O Key of David : Homily for the 4th Sunday of Advent

 

Is 7:10-14

Ps 24:1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Rom 1:1-7

Mt 1:18-24

 

In three days we begin the Vigil of the Great Feast of the Nativity of the Lord.   How did we get here?  Where are we going?  A review of the readings for the first three Sundays of Advent helps answer the first question.  Only we can answer the second question but then only for ourselves..

 

The Gospel for the first Sunday emphasized being awake, alert, and prepared for the coming of the Son of Man, being prepared to recognize Him when He comes. This is not the only time we will be cautioned to be ready.  The admonition to be awake, alert, and prepared will be repeated several times during the liturgical year.  

 

The Gospels for the second and third Sundays of Advent spoke of John the Baptist, the herald of the Son of Man,  the voice crying out in the desert.  John was the bridge from the Old Law to the New Covenant.  A bridge permits both continuity and change.  It brings the past into the present and allows the present to move into the future.  No one can understand the New Testament without first knowing the Old.  Indeed, the New Testament makes no sense if it is removed from its moorings in the Old Testament. 

 

Today’s Gospel is a shift from the previous three Sundays.  It focuses on Joseph. Not one word is attributed to Joseph in scripture.  We know he was righteous only by actions, actions that reflected his obedience to God’s commands.  He was a compassionate man unwilling to expose Mary to shame.  He carried the burdens of being a parent with grace and equanimity.

 

Ecce Ancilla Domini,

fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum,

 

"Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord,

may it be done to me according to your word."

 

Mary’s yes changed the world, the universe, and all that lies beyond.  That yes continues to reverberate throughout the universe.  Unlike Mary’s yes, Joseph's yes was silent.  It was apparent only in his action, action that also changed the universe. 

 

“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.” Joseph's yes was in his unquestioning obedience.  There was no quid pro quo. He did not argue with God.  Unlike Ahaz in the first reading, he did not weary God.  Joseph did what had to be done.  Upon hearing the angel’s message he took Mary into his house.  Later, an angel would bring another message.  Once again and without question Joseph would take his young family to exile in Egypt. 

 

As we move toward the Great Feast of the Nativity of the Lord we recall and meditate upon events that are very human, events with which we can identify. Mary and Joseph struggled the same as we do.  They experienced stressors just we as we do. They knew the same emotions we know: fear and anxiety, joy and sorrow and everything in between.  Both Mary and Joseph acted with obedience rooted in faith. They knew that obedience entails giving up control. They knew that faith, is the conviction of things unseen, and the acceptance of things that are inexplicable.

 

Tonight before the Magnificatˆ we will chant or recite the fourth of the “O Antiphons”

 

O Clavis David,

et sceptrum domus Israël,

 

“O Key of David,
and scepter of the house of Israel,
you open, and no one shuts,
you shut, and no one opens:
come, and lead the prisoner from jail

seated in darkness
and in the shadow of death.”

 

St. Joseph pray for us.

 

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Photos are from Christmas in Ljubljana, Slovenia. 

 Fr. Jack, SJ, MD