Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in one this last week of Advent season before Christmas is to come, we are all being brought ever closer to the time of our celebration and joy, we are reminded that as Christians, all of us celebrate Christmas because of Christ, our Lord and not because we want to seek the comfort, pleasures and festivities of the world around us. We are constantly being surrounded and exposed these days and as it had been for the past few weeks and even months, that we saw all the glamour, glitz and the wonders surrounding Christmas and how it is perceived in this world. Yet, have we ever stopped to think what Christmas is really about? And do we all remember that we should place Christ at the centre of all of our celebrations?

In our first reading today, we heard of the words of the Lord to His people and the king of Judah, Ahaz through the prophet Isaiah. As a context, the people of Judah had long gone through many periods when they disobeyed the Lord, and king Ahaz of Judah was one of those kings that tradition had labelled as being wicked and disobedient against God. This means that it was likely that he allowed and even promoted idol worshipping and the corruption of the worship of God at the Temple of Jerusalem, and in not following the Law and commandments of the Lord as he and the people of God should have done, neglecting the Lord’s Passover and other rules and precepts. Hence, the Lord wanted to remind him and the people of the fact that He is their one true Lord and Master.

The Lord told king Ahaz to ask Him for a sign, and a sign that He would show him as a reassurance to the people, and that He is truly indeed their Lord and Master, the One Who reigned over them and guarded them. Yet, the king refused to do so, as we heard in our first reading passage today. This is something which may puzzle us if we do not understand the context and intentions of the Lord, but in essence, the king’s response showed his lack of obedience and trust in God, and his refusal to ask the Lord for a sign was not a sign of humility but rather indifference and lack of faith. This was why the Lord rebuked Ahaz and told him of everything that He would do for the people He loved, and reaffirming everything that He had promised would happen, from the very beginning.

Then in the Gospel passage today, of course we heard of the moment when all that the Lord had promised and prophesied through Isaiah came to full fruition and completion, when the Archangel Gabriel came to the young Mary in the small town of Nazareth, bearing the Good News with him, proclaiming the coming of God’s long promised and awaited salvation. Ever since the beginning of time, since the moment of Creation, if we recall what was written in the Book of Genesis, then surely we can recall how the Lord has proclaimed before Satan who had led mankind to their downfall, that He would send His salvation through a Woman, who would bring forth the Saviour, and how she would crush Satan under her feet. This is once again therefore referred to by the Lord in His message to king Ahaz, that the Woman would give birth to a Son.

This Woman, is none other than Mary herself, the Virgin who conceived her Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, not by any human intervention or action, but rather by the will of God the Father, the incarnation of the Son of God in the flesh, and the power of the Holy Spirit of God, all manifesting God’s love and providence to us, making Himself tangible and real to us through Christ, Our Lord. Through Him, all that God has promised to us have been fulfilled and completed, and God reminded us all that everything has happened as it should be, and we are reminded of the everlasting and ever-enduring patience and love that God has always shown us, all these while.

Therefore, as we have heard from our various Scripture passages today, we are all brought back once again to the basics, reminded of the very emphasis and focus of Christmas, that is Christ, the Holy Child born of His mother Mary. We must always remind ourselves that because of Christmas, through Christ our Lord and everything that He had done for us, all of us can hope once again, and we can rejoice again because we are no longer lost to the darkness and damnation. Through Christ our Lord and Saviour, we have seen the fulfilment and reassurance of God’s promises and love, that He was willing to love us even though we were still sinners and disobedient. He wants all of us to return to Him, to embrace His love once again and be forgiven from our many sins.

Let us all make our Christmas celebrations and festivities, our joy and commemorations all about Christ, and put Him at the very focus and centre of everything during this upcoming Christmas time and season. This means that we should not easily lose focus and be distracted by the many distractions, temptations and false pleasures all around us, especially in how Christmas has been marketed and made familiar with us, in the manner how it is often celebrated with lots of fanfare, celebrations and rejoicing that are bereft of its true and central focus in Christ, the One we should be celebrating and focusing our attention on this Christmas. Let us all therefore be the ones to proclaim the Lord and His Good News, His truth and love to more and more people.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Father, continue to be with us and bless us throughout our lives and our Advent journey in particular, and may He help us that we may truly be able to celebrate the upcoming Christmas season and time with true appreciation, understanding and joy. May we all be more like Mary, the Mother of God, whose obedience to God and the commitment she has shown to the mission entrusted to her, brought about salvation of the Lord into this world. Amen.