Word to the Wise
Saturday, December 9, 2006 - Advent Weekday (St. Juan Diego)
[Isaiah 30:19-21; 23-26 and Matthew 9:35-10:1, 5A, 6-8]The Lord will give you the bread you need and the water for which you thirs. No longer will your Teacher hide himself'; but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher; while from behind, a voice shall sound in your ears: "This is the way; walk in it," when you would turn to the right or to the left.
Today's scripture is filled with the image of the Teacher whose voice inspires and informs. It is also filled with the longing of the people for that teaching. Jesus sends out the disciples to preach the Kingdom: "The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest..... Cure the sick, raise the dead, clease lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give." In our own efforts we are in both positions. We long for the Word and we try to proclaim it. We wish literally that a voice from behind would tell us what to do at every step along the way, because there are so many needs and people are waiting and longing! We bring the bread and water of physical need and of spiritual need. A visit to any homeless shelter will reveal that both needs are strong. A full belly is not necessarilly a full heart. The latter may help a person live much longer than the uncertain probability of the former. But the kingdom is represented in both. Jesus teaches his disciples to preach and to heal. The rest is up to them. In this season, the longing seems magnified and our feeling of helplessness grows, but God's promise impels us to make Advent real now and later. AMEN
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