Dwelling Place of God (4th Sunday of Advent, Cycle B)

There is a pious saying about scripture that contains a lot of truth. It says, “the New Testament lies hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New.” In fact, there is so much truth in this axiom, that the Church tries to show us this connection in the liturgy. That is why, at every mass, except during the Easter season, we have our first reading from the Old testament, followed by the gospel from the New Testament. If we pay close attention to both, it is amazing to see how the first reading constantly prepares the way for the gospel message. This concept in scripture, where something from the old testament prepares us for something in the New, is called foreshadowing. Over and over again, some person or event in the Old Testament foreshadows something or someone that will happen in the New testament. Something or someone that will be perfected by God’s hand and exceed all human expectation.

Today is no exception to this rule. In our first reading from 2^nd Sammuel, we hear that King David has finally settled down. He finally gets to enjoy the hard work and sacrifices that have been made. But there is a problem. David realizes that he is living in a nice house of cedar while the Ark of the covenant rests in a simple tent. In other words, he is living a life of luxury while the Lord is sheltered in the dwelling of a wandering traveller. David tells the prophet Nathan that he is going to make things right and build a magnificent temple for the Lord. 

However, God has other plans. During the night, the Lord commands Nathan to go to David and tell the king that it will not be him who builds the Temple but his son Solomon. David has already done great things but the Lord wants to remind him that everything that has been accomplished is God’s doing. It is not David who will provide a home for the Lord but the Lord who will provide a home for David and the people of Israel. Indeed there is a wonderful irony involved here. David does not build a house for the Lord but instead the Lord provides a house for David—a great family of descendants: the House of David, a house that will last forever and bring forth the savior of the world. 

Today we hear about the fulfillment of that promise in the Gospel. For generations, the descendants of David had tried to build a suitable home for the Lord. Again and again, that home had been delayed, destroyed, or desecrated by corruption both within and outside God’s Chosen People. They focused on a physical building, a structure of brick and mortar. But God was not content to simply dwell in a magnificent temple made by a king. God showed the world that the temple is just a foreshadowing of something greater. He perfected his dwelling place by choosing one that was not made by human hands. He sent his angel Gabriel to a young maiden, born of the house of David. Her name was Mary and she was full of faith and trust in God. The angel greeted her as one “full of grace” and told her that she would become the mother of God. All she had to do was say yes. And as we know, she did. She took that leap of faith and trusted that God would provide for whatever she was lacking. In the end, the house of David did provide the dwelling place of God through the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She was the New temple, the eternal ark of the covenant.  

But even here, God is not content to make his dwelling simply the immaculate and sinless womb of the virgin Mary. In his mysterious and infinite wisdom, God now wants to dwell in the souls of each and every person. He offers to enter into our hearts by the sacrament of baptism and deepen that presence within us through the other sacraments and by prayer and good works. This mystery of God’s goodness is called sanctifying grace. Each of us received it at baptism, when original sin was wiped away. And this sanctifying grace is the very life of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit dwelling within us. As long as we are in the state of grace, God lives within us and we become dwelling places of God, temples of divine life. 

This is an awesome privilege and an even greater mystery. Look at how God’s love has been revealed to us little by little, like the opening of a beautiful flower, from bud to full bloom. In the Old testament, God simply dwelt with His people through the Ark of Covenant. Then His presence was expanded to include the magnificent temple, which every Jew would visit once a year. In the fulness of time, God’s presence became flesh in Jesus Christ and he become one of us as he carried out his saving ministry. Finally, through the merits of Jesus, God’s presence became available to all, through the Eucharist, found in every Catholic Church and the indwelling of God in every person’s soul who has sanctifying grace. Notice the movement of God! In the beginning it is isolated, removed, and inaccessible. In the fullness of time is becomes personal, imminent, and accessible to all.

With this great gift comes great responsibility. Even though God gives us his life so freely, because of our sinfulness, it is very easy to lose. Any mortal sin will take away sanctifying grace and drive away God’s life from our soul. This grace can only be restored in our souls by going to the sacrament of confession and receiving absolution from the priest. So what is a mortal sin? It is a serious offense against the law of God that destroys the life of God in a person’s soul. A mortal sin requires three things to be present (listen carefully, these are important!) 1) the sin must be serious in nature, 2) the person must have full knowledge of the evil he or she is committing, 3) there must be full consent of the will. 

Practically speaking, what do these sort of sins look like? Allow me to list a few common ones that I run into as a priest and confessor. This is by no means an exhaustive list! Mortal sins include sins against purity like: viewing pornography, self-abuse, fornication, the use of artificial contraception and willfully entertaining impure thoughts and desires. Sins against our body like drunkenness, drug use, and gluttony. Sins against charity like destroying the reputation of others by malicious speech, lying under oath or about other serious things, stealing or cheating in significant amount (the threshold used to be $50). Sins against God like a deliberate and hateful use of his Holy Name or the name of Mary, missing of Mass without a truly serious or valid reason, and the unworthy reception of Holy Communion in the state of mortal sin, which is a sacrilege.

