Homily

Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Advent Year B
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In the fourth Sunday of Advent Year B, the Church invites us to reflect on the faithfulness and nature of God. All the readings for this Sunday point to the fact that God does not want anything material from the Christians. He simply wishes that they love Him, and He will henceforth give them everything they desire. In the first reading, David is moved by the fact that God has subdued all his enemies and given him a magnificent house to live in. He, therefore, wishes to build a similar house for God. From reading the history of Israel, we know that it is Solomon, the son of David who eventually builds the temple for the Lord. Interestingly, the Lord does not tell David that he should not build the temple for him. He only asks, “Are you the one to build a house for me.” In the exegesis that follows, the Lord does not admonish David for the desire to build a house but rather invites him to think about the nature of His companionship to the people of Israel. After conquering all the enemies, David reduces God to an image that can be pleased by houses of cedar and great wealth. However, this is not the nature of God. Instead, God wishes solely to be loved and to reside in the hearts of men. The readings for this Sunday present a God who loves humility and simplicity. In fact, this passage is often used alternately with The Magnificat. The Magnificat, which is a Mary Songs of Thanksgiving exalts the lowly and promises them the kingdom of God to them.

Mary exalts the Lord for his goodness for he has provided for the poor and sent away the rich empty-handed. Mary, a simple handmaid from Nazareth, is chosen in her humility to bear the biggest gift in the entire history. In carrying the messiah, nothing is required of her apart from a “Yes.” Massimo Camisasca puts this correctly when he points out that “The Pedagogue is someone who demands payment for giving something he has learned, the father on the contrast a father requires no pay. The father is received, acknowledged and love” God wants us to recognize him as a father who loves us unconditionally.
These readings call us to the fact that the Lord wants nothing more from us apart from affection for Him that generates the same answer as that of Mary, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to your will.” Saying ‘Yes’ means putting Christ at the center of everything. It means that everything is done with the memory of Him. Christ is calling each of us to say ‘Yes’ to every circumstance that is presented to them. The Bible says that ‘Everything that happens occurs for the good of those that God loves.” It is possible for Christians to think about Gods call as something that is reserved for Priests and the religious. However, today’s reading calls on every Christian to think about Gods Call as something personal. The Gospel is particularly useful in reflecting about Gods call. When the angel Gabriel comes to Mary, she has no prior experience of the task that awaits her. However, Mary had lived her entire life awaiting the Call of the Lord. For this reason, when the angel of the Lord declares the great news, she immediately recognizes the call and abandons herself to His will. Mary lived her entire life in the temple praying. Although we do not have to live the whole life in the temple since we have been called to various vocations that demand our attention at work and in families, we can understand something from the life of the Holy Virgin. A life of prayer helps the Christian to anticipate God and thus discern and answer to his call.
There are many pointers in the Bible that help us learn about the nature of Gods call and what is required in a Christian answer. To understand this point, we can look further into the call of Moses and the institution of Peter as the head of the church. Moses was a simple shepherd in the desert. When the Lord calls him, he gives him a simple rod to herd His flock. Moses does not complain but entrusts himself to the will of God. Later, when Christ’s gives Peter the task of heading the Church, he only asks for one thing, “Simon Peter, son of Jonah, Do you love me.’ We can all imagine the terror that ceases Peter when Christ asks this question. His denial was still fresh in his mind, and he could have thought that Jesus would not believe his affection for Him after the denial. However, Peter understands that His love for Christ is greater than His misgivings. In the same way, Mary realizes that her affection for God is more important that her capability to raise the baby. This way, we are called to recognize that living our daily lives only requires that we love God, say yes to Him and abandon us to his will.
The problem with David’s proposal to build the temple does not arise from the temple itself. God does not resent the idea of a magnificent dwelling for the temple. The problem with David was that he had eliminated God from the center of everything. For Him, the wealth and power accumulated through the defeat of enemies were capable of buying everything. It was even capable of restricting God. God wants to remind Him that his Omnipresent and Omnipotent. It may seem paradoxical that God wishes to demonstrate his power through humility. Pope Francis reminds us that Gods Mercy and Love is a sign of his omnipotence rather than weakness.
