PREPARING FOR THE SON’S COMING - First Sunday of Advent (Cycle C)

Homily for the First Sunday of Advent Cycle C

 Based on Lk 21:25-28,34-36 (Gospel), Jr 33:14-16 (First Reading) and 1 Th 3:12-4:2 (Second Reading)

From the Series: “Reflections and Teachings of the Desert”

PREPARING FOR THE SON’S COMING

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The Gospel reading for this 1^st Sunday of Advent is taken from Lk 21:25-28,34-36.

Verse 25 says: There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars; on earth nations in agony, bewildered by the clamor of the ocean and its waves;

Parallel texts are:

1.       Mt 24:29-30 - Immediately after the distress of those days^m the sun will be darkened, the moon will lose its brightness, the stars will fall from the sky and the powers of heaven will be shakenⁿ (v. 29). And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven;^o then too all the peoples of the earth will beat their breasts; and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.^p (v. 30). Footnote ^m  says “Join with v. 25; vv. 26-28 are a digression”; Footnote ⁿ says “Cf. Jr 4:23-26; Ezk 32:7f; Am 8:9; Mi 1:3-4; Jl 2:10; 3:4; 4:15 and especially Is 13:9-10; 34:4; the text repeats the phrases of the last two references. The ‘powers of heaven’ are the stars and all the other celestial forces”; Footnote ^o says “For the Fathers this ‘sign’ was Christ’s cross but possibly it is Christ himself proving by the triumph of his kingdom on earth that he has truly risen and is in glory”; and Footnote ^p  says “In these words Daniel foretold the establishment of the messianic kingdom by a Son of Man coming on the clouds. The cloud is the usual accompaniment of both OT and NT theophanies: Ex. 13:22+; 19:16+; 34:5+; Lv 16:2; 1 K 8:10-11; Ps 18:11; 97:2; 104:3; Is 19:1; Jr. 4:13Ezk 1:4; 10:3f; 2 M 2:8. For NT, cf. Mt 17:5; Ac 1:9,11; 1 Th 4:17; Rv 1:7; 14:14.”

2.       Mk 13:24-26 - “But in those days after that time of distress, the sun will be darkened, the moon will lose its brightness, the stars will come falling from heaven and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory;

Verses 26 and 27 say: men dying of fear as they await what menaces the world, for the powers of heaven will be shaken and then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 

Parallel texts for verse 27 are:

1.       Dn 7:13-14 - ‘I gazed into the vision of the night. And I saw, coming on the clouds of heaven, one like a son of man.^k He came to the one of great age and was led into his presence (v. 13). On him was conferred sovereignty, glory and kingship, and men of all peoples, nations and languages became his servants (v. 14). Footnote ^k says “Like the Hebrew ben adam, the Aram. Bar nasha used here, has the primary eaning ‘man’, cf. Ps 8:4. In Ezk. God addresses the prophet thus. But here in Dn the expression signifies a man who is mysteriously more than human. That it indicates an individual is attested by early Jewish apocryphal writings (Enoch, 2 Esd) inspired by this passage, as also by rabbinical tradition from the 2^nd to the 9^th centuries, and most particularly by Jesus, who applies it to himself, cf. Mt 8:20+. That it has a collective sense also is deduced from v. 18 (and v. 22) where the ‘son of man’ and the saints of the Most High’ seem more or less identified. But the collective (and equally messianic sense is an extension of the individual sense; the ‘son of man’ being leader, representative and exemplar of the saints of the Most High. It was with this in mind that St. Ephraim believed that the prophecy applied first to the Jews (the Maccabees), but beyond this, and perfectly, to Jesus.”

2.       Heb 10:17 - Only a little while now, a very little while, and the one that is coming will have come: he will not delay.

Verses 28 and 34 say: When these things begin to take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation^f is near at hand.’ Watch yourselves, or your hearts will be coarsened with debauchery and drunkenness and the cares of life, and that day will be sprung on you suddenly, Footnote ^f says “Or ‘redemption’, a Pauline term, cf. Rm 3:24+.”

