Word to the Wise
Tuesday, November 29, 2022 - 1st Week of Advent - Tues
[Isa 11:1-10 and Luke 10:21-24]On that day, a shoot shall spring from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom. The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: a Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, a Spirit of counsel and strength, a Spirit of knowledge and of fear of the Lord, and his delight shall be the fear of the Lord.....[Isaiah]
The early Christian community often turned to the majestic prophetic words of the Book of Isaiah to give meaning to their faith in Jesus as the Messiah, the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy. Scripture scholars tell us that Jewish expectations of the Messiah at the time Jesus lived were quite varied. Some expected a ruler who would conquer the Romans and restore Israel. Others looked to a kind of shepherd model, etc.. We see instances of this in the gospels when John the Baptist sends his disciples to Jesus to ask, "Are you the one who is to come? Or shall we await another?" [Matt. 11:3] or when Jesus asks his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" [Matt. 16:13].
The words of Isaiah in the first scripture today speak of an ideal leader filled with the "gifts" of the Spirit of God! (Those "gifts" would find their way into our own sacraments of initiation, especially the sacrament of confirmation!) That leader came in the person of Jesus but the very people who hoped for what he tried to bring could not see him as the fulfillment of Isaiah's hopes. Jesus could only say to his disciples (in today's gospel scripture), "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."
Advent can bring us face to face with our own expectations of Jesus. What are our hopes? From what "captivity" do we want Emmanuel to deliver us? From the glorious "King of the Universe" a week ago, we are brought to a small town in Nazareth and then to another small town in Bethlehem. Can we place all our hopes before that nativity scene? What can we do to bring about the "peaceable kingdom" in today's passage from Isaiah, immortalized in the painting by Edward Hicks. Will the wolf ever be able to be a guest of the lamb? AMEN
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