The wait is almost over. Christmas is only 5 days away. Maybe your Advent has flown by, and you can't believe that Christmas is already just around the corner. You're asking yourself, where did Advent go? Or maybe Advent has been very fruitful for you this year.
Either way, today is a moment to recommit. The Church gives us this 4th Sunday of Advent as a last reminder that Christ is coming.
The first reading, from the book of Micah, reminds us that Christ is coming. "Bethlehem, too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel."
The Psalm says: "Rouse your power and come to save us." And then the gospel gives us the meeting of Elizabeth and Mary. The wait is almost over, and Elizabeth realizes it. She says: "How is it that the Mother of my Lord comes to me?"
There's a sense of anticipation, someone is coming. And he is The Prince of Peace.
There doesn't seem to be a lot of peace in the world. Terrorist attacks abound. We have shootings in our own country. Evil and injustice can appear overwhelming. Is peace possible? On our own, no it's not. The English philosopher Thomas Hobbes said that human life is nasty, brutish, and short. And if we look at life without Christ, Hobbes is right.
But in the first reading today, Micah tells us something more. The first reading ends with these powerful words: "He shall be peace." Who's he talking about? Jesus Christ. Isn't that interesting? It doesn't say that the Savior will bring peace, but that He is peace.
Why is He peace? Because peace means wholeness. If we are not OK with God, then we can't be at peace with ourselves or with others. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta used to say: "I'm not ok, and you're not ok, and that's why Jesus came."
But in Jesus, in the sacraments that make him present here today, we come to be at peace with God. In the sacrament of Reconciliation, our sins are forgiven and we're at peace with God. In the Eucharist, we receive the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ and we're united to God. And that experience brings an awareness of the great story into which all our individual stories fit. We start to see others with the eyes of Christ. So Christ himself is Peace
Grudge NotChris is our peace. How does he ask us to respond to this reality? Let's get practical here. St Gregory of Nyssa gives us some wonderful advice.
He is our peace, for he has made both one. Since we think of Christ as our peace, we may call ourselves true Christians only if our lives express Christ by our own peace. We must never allow grudges to be rekindled in us in any way… may we never risk the life of our souls by being resentful or by bearing grudges.
Am I bearing a grudge against someone? Ask God to free me from that. Am I resentful against God, against someone else, or about a particular situation in my life? Let that go.
And do you want to know the best way to do that? By giving thanks to God. St Paul has this to say in the letter to the Philippians: "With thanksgiving, present your petitions to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."
Do we want that peace? Do we want to let go of grudges and resentment that chain us down and don't allow us to experience the glorious freedom of the sons of God? Then give thanks to God. A grateful heart sets us free to experience the peace of Christ.
So instead of harboring grudges against someone, I could thank God for the good things about that person. I can release that grudge or that resentment to God.
And the perfect moment to do this is at the offertory in the Mass. The priest offers the bread and wine and says these words: "Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the bread we offer you… Through your goodness we have received the wine we offer you…"
And in that moment each one of us offers our own life to God. We offer him the good and the bad. As we do that, we experience more fully that Christ is our peace.