Parallel texts for verse 34 are:

1.       Lk 17:26-30 - As it was in Noah’s day, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man (v.26).^g People were eating and drinking, marrying wives and husbands, right up to the day Noah went into the ark, and the Flood came and destroyed them all (v. 27). It will be the same as it was in Lot’s day: people were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building (v. 28), but the day Lot left Sodom, God rained fire and brimstone from heaven and it destroyed them all (v. 29). It will be the same when the day comes for the Son of Man to be revealed (v. 30). Footnote ^g  says “i.e. at the time of his coming.”

2.       1 Th 5:3 - It is when people are saying, ‘How quiet and peaceful it is’ that the worst suddenly happens, as suddenly as labour pains come on a pregnant woman; and there will be no way for anybody to evade it.

Verses 35 and 36 say: like a trap. For it will come downh on every living man on the face of the earth. Stay awake, praying at all times for the strength to survive all that is going to happen, and to stand with confidenceⁱ before the Son of Man.’  Footnote  ^h  says “Var. ‘for it will come down on you like a snare’.”; and Footnote ⁱ  says “Lit. ‘and to stand erect.’”

Parallel text for verse 37 is Rv 6:17 that says: For the Great Day of his anger^l has come, and who can survive it?  Footnote ^l says “Var. ‘their anger’.”

The First Reading is from Jr 33:14-16. The title is The institution  of the future^j Footnote ^j  says “The passage, which is not authentic, describes the administration of the messianic community as in Zc 4:1-4; 6:13. In the messianic age the function of king and priest will be closely associated.”

Verses 14, 15 and 16 say:   See, the days are coming-it is Yahweh who speaks-when I am going to fulfill the promise I made to the House of Israel and the House of Judah: In those days and at that time, I will make a virtuous branch grow for David, who will practice honesty and integrity in the land In those days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell in confidence. And this is the name^k he will be called: Yahweh-our-integrity.^l Footnote  ^k  says “‘the name’ Theod. Vulg: omitted from Hebr.”; Footnote ^l  says “Vv. 15-16 are a repetition of 23:5-6, but the name ‘Yahweh-our-integrity’ is applied to Jerusalem, see Ezk 48:35, and cf. Is 1:26+.”

Parallel texts for verse 15 are:

1.       Jr23:5-6  - ‘See, the days are coming- it is Yahweh who speaks- when I will raise a virtuous Branch^a for David, who will reign as true king and be wise, practicing honesty and integrity in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel dwell in confidence. And this is the name he will be called: Yahweh-our-integrity.^b Footnote ^a says “‘Branch’ was to become a messianic title, Zc 3:8; 6:12.”; Footnote ^b says “This symbolic name, cf. Is 1:26+, by which the Messiah is to be called, is contrasted with the name of Zechariah which means ‘Yahweh my integrity’.”

2.       Ps 132:17 - ‘Here, I will make a horn sprout for David, here, I will trim a lamp^f for my anointed… Footnote ^f says “Cf 1 K 11:36; 15:4; 2 K 8:19; 2 Ch 21:7. On the extinguished lamp, cf. Jr 25:10; Jb 18:5. The Messiah will be the light of the nations, Is. 42:6; Is 49:6; Lk 2:32.”

3.       Is 4:2 - That day, the branch of Yahweh shall be beauty and glory, and the fruit of the earth^c shall be the pride and adornment of Israel’s survivors. Footnote ^c says “The ‘branch’ and the ‘fruit of the earth’ mean either the Messiah or else the remnant of Israel  (see following note) compared to the tree springing again in Palestinian soil.”

The Second Reading is from 1 Th 3:12-4:2.

Verse 12 says: May the Lord be generous in increasing your love and make you love one another and the whole human race^d as much as we love you. Footnote ^d  says “Brotherly love of one another in the Christian community is only the beginning of charity; it has to spread to love for the whole human race.”

