Third Sunday in Advent [B]

Readings
Isaiah 61:1-2a, 10-11
1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
John 1:6-8, 19-28

Calendar
December 12: Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patron of the Americas
December 18: International Migrants Day (See: http://www.coc.org/calendar/display.html?Date=2005-12-18)

Quotes
Animated by the charity of Christ, a human person finds it impossible not to love his fellow human beings. He makes his own their needs, their sufferings and their joys. There is a sureness of touch in all his activity in every field. It is energetic, generous and considerate. For "charity is
patient, is kind; charity envies not, deals not perversely, is not puffed up, is not ambitious, seeks not her own, is not provoked to anger, thinks no evil; rejoices not in iniquity, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."
Pope John XXIII, Mater and Magistra

. . . the church is not perfect. Its early bishop James had to remind the people: . . . it was those who are poor according to the world that the Lord chose, to be rich in faith and to be heirs to all that was promised to those who love God. . . . Yet the church continues, despite its sins, working for the poor, insisting on practical love, and not just prayers and good intentions.
Catholic Bishops of Appalachia, This Land is Home to Me: A Pastoral Letter on Poverty and Powerlessness, Feb. 1, 1975

The millions of people whose very lives are at risk because they lack the minimum basic food call for the attention of the International Community, because it is the common duty of us all to care for our brothers and sisters. Indeed, famine is not entirely due to geographical and climatic situations or to the unfavorable circumstances linked to harvests. It is also caused by human beings themselves and by their selfishness, which is expressed by gaps in social organization, by rigidity in economic structures all too often oriented solely to profit, and even by practices against human life and ideological systems that reduce the person, deprived of his fundamental dignity, to being a mere instrument. True world development, organized and integral, which everyone hopes for, requires on the contrary an objective knowledge of human situations, the identification of the real causes of poverty and practical responses whose priority is the appropriate formation of each person and community. Thus, the authentic freedom and responsibility that are proper to human action will be put into practice.
Pope Benedict XVI, October 12, 2005

Thoughts for Your Consideration
Today's reading from Isaiah is a clear proclamation about justice. (It is used in Luke, chapter 4, to define the nature of Jesus' ministry.) It reminds us that justice is essential to the spirit of God.

God wants the poor to hear glad tidings.
God wants the broken to be healed.
God wants to free those in captivity.
God wants a year of jubilee í¢â‚¬" a year of God's favor toward the poor.

The gospel makes clear that John is speaking in the spirit of Isaiah. The preaching and spirit of Isaiah is a spirit that is concerned with justice. Our coming celebration of the birth of Christ makes no sense if we do not connect it with challenge of the great prophets, if we do not proclaim justice and peace, if we do not connect with those who are poor or in need in our world. Christmas makes no sense if it does not involve "glad tidings to the poor . . . liberty to the captives . . . release to the captives."

Questions for Reflection in your Faith Sharing Group
Who are the captives of our age?
Who are the people who need to experience liberation?

Actions í¢â‚¬" Links
"JustFaith is an extended justice education/formation program that provides an opportunity for parishioners to study and be formed by the justice tradition articulated by the Scriptures, the Church's historical witness, and Catholic social teaching. . . . JustFaith works in partnership with the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, Catholic Charities USA, and Catholic Relief Services." Go to: http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/justfaith/

The American Friends Service Committee is working on canceling the excessive debt of poor nations in Africa. For more info go to: http://www.afsc.org/africa-debt/default.htm

The website reads: "Join the American Friends Service Committee's Life Over Debt Campaign with people all over the world who call for 100% debt cancellation for ALL African nations, without harmful conditions. Help ensure that Africans are able to use their own resources for their own development. - Archbishop Desmond Tutu"

Prayer - Meditation
A collection of Prayers for Peace and Justice can be found at the web site of the Reformed Church of America. Go to: http://www.rca.org/worship/litanies/peace.php. For example:

God our Father,
in the name of him
who gave bread to the hungry,
we remember all
who through our human ignorance,
folly, and sin
are condemned to live in want.
Show us, who have so much,
what we can do
to help those who have so little;
and bless the efforts of those
who work to overcome poverty and hunger,
that sufficient food may be found for all;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
From the Book of Common Order of the Church of Scotland, St. Andrew Press