ISAIAH 7: 10-14
PSALM 23: 1-6 R. v. 7.10
ROMANS 1: 1-7
MATTHEW 1: 18-24

---

A week ago, we witnessed the tragic horror of the massacre of so many people at Bondi Beach. And there are also so many conflicts and terrorist attacks in the Holy Land and around the world. There is a sense of helplessness in all this.

In the face of this, let us remember that the season of Advent and the coming season of Christmas are very much a time for praying for peace. How then do we find peace in the face of the many conflicts in our lives?

The starting point is found in our prayer, for we cannot achieve peace by ourselves but only through God. For Jesus came to bring us God’s peace, a peace the world cannot give. But prayer must be accompanied with trust in God.

Today’s readings give us a contrasting respond to God by two people. In the first reading, King Ahaz was asked by the prophet Isaiah to trust in God instead of making an alliance with his neighbouring countries to attack Egypt. Ahaz disobeyed and was destroyed by the evil in his heart.

Joseph in Matthew’s gospel today is an example of a person who was at peace within himself and with God and with those around him, simply because he was able to trust in God and to put others before him. He struggled with what Mary told him, yet he cared for her. He did not understand but he trusted in God’s command through the angel. Through his obedience he became a participant in God’s plan for the salvation of humankind.

It is so easy to point to the failings of world leaders in all that is wrong in the world but forget that we too have our own personal conflicts. We cannot demand for peace in the world if we ourselves are not people of peace. There is a hymn that goes: “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me.”

How often in our own personal conflicts do we see the other person as the obstacle to reconciliation and not ourselves. We can end up becoming impatient and frustrated and even bitter. Often it leads us to become judgmental and aggressive towards those we are in conflict with. Where we end up is not peace but further conflict.

Christmas is a time to seek God’s peace in our life. Real peace will be possible for us no matter what we face if we allow the love of God into our lives. The deeper our relationship with God grows, we become like His Son Jesus and we will find the peace within, no matter what conflict we face.

A person with the peace of Christ will know what is important in life and will never despair, even in the face of conflict. And a person with the peace of Christ
Will always seek to resolve and not confront where there is a conflict
Will be patient and not be aggressive
Will try to understand and not become judgmental.
Will bring mercy where there is sin,
Will bring hope where there is despair
And will bring love where there is hatred.

At Bondi beach we saw the evil of hatred take the lives of so many. Some unfortunately will see only hatred and revenge as the answer. They only become more victims of evil of the massacre at Bondi. They let the same evil of hatred of the two terrorists into their hearts to destroy them.

May the love of God from the cross be our answer to the evil of hatred in people.

ISAIAH 35: 1-6, 10
PSALM 145: 6-10 R. Is. 35:4
JAMES 5: 7-10
MATTHEW 11: 2-11

---

In the newspapers the other day it was reported that a research conducted recently found that for half of Australians, Christmas is actually the most stressful time of the year. The research found that the biggest stress triggers were financial pressures (67 per cent) as well as family expectations (57 per cent) and social obligations (48 per cent).

It is ironic that Jesus, God came and was born in a humble manger and today people go into extravagant expenses beyond their means to celebrate his birth.

Today, the third Sunday of Advent, we are invited in the liturgy to be joyful as we draw closer to Christmas. If people find it stressful rather than a joyful time, maybe they need to ask themselves what exactly is Christmas all about for them.

Yes, joy is found in the very message of Christmas not in what we choose to do. Joy comes from knowing that God has come amongst us and that Christ will come again.
God has kept His promise. God is faithful to us. And God in Christ will come again.
The joy that God speaks of is the hope we have that comes from faith.

Mary and Joseph are great examples for us. Mary knew whom she carried……the incarnate love of God. Though they had to go through hardships knowing whom she carried would have filled Joseph and her with a joy that no hardship could destroy.

Today we carry the Risen Christ, the Glory of God, in our hearts. The first reading from the Prophet Isaiah talks about the joy that this brings to the faithful. The second reading from the letter of James tells us that this is a time for waiting. Have patience, trust in God for God is faithful to His promise.

Advent is a time then to reflect on what does it mean to us to say that we are Christians, followers of Christ. Advent is a time to seek a deeper faith in God, that that faith in God may fill us with joy.

Often this joy can seem so elusive because we are caught up with the worldly things and not of the spiritual and heavenly things.