Parallel texts are:

1.       1 Th 5:15 - Make sure that people do not try to take revenge; you must all think of what is best for each other and for the community.

2.       Rm 12:17 - Never repay evil with evil but let everyone see that you are interested only in the highest ideals.

3.       Ga 6:10 - While we have the chance,^b we must do good^c to all^d and especially to our brothers in the faith. Footnote ^b says “Possibly alluding to the time that still remains before the parousia, cf. 2 Co 6:2+.”; Footnote ^c says “‘we must do good’; var. ‘we do good’.; and Footnote ^d says “The good act of a Christian is done out of love, and so is concerned with others, 5:14: in this way he gives witness in public, cf. Rm 12:17-18, and as he is specially noticed by Christians. Rm 14:15, he helps to ‘build up’ the Church, Rm 14:18-19.”

4.       2 Th 1:3 - We feel we must be continually thanking God for you, brothers; quite rightly, because your faith is growing so wonderfully and the love that you have for one another never stops increasing…

5.       Tt 3:2 - …not to go slandering other people or picking quarrels, but to be courteous and always polite to all kinds of people.

Verse 13 says: And may he so confirm your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless in the sight of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus Christ comes with all his saints.^e Footnote ^e  says “Add. “Amen’. Holiness, 4:3+, begins with brotherly love but will not be perfect till the parousia. In this context ‘saints’ can refer to the chosen, the saved or the angels, Ac 9:13+.”

Parallel texts are:

1.       1 Th 5:13 - May the God of peace make you perfect and holy; and may you all be kept safe and blameless, spirit, soul and body,^e for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Footnote ^e says “Paul seem to have developed no coherent system of anthropology: this is the only place he mentions a tripartite division of body (cf. Rm 7:24+), soul (cf. 1 Co 15:44+) and spirit (which can be taken in two ways: as the divine presence in a human being, giving him new life in union with Christ, Rm 5:5+, or more probably as the innermost depths of te human being open and awake to the Spirit, cf. Rm 1:9+).”

2.       Zc 14:5 - And the Vale of Hinnom will be filled up from Goah to Jasol;^c it will be blocked as it wase^d by the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Yahweh your God will come, and all the holy ones with him.^e Footnote ^c says “Text corr.”; Footnote ^d says ‘It will be blocked as it was’ Greek; ‘you will flee as you fled’ Hebr.; and Footnote ^e says ‘your (thy) God’ corr; ‘my God’ Hebr. ‘with him’ Greek; ‘with thee’ Hebr.”

3.       1 Co 1:8 - And he will keep you steady and without blame^d until the last day, the day^e of our Lord Jesus Christ. Footnote ^d  says “Cf. Ph 1:10; 2:15f; Ep 1:4; Col 1:22; 1 Th 3:13; 5:23; Jude 24.”; Footnote ^e  says “This ‘day of the Lord’, 5:5; 2 Co 1:14, 1 Th 5:2; 2 Th 2:2; cf. 2 P. 3:10, called also the ‘day of Christ’, Ph 1:6,10; 2:16, or simply the ‘day’, 2 Th 1:10; 2 Tm 1:12, 18; 4:8; cf. Mt 7:22; 24:36; Lk 10:12; 21:14, or ‘the day of the Son of Man’, Lk 17:24, cf. v. 26, or ‘the day of God’, 2 P 3:12, or ‘the day of visitation’, 1 P 2:12, or ‘the great day’, Jude 6; Rv 6:17; 16:14, or ‘the last day’, Jn 6:39,40,44,54; 11:24; 12:48, is the fulfillment in the eschatological era, ushered in by Christ, of the ‘day of Yahweh’ foretold by the prophets, Am 5:18+. The fulfillment begins with the first coming of Christ, Lk 17:20-24, and the punishment of Jerusalem, Mt 24:1+; and this final stage in the history of salvation, cf. Ac 1:7+, will be completed by the glorious second coming, 1 Co. 1:7+; 15:23+; 1 Tm 6:14+, of the Sovereign Judge, Rm 2:6+; Jm 5:6-9. A cosmic upheaval and renewal will accompany it (cf. Am 8:9+), Mt 24:29p+; Heb 12:26f; 2 P 3:10-13; Rv 20:11; 21:1; cf. Mt 19:20; Rm 8:20-22. This day of light is coming, Rm 13:12; Heb 10:25; Jm 5:8; 1 P 4:7; cf. 1 Th 5:5,8, but exactly when is uncertain, 1 Th 5:1+, meanwhile we must prepare for it. 2 Co. 5:2+.”

