Word to the Wise
Thursday, December 15, 2022 - 3rd Week of Advent - Thurs
[Isa 54:1-10 and Luke 7:24-30]Fear not, you shall not be put to shame; you need not blush, for you shall not be disgraced. The shame of your youth you shall forget, the reproach of your widowhood no longer remember. For he who has become your husband is your Maker; his name is the Lord of hosts; your redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, called God of all the earth. [Isaiah]
Scriptural tradition divides the prophecy of Isaiah into three rather distinct parts. The first part (chs. 1-39)was composed at the time of the Babylonian exile; the second (chs. 40-55) toward the end of the exile; and the third (chs. 56-66) after the exile. The hopeful tone of today's passage comes toward the end of the second part when the return to Jerusalem was beginning to take place. The tone is one of restoration of a relationship that had been ruptured by the Babylonian conquest, which was seen by Isaiah and others as punishment for sins against the covenant (idolatry, injustice, foreign alliances, etc.). The image today is one of a marital relationship with the remarkable line: For he who has become your husband is your Maker!" (This contrasts with the marital imagery in Hosea and Jeremiah where Israel is portrayed as a faithless wife!)
The Advent/Christmas/Epiphany liturgical season, if consciously and intentionally celebrated, can be a time of restoration and hope. I have preached many a parish mission in Advent and experienced the return to faith of individuals in the Sacrament of Reconciliation after long periods of absence. (At present I am preaching one in Florida!) The birth of Jesus, like that of the birth of any child, can be a sign of hope. Families come together in this time. A New Year is approaching.
There is also an "apostolic" challenge to reach out to those who are experiencing sorrow because of a loss during the year, or even presently - health problems, financial problems, loss of employment, family divisions, exile because of wars or political violence. It is a time to "share the hope!" AMEN.