Word to the Wise
Tuesday, December 3, 2013 - 1st Week of Advent - Tues
[Isa 11:1-10 and Luke 10:21-24,262]There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord, as water covers the sea. [Isaiah]
There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord, as water covers the sea. [Isaiah]
Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it. [Luke]
We experience in the two scripture passages from Isaiah and Luke longing and fulfillment. Isaiah's wonderful vision, so beautifully depicted in Edward Hicks' paintings in the 19th century - The Peaceable Kingdom - is one that we could all share. He preached more than 500 years before Jesus' birth! In the gospel passage from Luke, Jesus tells us that the vision has been fulfilled in his person! Blessed are our eyes and ears!
However, there are none so blind as those who will not see, or none so deaf as those who will not hear! When we unwrap the nativity scene in our Christmas decorating, will it be in a place that we can see it first? Will we hear the words of the carols that proclaim his birth instead of the secular carols that proclaim scenery and Santa? Can we see the longing that so many have in this season for family or world peace and try to live its fulfillment in whatever way we can? Can we hear the cries of the poor - perhaps in the ringing of the Salvation Army bells at mall entrances? The Season of Advent offers us the opportunity to look deeply into what we see and hear about the "advent of the Lord." Perhaps we will be able to say in the words of the poet, e.e.cummings: "(now the ears of my ears awake and now the eyes of my eyes are opened)." AMEN