Fourth Sunday of Advent (A)

Is 7:10-14
Ps 24:1-2, 3-4, 5-6
Rm 1:1-7
Mt 1:18-24

Hello, I’m Franciscan Father Greg Friedman, and this is the "Sunday Soundbite" for the Fourth Sunday of Advent.

A former Franciscan missionary in the Philippines once told me that when he traveled from mission to mission the people would not allow him to travel alone. They would ask, "Who is your companion?" Filipino culture, my friend said, is very relational—it values people being together, doing things together—even something as simple as traveling from place to place.

American culture on the other hand values independence and rugged individualism. But there are dangers when we take such an attitude to extreme. Like the Filipino culture, today's Scripture readings offer us a healthy alternative.

In both the first reading and the Gospel, we hear the word Emmanuel—God with us. Isaiah the prophet warns King Ahaz not to turn his back on God's intervention on behalf of the people; God wants to "be with us." That divine intervention becomes personal in Jesus Christ, as the very human story of Joseph and Mary in Matthew's Gospel makes clear. That presence of God with us is at the very heart of the Christmas celebration.

At Christmastime we naturally turn to one another at work, at home, and even on the street to wish greetings of peace and happiness. But there are also those who feel alone or abandoned. The central message of this season is Emmanuel, "God with us." Let's be generous in sharing God's gift of relationship with others.

Scripture:

•Therefore the LORD himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)

•Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD? or who may stand in his holy place? One whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean, who desires not what is vain. (Psalm 24:3,4)

•…descended from David according to the flesh, but established as Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness through resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 1:3,4)

•Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. (Matthew 1:20)

Reflection:

•Is Jesus born once in time or eternally in souls of all who seek Him?

•What is essential for Jesus’ to be born in time?

“The WORD became flesh” (John 1:14). This is what is of benefit to the faithful: that the WORD comes to be in each one. For what good is it to me if the WORD comes to dwell in the world, but I have no part in him?

This absolute emptiness, this poverty, this obscurity holds within it the secret of all joy because it is full of God. To seek this emptiness is true devotion to the Mother of God. To find it is to find her. And to be hidden in its depths is to be full of God as she is full of Him, and to share her mission of bringing Him to all men.

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Love is the theme of the Fourth Sunday of Advent. A good definition of love is in the name that we see in the first reading and again when the prophecy is fulfilled in the Gospel reading: Emmanuel, which means "God is with us." To have love is to have "God with us". To give love is to give God who is with us.

Have you ever felt like you've run out of love to give? Well, that's quite impossible, because God who is love is always with us even when we give out more love than we think we're ready to give. We might get tired of loving someone who doesn't equally love us back. We might even reach the point of despising someone who repeatedly hurts us, which makes us feel like we've run out of love for that person.

This is when we need to ask God for a supernatural ability to love with HIS love. This prayer always works! It's how we become effective evangelizers as distributors of his love. If we give God's love to those who are unpleasant to love, we're revealing to them God who is with us.

And when we're worn out and feeling empty because others are not loving us like they should, we need to remind ourselves that God is with us — we need to call upon Emmanuel. God who is with us already loves us completely, fully, unconditionally, whether or not we deserve it. While we're looking for others to love us more than they do, we feel unloved, but if we keep our eyes on Jesus, his love fills in all the gaps.

Emmanuel. It's a name for Jesus that we should use year-round. As you finish preparing for the celebration of Christmas, focus on Emmanuel. Sing to Emmanuel. Pray to Emmanuel. This sign, this reminder, this name is God's personal Christmas gift to YOU.

Questions for Personal Reflection:

Are you loved enough? What will you do this week (as a Christmas gift for yourself) to become more aware of God's love for you? Here's an idea: Go to the nativity display at your church and look at the manger. Write on a small piece of paper the names of those who fail to love you sufficiently. Place it in the manger and, if it has straw or hay, take a piece of it (or take a flower petal or leaf from a nearby plant) as a reminder that Emmanuel was born to give you more than enough love.

Questions for Community Faith Sharing:

What is the best Christmas gift you've ever received from God? Why did it make you feel loved?