For the second Sunday of Advent: “They did to him whatever they wished”
How dreadful! Many people in this world are vulnerable to the whims of others. Justice? A foreign word for many. And yet, there is hope—hope for a life in peace and righteousness. Not through politics, but rather through the gospel. An interjection:
When Jesus returned to the valley from a mountain with His disciples on one occasion, they asked Him what He thought about the prophecy that the prophet Elijah would have to come before the appearing of the Messiah. Jesus answered that Elijah had already come—here He was referring to John the Baptist, His way-preparer. It was not Elijah who was to point to the Messiah, but rather John. But the people rejected him: “They did to him whatever they wished.” And later they did the same with Jesus.
And what about us? What do we do? The Advent season confronts us with the question of how we accept Christ.
Advent means accepting Christ
The following story is told about Mother Teresa, a Catholic nun who earned a tremendous reputation for charity in Calcutta: a reporter once accompanied her for a day through her exhausting life. He observed her taking children with leprosy into her arms and hugging them, and expressed that he could never do such a thing, not even for a thousand dollars! To this she replied, “I wouldn’t either—not for money!”
Advent reminds us that there are many people to whom others “do whatever they wish”. Perhaps things are a little better for us. In that case, let us show our commitment to them—to the lowly, the outcast, and the despised, to those who suffer under injustice, to the innocent who are found guilty.
Advent means loving our neighbour
Advent reminds us how much we too are dependent on help. Even if this does not seem to be the case, each one of us needs help—help from the Redeemer and Saviour of the world, help from the Son of God, help through grace and mercy. In the Catechism of the New Apostolic Church we read as follows in chapter 5.2.2: “The example of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37) demonstrates that Jesus repealed this restriction on the commandment to love one’s neighbour—which previously applied only to Israel. On the one hand, He defined one’s neighbour as anyone in need of help. The parable does not specify whether He was talking about an Israelite or a Gentile: ‘A certain man went down from Jerusalem …’ On the other hand, one’s neighbour can also be the person who provides help—in the parable he belongs to a nation held in contempt by the Israelites, a Samaritan. It becomes clear that the moment one person interacts with another, they become neighbours. Our neighbour can therefore be any person with whom we come into contact.”
And in the Sermon on the Mount we find the statement that is today known as the golden rule: “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them!”
Jesus even calls upon us to love our enemies. Concerning this, the Catechism explains: “Love for our neighbour prompts us to show compassion to all who are in need of compassion, even our enemies. In practice, love for one’s neighbour is demonstrated, for example, in unselfish efforts to benefit others, primarily those who are disadvantaged in one way or another. … Practised love for one’s neighbour in any form deserves high regard. The more it is exercised, the more distress will be alleviated, and the more harmoniously structured our coexistence will be.”
Advent is the time for just such neighbourly love!
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