4.       1 Co 15:23 - But all of them in their proper order: Christ as the first fruits and then, after the coming^f of Christ, those who belong to him. Footnote ^f says “Parousia (presence), a Greek word adopted by early Christians to indicate the glorious coming of Christ on his ‘day’, 1 Co 1:8+, at the end of time, Mt 24:3+; cf. also 1 Th 2:19; 3:13; 4:15; 5:32; 2 Th 2:1; Jm 5:7,8; 2 P 1:16; 3:4,12; 1 Jn 2:28. In 2 Th 2:8,9 the same word is used to indicate the coming of the Lawless One. Cf. the similar terms ‘revelation’. 1 Co 1:7+, and ‘appearing’, 1 Tm 6:14+.”

Chapter 4, verses 1 and 2 say: Finally, brothers, we urge you and appeal to you in the Lord Jesus^a to make more and more progress in the kind of life that you are meant to live: the life that God wants, as you learnt from us, and as you are already living it.^b You have not forgotten the instruction we gave you on the authority of the Lord Jesus. Footnote ^a says “Paul speaks ‘in’ (v. 1) ‘by’ or ‘in the name of Christ, cf 4:15; 2 Th 3:6,12. His doctrine on moral behavior which is based on the earliest Christian teaching invests ordinary day-to-day life with a new depth: it has the seal of Christ on it, Col 3:18+.”; and Footnote ^b  says “Om. ‘and as you are already living it’.“

Parallel texts are:

1.       2 Th 3:6 - In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we urge you, brothers, to keep away from any of the brothers who refuses to work or to live according to the tradition we passed on to you.

2.       1 Th 2:13 - Another reason why we constantly  thank God for you is that as soon as you heard the message you accepted it for what it really is, God’s message^d and not some human thinking; and it is still^e a living power among you who believe it.  Footnote ^d  says “A brief summary of the apostolic tradition: message is first ‘received’, 4:1; 2 Th 3:6; 1 Co 15:1; Ga 1:9; Ph 4:9; Col. 2:6; or ‘heard’, Rm 10:17+; Ep 1:13; Ac 15:7, etc. It then penetrates the mind or heart, Rm 10:8-10, where, if it is welcomed,, 1:6; 2 Th 2:10; 2 Co 11:4; Ac 8:16, etc. Mk 4:20, it proves that the hearer acknowledges that God has been speaking through his missionary, 4:1f; 2 Co 3:5; 15:3.”; and Footnote ^e  says “Or ‘has become’; God acts through his message that has been welcomed by the believer, cf. 1:8, 2 Th 3:1.”

3.       Rm 12:1-2 - Thinks of God’s mercy, my brothers, and worship him, I beg you, in a way that is worthy of thinking beings,^a by offering your living bodies as a holy sacrifice, truly pleasing to God (v. 1). Do not model yourselves on the behavior of te world around you, but let your behavior change, modeled by your new mind. This is the only way to discover the will of God and know what is good, what it is that God wants, what is the perfect thing to do (v. 2).  Footnote ^a says “Or ‘in a spiritual way’, as opposed to the ritual sacrifices of Jews or pagans, cf. Ho 6:6. Cf. Rm 1:9.”

4.       1 Co 11:2 - You have done well in remembering me so constantly and in maintaining the traditions^a  just as I passed them on to you. Footnote ^a says “i.e. the teachings of Christ and the apostles.”