Second Sunday of Advent, Year A—2001

Homily

A fierce man with an uncompromising message, John the Baptist must have been formidable indeed. Just look at that little interplay with the Pharisees and Sadducees in the Gospel reading. Why did John condemn them so violently when, after all, they were coming for baptism?

We can answer this by simply saying that John could see they were not sincere. But if they were not sincere why should they ask for Baptism in the first place? We can only infer that John must have been so highly regarded by the population and his message of repentance had found broad acceptance. So much so that the Pharisees and Sadducees felt that they were socially obliged to seek Baptism. Otherwise, they would have looked as though they were spurning something that was so obviously of God.

This is something that finds a clear parallel today, so often we have questions about why people bring their children for baptism when they clearly have no intention of bringing the child up in the faith that they are baptised into. Our approach is not to go in for condemnations like John the Baptist, but to hope and pray that in due time these parents see the need to bring their children up to practice the faith they are baptised into. We always keep a welcoming door open.

To go back to John, we can see from this little incident with the Pharisees that John's message must have been heard by a great many people and found wide acceptance. It seems clear that most of those who approached John were conscious of the need for change and repentance in their lives. Notice that these two things are inseparable, repentance and change. It was the Pharisees reluctance to change that brought about John's indignation.

It seems that we have three distinct groups;

· those who had already given up and did not respond to John's call;

· those who heard him but whose hearts were hardened and were reluctant to change, just like the Pharisees;

· and the third group who came to John full of hope and with a real preparedness to change.

We must ask ourselves: to which group do we belong?

Change is central to the Christian life. Yet in our world committed Christians are often considered to be conservative and reactionary, implying a resistance to change. This seems a bit of a paradox, but I think that it is something we should examine carefully. In order to have a correct understanding it is necessary to draw some distinctions.

The one thing that Christians are really conservative about is the teaching of Christ. We accept the message Christ presents to us through the Gospels and we accept the authentic developments of the early Church, which we regard as specially guided by the Holy Spirit because it was under the leadership of those personally given the task by Christ himself and experience the Holy Spirit in a special way at Pentecost.

This is why Papal pronouncements are often regarded as conservative. No Pope or Bishop is prepared to deviate materially from the teachings of Christ as handed down to us through tradition. And if we are to look at things from this point of view, purely on the content of the teachings of Christ, then Christians are resistant to change and are therefore in this one particular area very conservative indeed.

However this is only one narrowly defined aspect of the question. If we now look at the content of Jesus' message we find that it is entirely about change. It demands change in the person and in society. What Jesus calls us to is conversion and he invites us to become a new person in him. We are called to leave off the things of this world and to model our lives according to the values of the Kingdom.

This is not easy to do, it involves us leaving behind all our natural inclinations to self-interest, it involves us turning the other cheek, it involves us in going out to those in need.

Our Lord himself is the one on whom we chose to model our lives. And the life that he lived was one of self sacrifice, but it was also a life which was lived with such a degree of personal integrity that his very presence could inspire those around him to do good.

The French think that they discovered revolution, the Marxists think that they are today's revolutionaries. History has proved them both wrong. One of today's real revolutionaries is the Christian. Why? Because he is prepared to change himself.

And by changing himself he changes the world. And it is in this way that the world becomes transformed, gradually changed from a world which serves purely human interests to a world which reflects the love of God and gives glory to him who is the creator and Lord of all.

Advent is one of those times in the year, along with Lent, when we especially think of this personal change we have been talking about. It is a time when we make special use of the sacrament of reconciliation. Lots of people have difficulties with this sacrament, but it is a sacrament that has undergone a good deal of renewal and transformation, change I believe which has made it much more user-friendly.

It is a sacrament which an increasing number of people are finding much more relevant in their lives. Maybe they don't use it the old way, every other Saturday, a quick in and out—but when they use it they find it of real value.

My experience is that especially during Lent and Advent people take a little time out and look seriously at their lives and in that special encounter with Christ through the priest in the sacrament they express their need for forgiveness and healing.

I also know from my own personal experience as a priest working for a number of years in secondary schools that not a few young people are finding the sacrament of reconciliation something quite relevant in their lives. Certainly not on a weekly basis, but perhaps once or twice a year. This is a development which is certainly to be encouraged, and praised.

I cannot urge you strongly enough to make use of the sacrament of reconciliation yourself this Advent. Take the message of John seriously and Repent, for the kingdom of God is close at hand. And I say, perhaps a little more gently than John: Come to the Lord in reconciliation, experience his love and healing in your life, it is the greatest gift that you will receive this Christmas.

We will of course be holding a special service of reconciliation for Advent, it will take place on Monday 17th December at 7.30 here in the Church. I hope that as many people will come as possible and so prepare for the celebration of Christmas in a truly spiritual way.