Word to the Wise
Wednesday, December 18, 2024 - December 18
[Jer 23:5-8 and Matt 1:18-24]Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up a righteous shoot to David...[Jeremiah] All this took place to fulfill what the Lord said through the prophet: Behold the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means "God is with us." [Matthew]
Much of the Gospel According to Matthew could be summed up in the words from today's passage: All this took place to fulfill what the Lord said through the prophet...." The early Christian community combed the Old Testament for references that might refer to Jesus. They read the Old Testament in the light of their faith in Jesus! Mind you, they didn't have all the New Testament to look at - maybe some had heard from St. Paul! The Old Testament was, for them, the Bible!
The scriptures presented to us during Advent emphasize Jesus' Old Testament roots. Yesterday we heard a genealogy that contained some very interesting (and difficult to pronounce) names of various characters, some of whom were less than saints, but were based on other genealogies in the Old Testament. But Abraham and David get top billing because God made promises to them and Jesus was seen as the fulfillment of those promises. The passage from Jeremiah today refers to a promise made to David. [2 Samuel 7:11-12] The prophets were considered by the early Christian community to have been speaking both of an earthly righteous ruler (e.g. Hezekiah) as well as the ultimate righteous ruler, Jesus Christ. The "annunciation" to Joseph is seen as the fulfillment of a prophecy in Isaiah which originally referred to a king in Israel, but interpreted in the light of faith to refer to Jesus. God's plan of salvation shines through the genealogy and history of the Chosen People. We are adding our own history of faith to that of the first Christians!
There is an old expression: God works in mysterious ways, his wonders to perform. And God continues to do this through human instruments in whom the Holy Spirit is working. Pentecost is not just in the Spring, but in Advent and Christmas/Epiphany too!! AMEN
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