HOMILY FOR THE 2ND SUNDAY OF ADVENT YEAR A.

HOMILY FOR THE 2ND SUNDAY OF ADVENT YEAR A.

Last Sunday, we began Advent with the call to preparation and vigilance. In this 2nd Sunday of Advent Year A, we are called to repentance and conversion as the Church reminds us of the preaching and figure of St. John the Baptist in today’s Gospel.

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!…‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.’”

Mt 3:1.3.

Advent is a season in which God offers us the opportunity to revise our life and conduct and make the necessary amendments in order to prepare ourselves for Our Lord’s coming.

1. The 1st reading and Responsorial Psalm describe to us the Messianic prophecy and the divine promise of a life transformed to that of everlasting justice, peace and harmony brought about by the definitive coming of Our Savior.

“The baby shall play by the cobra’s den, and the child lay his hand on the adder’s lair. There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord, as water covers the sea.“

“Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.…
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
and the lives of the poor he shall save.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.

Cfr. Mt 3:1-12 and Psalm 71

2. However, God does not wish to impose himself on us. He wants us to freely accept His Son and gives us the time and capability to discern and choose our path here on earth whether to live for God or not, and also the responsibility for the consequences of our choices. He had already sent his prophets to redirect humanity towards the true path that leads to salvation. Finally He sends us John the Baptist described by the prophet Isaiah as the “voice…crying out in the desert” proclaiming repentance and conversion before sending us His Only-Begotten Son, Our Saviour and Messiah, Lord Jesus Christ, who will “baptize you with the holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

Dear brethren in Christ, God’s mercy and love patiently awaits our repentance and conversion. What use would it be to commemorate Our Lord’s Birth if His life is not reborn in us? What good would celebrating Christmas do to God and to us if we do not welcome Jesus in our heart and follow Him? What point would all the merry-making have, if at the end, out of our pride, laziness and love of comfort, we reject Christ and eternally suffer in the life and world to come?

In this 2nd Sunday of Advent Year A, let us then “prepare the way of the Lord” and “make straight his path” through deeds of conversion done out of love for God. May we shun evil and sin and choose and do what is good, what pleases God most in the little things of each day. May we carry out good deeds of prayer, frequent reception of the Sacraments, daily struggle to live the virtues, especially those which make life pleasant for others.

Almighty and merciful God, may no earthly undertaking hinder those who set out in haste to meet your Son, but may our learning of heavenly wisdom gain us admittance to his company. Who lives and reigns with you. (Collect prayer, 2nd Sunday of Advent)

A Blessed Sunday and week ahead to you and your family!
Fr. Rolly Arjonillo

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