And a joyful faith is so contagious. In the Gospel, Jesus tells the disciples of John the Baptist to tell John what they hear and see. Through Jesus, lives are transformed, there is hope for a light has come into the darkness as prophesied by the prophet Isaiah in the first reading.

And so, let us reflect on how has our lives been transformed because of our faith in Christ? And how have we touched the lives of others because of our faith in God? In so doing we not only transform the lives of others but there is in ourselves a greater understanding of the gift of God to us.

The Christmas Story is more than the birth of Jesus at Bethlehem. It is also the birth of a new faith, a new relationship with God in Christ. When we focus our Christmas celebrations more on its true meaning our celebrations will be one of joy and not a stressful experience.

ISAIAH 11: 1-10
PSALM 71: 1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17 R. v. 1
ROMANS 15: 4- 9
MATTHEW 3: 1-12

---

This time and the Christmas season, besides being a busy time is always a time of joy. What makes it a joy filled time is that it is a time for the family to be together, to be planning things together. It is a time to spend time with close friends or to renew old friendship,

It is in this Spirit that many people are often willing to forgive one another. When this is difficult, something of the Spirit of the season is lost. This spirit of joy is a great reminder for us about what we are preparing to celebrate in the coming of the Lord Jesus. He came to bring reconciliation into our world, to heal relationships, between us and God and between ourselves.

The message of the first reading was given to a desperate people in exile. They wondered if God had abandoned them. It talks about the coming of the Messiah, and the two great gifts he would bring, two gifts that the world desperately needs, namely, justice and peace. Jesus, the Messiah would fulfill this expectation, bringing what the people were yearning for: justice, truth, order, peace and love for all peoples. It is about healing relationships.

In our second reading, Paul is stressing the message of the first reading to give us hope, comfort and courage so that we may give glory to God. In spite of all set-backs, confusion, frustration, etc., the Plan of God will be fulfilled. Paul talks about right relationships with each other.

John the Baptist proclaimed the coming of Jesus. His message is both an invitation and a promise: “Repent for the Kingdom of heaven is close at hand.” Jesus brings the Kingdom of God precisely because he brings healing and reconciliation. Therefore the starting point for those who are seeking God’s kingdom is repentance, that is, recognising our sins that destroy relationships, a desire for a change of heart, and turning towards God who brings healing and restoration.

When we speak of God’s kingdom then, we speak about right relationships, where there is justice, peace, harmony, and perfect joy. If we are to reflect on our own relationships, we find that all of us have relationships that are hurting and difficult. During this time of the year there is usually a greater effort by us to be forgiving of one another. Unfortunately more often than not, this does not last beyond Christmas day.

Reconciliation is difficult for most of us, especially when we feel hurt. Often, when we extend forgiveness, we qualify them. One reality though where there is no reconciliation and we retain that anger and hatred, it is we who suffer most. We become the victims of our own hatred.
God’s message to us is to turn to seek His love and mercy that we may begin the road to healing and reconciliation. This is the central message of the readings today, and indeed to the whole season of Advent as celebrated in the church.

We do this in a special way in our church through the sacrament of reconciliation. The sacrament of reconciliation helps us to experience the love and mercy of God that we may find healing to be forgiving as well. It is God’s concrete way of helping us to encounter his healing love.

The truth of the Christian Gospel is that we are all in need of God’s mercy. The Gospel’s message is to seek God’s mercy that we will be able to face God’s justice.

ISAIAH 2: 1-15
PSALM 121: 1-2, 4-9
ROMANS 13: 11-14
MATTHEW 24: 37-44

---

Today, as Advent marks our time of preparation for Christmas, when Christ came to be amongst us, it is also a time reminding us that this is also a time of waiting for Christ’s return. But it is not that Christ is far away. The Messiah has already come and today, he is with us.

What does Jesus mean by calling us to stay awake? The first two readings give us some answers. In the first reading, the Prophet Isaiah has a vision of the kingdom of the Messiah that we wait for. And when Jesus came, he proclaimed that the kingdom of God is close at hand; he fulfills that prophecy.

And so the kingdom we wait for is in some way being offered to us already. To stay awake is to be aware of how that is being offered to us today and to accept and live in it.
God is offering His kingdom to us today. It is when we are willing to accept the way of God, the way of the cross that the kingdom of God is already breaking through.