I don’t mention this teaching on mortal sin to scare or discourage you. Rather, I think it is important for us to realize the great gift we have been given through our baptism, the fact that God dwells within our souls through sanctifying grace. We should thank him daily for this incredible privilege of serving as his temple. But we also need to be aware of how easily that gift can be lost through weakness and temptation. As we approach this final week of advent and prepare to celebrate Christ’s birthday, let us renew our efforts to protect and deepen the sanctifying grace within our souls. And, if we have been unfortunate enough to lose this treasure, let us make use of the sacrament of reconciliation which will be offered here freely this week, so that we can welcome Christ back into our hearts for the Christmas season. Above all, may we have hope, knowing from our gospel that “nothing is impossible with God.”

Rejoice in the Light (3rd Sunday of Advent, Cycle B)

I can’t exactly tell you why, but I have always had a fascination with flashlights. Perhaps it was due to the incredible variety and selection. You could find lights powered by many different batteries, with various types of bulbs, with or without the option to focus the beam. They could be heavy or lightweight, rechargeable or disposable, halogen or LED, massive or compact. Growing up, I would constantly ask for one for birthdays and Christmas, and always for lots of extra batteries. One of my all-time favorites was the venerable Maglite. Made of aircraft-quality aluminum that was both rugged and resistant to the elements and the abuse of daily use, the maglite was the constant object of my obsession. You could find them ranging in size from the handy mini-mag which used two AA batteries to the Maglite white star, which used 6 D batteries and stretched nearly two feet long. Let’s just all be honest, a good flashlight is handy...and cool, and really comforting to have around just in case the power goes out or you have to look around in the dark.

But while my enthusiasm for flashlights has not lessened, my affection has shifted. My new favorite flashlight is the Surefire E2D defender. Measuring just under 6 inches long and weighing a mere 3.5 ounces, this little baby is ten times brighter than your standard 2D Maglite. In fact, it is so bright, that if you shine it in your eyes in the dark, you will be blinded and disoriented for a few moments. Trust me, I have tried it on a number of unsuspecting friends. This little gem will light up a room and illuminate a path several hundred feet long. It is truly remarkable!

Perhaps you don’t share my passion for flashlights; that is regrettable but forgivable! However, all of us are drawn to light. We need it for so many aspects of daily life and we appreciate the safety and security that it brings. Light is a good thing! I have yet to see advertising for a flashlight that says “our product produces the least amount of light and lasts the shortest amount of time.” No, we all want to have light that is both bright and long-lasting. 

The surefire flashlight is a modern marvel which showcases our advancement in understanding and producing light. Despite its man-made luminescence it pales in comparison to the brightness of the sun. The flashlight, which is blinding in the darkness is virtually undetectable when the sun is out.

Now I mention all of this about flashlights because this same theme of light can be found everywhere in the Advent season. Isaiah tells us that the people that walked in darkness have seen a great light. Today, in the gospel, the theme of light comes to the forefront as we hear that “a man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to the light.

As crazy as this sounds, there is a connection here between the flashlights and witness of John the Baptist. You see, John was the greatest prophet that ever lived. He was the brightest light that would point to the messiah. He was the crown of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New. He inspired and captivated huge crowds and some of them even wondered if he might be the messiah or Elijah back from the dead. But John’s brilliance, as good as he was, was dazzling mostly because he came at a time of great darkness. His light, preparing the way of the Lord, was only bright in the absence of the One who was light from light, true God from true God. Compared to Christ, John paled, much like my flashlight, which is so bright in the darkness but no match for the sunlight. 

The beautiful thing is that John knew this and embraced it. When asked by the crowds who he was, he made it clear that he was not the Christ, nor Elijah but simply “the voice of one crying out in the desert, 'make straight the way of the Lord.'" As a sign of his great humility, John said: “there is one coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie." John’s role as a prophet was simply to be a light leading others to Christ; his purpose was not to try and outshine Christ or to confuse people on where the true light can be found. How easy it could have been for him to take credit for what he was saying and doing, to promote himself and try to take the glory. 

This lesson of humility is really important for us as modern day people. It is far too easy in the world we live to get caught up in being number one and competing with our rivals in business, school, social circles, and even church. So much energy can be spent on trying to outshine others that we forget that there is only one true light that gives meaning to our lives and peace to our souls.  

As followers of Christ, you and I are called to be lights in the midst of darkness. Like John the baptist, the Lord wants us to live lives of joy and courage, witnessing to him and preparing his way as he enters our world.  

On this third Sunday of Advent, the Church tells us to rejoice because the saving light of Christ’s birth is drawing near. If we have the attitude of John, it will be easy to rejoice because we know that the victory has already been won, that sin and death have no more power over us, and that all the good we do is not because of us but through Our Lord Jesus Christ. There is a great freedom in living, loving, and thinking this way. It is no longer up to us to make everything work; the glory and the worry are God’s. So let us quietly and humbly prepare the way of the Lord, pointing others to that one true light, Jesus Christ. And may we use well the remainder of our advent season so that in two weeks, we might echo the joy of our psalm in saying, “My Soul rejoices in my God.”