Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded as always throughout this Advent season, as we continue to approach the coming of the joyful season and time of Christmas that we are all called to put our trust and faith always in the Lord, in His Providence and in everything that He has given and reassured us with, particularly through Him sending His Son unto us all for our salvation. And that is why as we continue to prepare ourselves for the celebration of Christmas, we should do our best in preparing ourselves so that we may be truly ready to celebrate it with great understanding and appreciation of what it is that we truly celebrate in this great celebration of Christmas.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Sirach, we heard from this prophet of the prophecy of the coming of the prophet Elijah, the prophet whom God had sent earlier on, prior to the time of the ministry of the prophet Jesus son of Sirach, to the people of Israel in the northern kingdom, performing many miracles and signs, showing the power of God against those people who had hardened their hearts and minds, rebelling and sinning against Him. We heard of the exploits and works of the prophet Elijah, who had to brave the many oppositions, challenges and trials alone as the prophet of God, sent to be the one to guide God’s people back to the right path. He had to face opposition from kings and rulers, the powerful and the mighty, having to endure exiles and other torments, but he remained steadfast in performing his missions and works.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, related to our first reading today, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples detailing about the prophet Elijah and everything that had to happen before everything that God had planned for the salvation of the world would be accomplished. First we must also understand the context of what the Lord had said to His disciples, otherwise we may easily be confused because the prophet Elijah was a figure in the Old Testament about a few centuries before the coming of Christ, and yet, why Elijah was mentioned in that particular interaction. This was because there was a popular belief among the Israelites and their descendants that one day the prophet Elijah would return once again from Heaven to herald the coming of the Lord’s salvation.

The prophet Elijah was taken up into Heaven in a flaming chariot and is one of those mentioned in the Old Testament to have not suffered death, but was taken up directly into Heaven by the will and power of God. Hence, it became a popular belief and also through the prophecies and messages from the other prophets, that the prophet Elijah would come back one day to mark the coming of God’s salvation. And indeed, throughout the history of the Church and from these words mentioned about the topic in the Gospels, St. John the Baptist was often compared to the prophet Elijah in their missions, activities, actions and others. It was said that either the prophet Elijah was sent again into this world and born as St. John the Baptist, or that he was sent with the spirit of the prophet Elijah. Either way, the coming of St. John the Baptist marks the coming of the Messiah as prophesied.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day the Church also happens to be the Feast of St. Lucy, also known as St. Lucia of Syracuse, whose holiness, piety and devotion to God were known far and wide, and inspired many people throughout the ages. St. Lucy was born in Syracuse as a Roman citizen, and dedicated herself to a life of holy virginity, and as a Christian, she lived in a dangerous time because it was during the time of the great persecutions by the Roman Emperor Diocletian and his co-rulers, who launched systematic and intense series of persecutions against the Church and the faithful people of God. St. Lucy’s family was bereft of her father in her early age, and as her mother was afflicted with bleeding issue, not aware of St. Lucy’s vow of virginity, arranged her to be married to a wealthy pagan nobleman.

Through the intercession of another Syracusian saint, St. Agatha, St. Lucy’s mother was healed from her illness, and with the persuasion from St. Lucy herself, they distributed much of their riches to the poor, which was therefore reported by St. Lucy’s betrothed pagan nobleman to the Roman authorities. The Roman governor, one named Paschasius, ordered her to burn offerings and sacrifices to the pagan idols, knowing that St. Lucy was a Christian, which was rejected by the courageous young woman. Therefore, the governor ordered her to be defiled in a brothel, but could not get this done, by Divine intervention, which protected St. Lucy. Eventually, after further sufferings and persecutions, St. Lucy was martyred by a sword that was thrust into her throat. Her examples and faith inspired countless others long after her martyrdom, right up to this day.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore as we have just heard from the life and experiences of St. Lucy, or Santa Lucia, we are reminded that each and every one of us as Christians may also encounter challenges, trials and hardships in our lives, if we continue to walk faithfully in the path that the Lord has set before us. However, this should not dissuade or prevent us from doing our very best to live our lives truly worthily in all that we do for the greater glory of God. Each and every one of us should always strive to be good examples and inspirations in each and every one of our works, efforts and contributions, no matter how small, so that we may indeed be the shining beacons of our Christian faith, beliefs and life, becoming the ones to help and lead others towards God and His salvation.

May the Lord therefore continue to inspire and strengthen us all so that by the good examples and inspiration He has given us particularly through the courage and faith that St. Lucy had shown in her defence of her faith and martyrdom, all of us may continue to live our lives ever more worthily of the Lord, and that we may continue to do our best so that in all the things we do and as we prepare for the upcoming joyful celebrations of Christmas, we will always keep in mind that we always celebrate it with the focus on Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Whose coming into this world is the very reason why we even celebrate Christmas at all. And not only that, but we should also continue to put the Lord at the heart and centre of everything we do in life. May all of us have a blessed and fruitful Advent. Amen.