GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to Matthew 3:1-12

John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea

and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”

It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said:

A voice of one crying out in the desert,

Prepare the way of the Lord,

make straight his paths.

John wore clothing made of camel’s hair

and had a leather belt around his waist.

His food was locusts and wild honey.

At that time Jerusalem, all Judea,

and the whole region around the Jordan

were going out to him

and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River

as they acknowledged their sins.

When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees

coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers!

Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?

Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.

And do not presume to say to yourselves,

‘We have Abraham as our father.’

For I tell you,

God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones.

Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees.

Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit

will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

I am baptizing you with water, for repentance,

but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I.

I am not worthy to carry his sandals.

He 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.”

The word of the Lord

 

The Diagnosis

John’s language is stern yet nourishing for my soul. In Advent, a sound diagnosis is necessary to stop doing what makes us ill. It is the preliminary step towards being healed, towards preparing ourselves for what is to come—or rather, for who is to come.

What deeds, thoughts, or omissions are preventing me from becoming one with my husband? Let us name what is happening within me. The time is now. There is nothing worse than becoming accustomed to sin, to falsehood, to hypocrisy. John calls us to the truth. He invites us into the desert, to discover the emptiness within me that I tend to anaesthetise with distractions and comforts…

If a baptism of fire is coming, how much of me will burn? How much of me is incompatible with our communion? What must I purify?

Applied to Married Life

The words with which she had answered her husband harshly the night before still echoed in her mind. Andrew had shared how hard his day had been, and she, almost without thinking, replied:

“Well, everyone has hard days; you’re not the only one.”

The following morning, kneeling before the Tabernacle, she asked herself in silence:

What is happening to me? Why do I always have a complaint, a judgement, or a correction for Andrew?

She felt within her the need to face the truth, yet at the same time something in her resisted. She did not want to.

“I’ve suffered enough with this,” she told herself, “it’s something I want to forget.”

But the more she tried to flee, the stronger that inner voice became, speaking with tenderness and firmness:

“Share that pain with your husband. I am in him and I want to heal you. Your husband is the steward of the gifts I long to give you. Allow yourself to be shaped. Rest in him, trusting in Me. I desire to pour out My Spirit upon you through the sacrament of marriage, to transform your lives with My Power and to heal your hearts with My Love. Do not be afraid.”

Leaving the church, her soul still trembling, she took her phone and wrote a message:

“Darling, today I need to talk with you. I love you.”

In her heart, still expanded, a new hope had been born.

She was not alone.

Mother,

Teach us to know ourselves through the mystery of Your Son. Blessed and praised forever be He, who redeemed us with His Blood.