DAILY- HOMILY

DECEMBER 6, 2009
2ND SUNDAY OF ADVENT – C

BARUCH 5:1-9
Jerusalem, take off your robe of mourning and misery; put on the
splendor of glory from God forever: wrapped in the cloak of justice
from God, bear on your head the mitre that displays the glory of the
eternal name. For God will show all the earth your splendor: you will
be named by God forever the peace of justice, the glory of God's
worship. Up, Jerusalem! stand upon the heights; look to the east and
see your children gathered from the east and the west at the word of
the Holy One, rejoicing that they are remembered by God. Led away on
foot by their enemies they left you: but God will bring them back to
you borne aloft in glory as on royal thrones. For God has commanded
that every lofty mountain be made low, and that the age-old depths and
gorges be filled to level ground, that Israel may advance secure in
the glory of God. The forests and every fragrant kind of tree have
overshadowed Israel at God's command; for God is leading Israel in joy
by the light of his glory, with his mercy and justice for company.

PHILIPPIANS 1:4-6, 8-11
Brothers and sisters: I pray always with joy in my every prayer for
all of you, because of your partnership for the gospel from the first
day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good
work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ
Jesus. God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection
of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer: that your love may increase
ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception, to
discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for
the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes
through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.

LUKE 3:1-6
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius
Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and
his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis,
and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of
Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah
in the desert. John went throughout the whole region of the Jordan,
proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it
is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah: A voice of
one crying out in the desert: "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, and all flesh shall see the salvation
of God."

REFLECTION
This call to have a change of heart continues to serve as challenge to
us particularly during this season of Advent. What areas of our life
are we suppose to be more aware that need to be changed and to be
touched by the power of God's love and mercy? Can we recall our
mission when we were baptized that we are to turn away from Satan and
the allure of sin? It is obvious that this call to conversion is a
lifelong project. What then are habits, attitudes, and relationships
that remain unbaptized? What are our actions that continue to distance
us from God? However, there is some problem at times in that we want
God's help and comfort but we are not prepared to change our ways, not
prepared for a genuine conversion. For God to come to us, we also need
to go to Him.

A significant detail then is the image of the desert which is
important in Scripture. It is a holy place, a place where God is
specially to be found. It is also a place of struggle. It was in the
desert that the Israelites spent 40 years on their way to the Promised
Land. It was in the desert that Jesus had his struggle with the Evil
One. It was in the desert that Jesus often went to pray and in the
desert that he fed the people.

In the same manner, there is a call for us to go and stay in the
desert of our, hearts where we can communicate with God. In that
seemingly lifeless and empty space, may we find inspiration in the
beautiful prayer of Paul to the Philippians: that your love may
increase ever more .... so that you may be pure and blameless for the
day of Christ filled with the fruit of righteousness..."

To be filled with righteousness becomes vital in the context of our
preparation for Christmas and the coming of the Lord into, our own
lives. Christmas is not simply the commemoration of a historic event,
in the distant past. It is a time for reflection and personal renewal
about the coming of Jesus into our life, into the life of our
Christian communities and into our wider society.

If we find ourselves constantly in the company of our Lord, then we
will be at peace in spite of storms raging around us. For us, the Day
of the Lord holds no fears. For us, every day is Christmas and that is
what makes Christmas so special to us. For us, ever y day is a Day of
the Lord.

John is indeed a role model for us whose call of repentance is
something that we can take as a challenge as we prepare for the coming
of Jesus more deeply in our lives. John knew something about Christ
and he was humble enough to point out to all of us the true and only
Messiah.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
-Ian Travis Ylaya
… for the strength and healing of:
-Brenda
-Rita Cuerva
-Ely Lara
-Rita, Shelly, Pam, John C, Rose D, John M, Tommy & Alva
… for the personal intentions of
-Raymund & Cris Davis Parke, EJ, & Arron Davis
-Josheil Dapo
… for the safety of:
-Nedda Marjorie D. Correa
… for the eternal repose of the souls of
-Sheng Hsiao-Chen
-Jose Ma. Lacson
-Raul and Epifania Ylaya
Eternal rest grant unto them and may perpetual light shine upon them.
May they and all the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for the victims of natural disasters
… for the healing and peace of all families
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
Birthday: Among Gov. Ed Panlilo
Birthday: Calvin Yu
Wedding Anniversary: Thomas & Cathy Diokno
Wedding Anniversary: Don & Deng Salgado

… for world peace and reconciliation.

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers
and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

This free service is produced by the laity and priests of:
Mary the Queen Parish
Madison, West Greenhills, San Juan, Philippines
Web site: http://www.marythequeen.org

Parish Priests' e-mail:
Fr. J. Cesar R. Marin, S. J. parishpriest@marythequeen.org

Assistant Parish Priests' e-mails:
Fr. R. Hart, S. J. rodneyhart@marythequeen.org
Fr. Thomas O'Gorman, S. J. thogorman@gmail.com

--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Group Address: http://groups.google.com/group/daily_homily

To subscribe from this mailing service, send email to: dailyhomily@earthlink.net
To unsubscribe: daily_homily-unsubscribe@googlegroups.com

Join our group on Facebook | FoodForThought and post your views,
comments and feedbacks on the reflection. Click below:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=142903436398

© 2009 Daily-Homily