Advent Day 1: A true Friend

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IT’S GOOD TO BE BACK!

Happy Advent! I faithfully posted all through Advent and the Christmas Season last year and hope to do so again this year. Let us pray for each other. Happy preparation!

TODAY’S READINGS

As I did during last Advent and Lent, for these upcoming posts, I plan to use Catholic commentaries and other resources generously to bring light to each day’s readings. I’m particularly excited about the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: Old and New Testament that finally came out last month as one complete work. Save your pennies and get this! There is nothing else like it. Because this Bible was released in parts over the last twenty years or so, I had previously worked through the entire New Testament and all the books of the Old Testament that were released, but now I have the rest. I will be using comments from this work exclusively in today’s post.

+The first reading is from Jer 33:14-16.

I will raise up for David a just shoot;
he shall do what is right and just in the land. (v. 15)

“a righteous Branch: The Davidic Messiah, whom God will raise up after the collapse of the Davidic monarchy. justice and righteousness: required of the kings of Israel and Judah as earthly representatives of God and his rule.” (1319)

Branch: “The image of the Messiah as a sprouting ‘branch’ is likely indebted to Isaiah 11:1, where the stump of David’s royal house shows signs of life — a ‘branch’ (Heb., nēṣer) that rises up as a king anointed with God’s Spirit (Is 11:2) and sought by the nations (Is 11:10).” (1303)

The friendship of the LORD is with those who fear him,
and his covenant, for their instruction. (v. 14)

+The Responsorial Psalm is from Ps 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14.

“friendship: The Hebrew term indicates a ‘private conversation’ or ‘counsel’ such as one would have with a close confidant. Reverential fear is essential to any relationship with the Lord and is thus a first step toward wisdom (111:10; Ex 20:20; Prov 1:7).” (851)

+The second reading is from 1 Thes 3:12—4:2.

May the Lord make you increase and abound in love
for one another and for all,
…
so as to strengthen your hearts,
to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father
at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen. (3:12-13)

“holiness: Moral and spiritual sanctity. See note on 1 Thess 4:3. the coming: The third mention of Christ’s return so far in the letter (1:10; 2:19). See note on 1 Thess 2:19. all his saints: Or, “all his holy ones”. This could refer to the blessed angels or the victorious saints or both. Most likely, Paul is saying that Christ will descend from heaven with an army of holy angels. This is the picture drawn by Jesus (Mk 8:38), by the OT (Zech 14:5), and by Paul himself in his follow-up letter (2 Thess 1:7).” (2116)

+The Gospel reading is from Lk 21:25-28, 34-36.

Be vigilant at all times
and pray that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man. (v. 36)

“to stand: i.e., to withstand temptation and face the divine Judge with confidence (Eph 6:13; 1 Jn 2:28).” (1873)

|||My wrap

To tie all this together: The shoot that was awaited for by Israel (and the world, whether everyone knew it or not) was Jesus, the Christ/Messiah/Anointed One. He came to restore friendship with the Godhead. And He did so by first becoming not just one of us, but our friend. Jesus Himself said:

No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command you.
I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. (Jn 15:13-15)

But note the caveat! If you do what I command you. As I highlighted in today’s Responsorial Psalm, friendship with the Lord entails a reverential fear. The instruction we are given by God, the command we are given by Jesus, are not suggestions. To have a right relationship with God, to have an authentic belief in Jesus, we must follow His teaching. This requires complete and uninhibited trust. If we can say we trust our spouse and/or best friend on earth, how much more must we place our entire lives in the hands of the One who created us, redeemed us, and sanctified us? Then we can, by begging for and cooperating with God’s grace, increase and abound in love for one another and for all — no easy task for us fallen humans. But to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father when He comes, whether during our lifetime or when we are face to face with Jesus at the end of it (we know neither the day nor the hour — Mt 25:13), requires being vigilant at all times so we can stand before the Son of Man in confident hope of eternal life.

BP BARRON’S SUNDAY SERMON

Always worth a listen, as I do each week. Today:Three Dimensions of Advent (and check out this article with the same theme).

THE WORD OF THE LORD

Worth every penny and more: https://stpaulcenter.com/the-word-of-the-lord/

A great way to take a deep dive into the Sunday readings every week — I try to never miss it. And the companion books are a treasure that will stay on my shelf (I’ve already worked through Year A, Year B, and Solemnities and Feasts and began the final volume, Year C today — outstanding!). What a blessing!

Also check out Breaking the Bread: A Biblical Devotional for Catholics (Year C) from Scott Hahn and Ken Ogorek, which I started today. Another great resource from two great educators!

ADVENT RESOURCES

ADVENT/CHRISTMAS READING

God bless!

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