DAILY- HOMILY

DECEMBER 12, 2010
3RD SUNDAY OF ADVENT – A

ISAIAH 35:1-6, 10
Let the desert and the dry lands be glad, let the wasteland rejoice
and bloom; like the asphodel, let it burst into flower, let it rejoice
and sing for joy. The glory of Lebanon is bestowed on it, the
splendour of Carmel and Sharon; then they will see the glory of
Yahweh, the splendour of our God. Strengthen all weary hands, steady
all trembling knees and say to the faint-hearted, 'Be strong! Do not
be afraid. Here is your God, vengeance is coming, divine retribution;
he is coming to save you.' Then the eyes of the blind will be opened,
the ears of the deaf unsealed, then the lame will leap like a deer and
the tongue of the dumb sing for joy; for water will gush in the desert
and streams in the wastelands, For those whom Yahweh has ransomed will
return, they will come to Zion shouting for joy, their heads crowned
with joy unending; rejoicing and gladness will escort them and sorrow
and sighing will take flight.

JAMES 5:7-10
Now be patient, brothers, until the Lord's coming. Think of a farmer:
how patiently he waits for the precious fruit of the ground until it
has had the autumn rains and the spring rains! You too must be
patient; do not lose heart, because the Lord's coming will be soon. Do
not make complaints against one another, brothers, so as not to be
brought to judgement yourselves; the Judge is already to be seen
waiting at the gates. For your example, brothers, in patiently putting
up with persecution, take the prophets who spoke in the Lord's name.

MATTHEW 11:2-11
Now John had heard in prison what Christ was doing and he sent his
disciples to ask him, 'Are you the one who is to come, or are we to
expect someone else?' Jesus answered, 'Go back and tell John what you
hear and see; the blind see again, and the lame walk, those suffering
from virulent skin-diseases are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead
are raised to life and the good news is proclaimed to the poor; and
blessed is anyone who does not find me a cause of falling.' As the men
were leaving, Jesus began to talk to the people about John, 'What did
you go out into the desert to see? A reed swaying in the breeze? No?
Then what did you go out to see? A man wearing fine clothes? Look,
those who wear fine clothes are to be found in palaces. Then what did
you go out for? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and much more than
a prophet: he is the one of whom scripture says: Look, I am going to
send my messenger in front of you to prepare your way before you. 'In
truth I tell you, of all the children born to women, there has never
been anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the
kingdom of Heaven is greater than he.

REFLECTION
For those who are impatient with God the letter of James in today's
second reading offers some very wise words. He says: "Be patient.
Steady your hearts. Do not grumble against one another. Take as our
models, the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord". One such
prophet is John the Baptist.

John the Baptist is in jail and wants to know if Jesus is the promised
Messiah. He sends his disciples to Jesus to ask the question: "Are you
he who is to come, or do we look for another?" This is by no means a
casual question of identity, but a critical question whose answer
affects our entire destiny. As such, it is a timeless, contemporary
and ultimate question.

During Advent we wait expectantly for the coming of Christ at
Christmas. We wait expectantly because we are aware of our poverty and
emptiness, conditions described in the first reading from the Prophet
Isaiah. But we must not allow our weakness and failures to discourage
us. Rather, they should make us desire Christ's coming all the more.
This is the attitude of the liturgy, and it should be ours as well.

In the gospel Jesus tells the messengers of John the Baptist: "Go back
and report what you hear and see. The blind recover their sight and
the deaf hear. Cripples walk and dead men rise of life". In other
words, we don't have to stay the way we are, weak, blind or crippled.
Our Savior is coming at Christmas to bring us strength, light and
healing. We don't have to look for another. Jesus is the one who is to
come. We need no other. He is our way, our truth and our life.

Our question becomes a mission. Once we have experienced Christ's
presence and power in our lives, we are sent to share these with
others. Like John the Baptist, we too are sent as messengers to open
the hearts of people to his coming into their lives.

Let us build bridges and enter into people's lives so that we may see
Jesus in each one of them. Maybe then they will also discover the
Christ who lives in them reflected in our eyes. Let us offer the
members of our family to Jesus so that he may bring them to the Father
to receive forgiveness and love. Let us offer Jesus our eyes so that
he may use them to show his compassion and understanding to others.
Let us offer him our hands so that he may use them to love and bless
all those we meet on the road of life. Let us offer him our lips so
that he may use them to speak words of love, encouragement and support
to those who need to hear them.

Let us prepare the way before him so that he may enter into the hearts
and lives of those we meet every day. It is for this that he
commissions and empowers us. So let us respond by saying: "Make me a
channel of your peace".

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Jo Marcelo, Jun Lee, Mon Torres, Fleur Torres, Peping Torres, John
Lawrence
- Marife
- Vicky Fabella
- Susan
… for the personal intentions of
- Veca Yap
- Josheil Dapo
…In Thanksgiving: Luis Torres
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Diego Estrella Bate
- Wedding Anniversary: Al and Cita Conception
- In Memoriam (+): Orlando G. Salgado
- In Memoriam (+): Laura Peczon Platon
… 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!

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