Our very support of the poor and suffering is a sign of our desire for God’s kingdom today. Our very desire to seek reconciliation and justice with each other is a sign of our desire for God’s kingdom today. Our very desire to seek God in prayer and worship is a sign of our desire for God’s kingdom today.

Why wait for something when we are not willing to recognize and live in the Kingdom of God today by being brothers and sisters loving and supporting each other always.

St Paul calls us to choose for the light: all that is good, seeking the good of others always.
Christmas generally helps us to become more giving and forgiving of others. The Advent message calls us to make everyday a Christmas.

A holy man once asked his disciples how can you tell that the night has passed? One said when you can see and distinguish the fig tree from a peach tree in the distance. Others gave many answers. Finally, the holy man said, “It is when you can look at the face of any human being and see there in the face of your brother or sister, Jesus himself, because if you cannot do this, then no matter what time it is, for you it is still the night.

To be awake is to trust in God in following the Way of Christ. And if we are awake we will know and be prepared for Christ’s return because we would have already journeyed with him in this life.

2 SAMUEL 5: 1-3
PSALM 121: 1-5
COLOSSIANS 1: 11-20
LUKE 23: 35-43

---

What does it mean for us that Jesus is King? What sort of King are we talking about: Is it a crucified King?

How we live out our faith depends on our image of who Jesus as King is for us. It affected the image that his disciples had before and after Jesus’ resurrection.

Today’s feast day of Christ the King reminds us that Christ has conquered sin and evil. He is our King, and we are called to follow him, to live in his kingdom. Jesus’ kingship is won at the moment of his death. It was the evil in people that killed him; yet evil could not control or defeat him because he did not himself give in to evil. Instead it was he who destroys all that is evil, sin and death.

In the first reading David received the royal anointing as shepherd-king. For the Israelites the role of the king was to represent God’s presence and power on earth because God was the King of his people. Thus the kingly function was a sacred one: to lead; to protect; to give hope; to save; and guide God’s people to live a true covenant people. There is a relationship between the ruler and the people – a pact. The pastoral image of the shepherd is used to describe this hope of mode of leadership.

Jesus, the Son of God achieves a dramatic and cosmic expression of this in his death on the cross.

The presentation of the crucifixion of Jesus is full of irony though. Jesus is mocked as a king and Saviour. The paradoxical reign of God is emerging through suffering and desolation. There are those that accept Jesus and those who reject him.

And so Jesus is a different kind of king.
Jesus did not come to conquer but to convert.
He did not come to rule but to serve.
He was not out to hoard possessions but to give them away.
He devoted all his love, time and energy in seeking out the sick, the poor, the lost, the sinner and the lonely.
At the end he even gave his life away for all of us.

Christ now invites us to a relationship with him where as our king his desire is to share in his loving relationship with God the Father.

Pope Pius XI instituted the feast of Christ the King in 1925. It was a time when all of Europe was still recovering from the tragedies of World War I. There were many who believed that there could be no more war, for it cost too much. Yet, there was something happening that did not look good for the future. The feast of Christ the King was a feast of prayers and readings in which people would hear the message of hope, justice, peace, community and love, instead of the marching bands and hate-filled speeches.

Today, there is much that is good and to look forward to. Yet, like 1925 there are real dangers that confronts the world. There is a need to return to Christ and to commit ourselves more and more to his love.

The kingdom that Jesus invites us to is not something we wait for but is available to us now. Often it is our material possessions, pride, hatred, selfishness that shuts us from that kingdom.

In the end all that matters is whether we accept Jesus as our Saviour and King. For Jesus can do nothing if we reject his love.

Life as a disciple of Jesus is not one of wealth and good health. It is one of the hope of loving relationships beginning with that with Christ, our King, our Saviour and God.

MALACHI 3: 19-20
PSALM 97: 5-9
2 THESSALONIANS 3: 7-12
LUKE 21: 5-19

---

As we come to the end of the church calendar, the readings have an apocalyptic dimension. There has always been a great interest in when the end time will come. We too today have our share of doomsday prophets. The problem with such prophets today is that the message they preach is one of fear that paralyses people. How often have we seen such attitude end in disaster?

This is far from the purpose of the apocalyptic writings in the Bible. The apocalyptic writing is not to make people fearful but to give them hope in time of great suffering and persecution.

