and embark on another phase of our journey. Once we encounter the Lord we shall have all that is necessary to forge ahead, but to encounter the Lord, are we ready as yet?
Fr Antony Christy is a Salesian Priest from 2005, who has a Masters in Philosophy (specialisation in Religion) and a Masters in Theology (Specialisation in Catechetics). He has completed his doctoral research in Theology at Salesian Pontifical University, Rome. Walking with the Young towards a World of Peace and Dialogue is the passion that fires him on.