THE SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT

Last week, we began this Holy Season of Advent and embarked as pilgrims on the journey to Bethlehem.

I started my pilgrimage with two cracked ribs and a fractured T4 vertebra, forcing me to accept I would not be skiing this season.

Others have started their journey with cancer or other illness diagnoses, compelling them to clarify the purpose of their life. Some are beginning their journey with an unexpected or perhaps anticipated death of a loved one, reminding them that their relationships are more important than their successes or achievements.

Many are forced to journey without their homes because of fires, floods, hurricanes or tornadoes, yet have gained a new perspective on the value of their belongings.

So, how do we continue this adventure of a journey physically, emotionally and spiritually?

Last week, we lit the First Advent candle and reflected on Scripture passages that propelled us into the future to consider the end of the world, the apocalypse. Today, we light the Second Advent candle and meditate on the voice of one crying in the desert.

We all know what this weirdo in a camel’s hair shirt and who eats grasshoppers is going to say. He says the same thing every year. It is like a broken record, over and over.

You know what he preaches, don’t you? “Repent from your sins.” “Prepare the way of the Lord.” That’s it.

No cute stories, no three points, no worn-out pious clichés, he just goes throughout all of Jordan, roaring his one-line sermon of preparing for the Lord by repenting.

How do you do that? How do you “Prepare the Way of the Lord” this Advent?

Pray for guidance to:

• Make straight the paths for our immigrant brothers and sisters as they flee for their lives.
• Courageously understand and offer support to our brothers and sisters who suffer from depression, despair, desperation, or loneliness and fear.
• Make serious efforts to lower the mountains of twisted facts, communications and lies, with words of truth and acts of sincere compassion, even for our adversaries. 
• Take action against racism, sexism, ageism and all the other “isms” that block our way to healthy relationships with one another and the Lord.
• Realize that to prepare the Way of the Lord we need to build bridges that have separated us from family or friends, forget old wounds and hurts, and make the rough ways smooth by being humble enough to say, “I am sorry.”

This is what a prophet worth his or her salt does. A holy prophet calls us to conversion. Some folks think that a prophet is someone who can foretell the future. That might be part of what they do, but what they also talk about the present.

What they say about the present moment is, “You’ve got it wrong. You need to repent and prepare for the coming of the Lord.” Prophets tell us what we already know, which is why it is like a broken record and why we don’t like to hear it.

There are two kinds of prophets: those who seek to protect the status quo and those who demand conversion and change.

Status quo prophets demand that we keep the rules, rites, rituals and everything will be fine. When they cry out, their mantra is “This is the way we have always done it.” We have bishops, priests and parishioners like that. The status quo prophets don’t require any commitment.

Conversion prophets, on the other hand, see what can be done to correct injustices, sinful behavior, and what fails to promote peace, mercy and equality for all people. They cry out “Things are not OK, and we need to do something about it.” Conversion prophets demand repentance, change and commitment. 

John the Baptist was a conversion prophet.

A conversion prophet of modern times who made a profound impact on me is the American Trappist monk and author, Thomas Merton. He died on Monday, December 10, 1968.

Like many of our youth today, Merton grew up in an environment lacking strong religious influence or guidance. He questioned the existence of God, religious beliefs and practices and he got into trouble. His life as a young adult was probably like that of an average college student today. He was preoccupied with himself.

You can read his conversion experiences in his best-selling 1948 autobiography about his restless youth and personal conversion entitled “The Seven Storey Mountain.”

I read this book in 1959 while at the University of Minnesota, and its wisdom remains relevant. Thomas Merton’s honest admissions of his shortcomings, imperfections and sins, inspired me to do what he did:  join the seminary.

I want to share one of my favorite passages from Merton’s writing. It is from his “Thoughts in Solitude” and is actually a prayer that everyone can pray.

“… My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following Your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please You does, in fact, please You. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me on the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore, will I trust You always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for You are ever with me, and You will never leave me to face my perils alone.”

I encourage you to carry this prayer with you every day during this Second Week of Advent as a means to Prepare the Way of the Lord.