Today’s Gospel foretells the destruction of the temple of Jerusalem and hardships to come. These things will happen but through it all, Jesus calls us to be his witnesses, a people of faith, hope and love……He will be with us. The main purpose of this Gospel was to strengthen their faith when it is tested.

St. Paul was writing to a people in Thessalonica who thought that Jesus’ Second Coming was very close at hand. Some Thessalonians felt that, as this was the case, it was no longer necessary to work. St Paul condemned their life of idleness.

In a true story, Dan Poling spoke of his last conversation to his son, Clark before his son reported back to the army transport ship that was to carry him to his death in WW 2. Clark Poling was one of the four chaplains on the Dorchester that was sunk in 1943. As their father-son chat came to a close, Clark said, “Dad, remember me as I return to my post of duty.”

Dan Poling replied, “Son, I’ll pray every day that God will bring you back home without a scratch.” Clark, the young chaplain said, “Dad, please don’t pray that way. I want you to pray that I will be adequate for any situation.”

When last seen by those who survived this terrible ordeal, Rev Clark Poling was standing on the deck of the sinking ship with three other chaplains, giving their life jackets to enlisted men. All four chaplains went down with the ship.

The Christian disciple does not worry about when the end time will be in the future but about how we are living our faith in the present time.

Our Christian duty is not to calculate when the end time is; our Christian duty is to be a people of hope.

EZEKIEL 47: 1-2, 8-9,12
PSALM 45: 2-3, 5-6, 8-9
1 CORINTHIANS 3: 9-11, 16-17
JOHN 2: 13-22

---

Why is this feast so important? The Lateran Basilica is the Cathedral Church of the diocese of Rome and was dedicated to Christ our Saviour in the 4th century. Because it is the Cathedral Church of Rome, it is called the mother and head of all churches of the city and of the world. For a thousand years, it was the seat of Church government until the Pope moved to the Vatican in the fourteenth century.

The Lateran Basilica is the symbol of our unity with Jesus through the Church with his chosen pastor the Pope.

The history of the Basilica in a way reflects the journey of faith of the Church. During that time the Basilica had suffered from earthquakes and been attacked by invaders, built up, vandalised and rebuilt.

In a way the story of the basilica, reminds us that the Church is just a symbol of something greater, the presence of the Risen Christ through the Holy Spirit. And it is because that Christ is ever present, as with the basilica, God never abandons us in times of trials and disaster but renews us always that those trials can become time of growth in faith. How often the Church had been blessed by saints who help renew the Church.

Pope St Leo the Great held the Church together when the barbarians invaded Europe in the 6th Century; St Catherine of Sienna worked tirelessly to reunite the Church at a time when it had two popes; St Francis and St Dominic began new orders that was so needed at that time; another new order the Jesuits began when the Church was in need of reforming, St Mary of the Cross MacKillop help the faith to grow here in Australia.
Today’s feast reminds us that Christ is ever present and always provides.

In our first reading, the vision of the prophet Ezekiel was received at a desperate time for the Jewish people. The temple of Jerusalem was the symbol of unity of the people of Israel. But in Ezekiel’s time, the temple was destroyed, and the people were in exile.
Ezekiel’s prophecy was a vision of hope in the restored temple of Jerusalem, which will once again become the focus of their faith.

The gospel speaks of Christ as the new temple who is the source of our faith and life.
No matter where we are, our faith in Christ brings us to his temple. Many a times when churches were closed by oppressive governments or where there were no churches, the faith of the people lived on.

This is reflected in Paul’s letter today where whilst he speaks of Jesus Christ as the foundation of the Church which is the Temple of God, he also states that the church is made up of people. As Church, the people of God, we are all called to continue to build the temple of God here on Earth. The temple of God is seen as something that is alive and not a static building.

And like the Lateran Basilica, Paul’s mission too had its ups and down, but his faith in Christ help him to persevere. And this reflection is so important for as the Gospel show, people can so easily be diverted from the mission of Christ.

Through the centuries the message of God was passed down, not by buildings but the people who transmit a life and tradition.

Today’s feast then also invites us to reflect on how are we building the temple of God, how are we as Church a sacrament of Christ in the world, how as Church are we life giving in the world. It is in our unity with Christ through his Church that the message of God is proclaimed.

One central aspect of unity is where we are able to support each other in faith. Like the story of the Church, there are many people of faith that Christ brings into our lives to help us. Each of us are called to be a St Francis, or a St Catherine to one another urging us on in faith.