With the emphasis on humility and expectant waiting, these readings also prepare us for the awaiting of the Messiah. Advent is a period of preparation, waiting expectantly for the child Jesus to enter into our lives. In the first reading, the Messianic message proclaimed for the first time. After recalling David to his first love, God assures him that He will make his rule great. He will raise from Him and everlasting Dynasty. The book of Romans alludes to this reading to ascertain that through Christ, prophecies that had been made have come true. God is a faithful God, and every promise he has made to His people must be fulfilled. This prophecy has been fulfilled in the gospel through the announcement made to Mary.
Therefore, recounting the earlier Call, these reading teach us how to wait for the birth of Christ. Every Christian should armor themselves with humility and prayer. This is the only way that they will be able to understand what God demands of us this season. Modern Christmas celebrations are in many cases characterized by lavish spending and jubilant parties. It is time to reflect on what God wants from us. God wants us to bring Him to the rest of the world. God admonishes David who wants to build Him a house of Cedar where he will be restricted. He reminds David that He prefers to be in the tent where he can be moved from place to place to be close to His people. When the Ark of the Covenant was housed in the tent, it could be simply moved from its location to those who needed the presence and guidance of God and were not able to come to Jerusalem. Additionally, if the Israelites had to move, they would go with it as a memory of the omnipresent God who always accompanied them.
Here lies a very compelling call to every Christian. One must ask themselves whether the wealth that is availed to them prevents them from being the visible sign of God here on earth. Every Christian must contemplate on ways in which their presence may hinder belief in God. In most cases, Christians are associated with judgmental and condemning characteristics rather than mercy. This creates more rifts in those around us. In the just concluded year of mercy, the Pope continually called on every Christian to be the source of Christ affection for the world. Just like the Ark in the tent that could be moved around to whoever needed it, we are called to abandon the comfort zone to take Christ to those who need Him. This is a time to participate in gestures of charity to every one believer or not. Even without going out to hospitals, prisons, and the streets to touch strangers with the face of mercy, this gesture is first of all needed in our homes and workplaces.
The primary crisis of the modern family arises from injured families where the neither the husband can look at the wife nor the wife capable of looking at the spouse. The result is a hostile environment where children grow up without any experience of affection. The youth of today are thus disoriented and does not desire anything as it is impossible to desire that which we do not know that it exists. The same dilemma is perpetuated at work where every employee perceives that authority is always against him and therefore works with the perpetual fear of tomorrow. In this reality that we live every day, we are called to be the arks of the covenant in the tent. We must take Christ to our families and our colleagues. How can this be possible? In his encyclical, ‘Lumen Fidei,’ the pope says that “Precisely because it is linked to love, the light of faith is placed in the service of another.” He continues to remind us that “faith is a truly good for everyone […] it does not only brighten the church interiors […] but our societies.”
God becomes visible when everything is perceived as a sign. To be able to take Christ to everyone around us, our view of reality must be converted. We need to realize that we are incapable of giving ourselves anything. Everything is given to us. In fact, to fully accept the Call that God calls me today; I must recognize that I do not make myself. If therefore someone else is making me and making the other person near me, it will be clear that reality is a gift. A husband who realizes this will understand that the wife is a gift from God. Saying Yes to God, therefore, means embracing the wife with all her limitations as an act of obedience to Him. Just as Mary says ‘Yes, I am the handmaid of the Lord,’ so must he say and entrust in God to enable him to face the daily circumstance. The same will happen with a wife who understands answering the Call of God with a complete “Yes!” If we perceive everything a sign through which Christ wants us to recognize Him, we can face each other with a tenderness that can penetrate the heart of every individual. We are therefore able to overcome human justice that demands an eye for an eye and become merciful like the father. This way, we can bring Christ to the people and become the visible signs of His present companionship. Pope Francis once again helps us understand the nature of God by saying that, “Throughout the history of humanity, God remains to be the one who is present, close, provident, Holy and Merciful.”
Let us, therefore, ask Christ to help understand how we can await him day and night. Let us pray sincerely for guidance in accompanying our brother and sisters who do not believe or encounter doubt about the present companionship of God in their daily lives. Let us pray always to be the visible sign of His Love. Above all, we pray to recognize that our essence flows directly from Him, and therefore we are one with Him and belong to Him. Come Holy Spirit!

Bibliography
Camisasca, Massimo. The Challenge Of Fatherhood. 1st ed. [Rome?]: Fraternity of St. Charles, 2010.
Francis, Pope. Encyclical Letter Lumen Fidei. 1st ed. Vatican: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2013.
Francis, Pope. Misericordiae Vultus. 1st ed. Strathfield, New South Wales: St Pauls Publications, 2015.
Giussani, Luigi. Is It Possible To Live This Way?: Charity. 1st ed. Montréal [Que.]: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2009.