Tuesday of the First Week of Advent
“Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, ‘I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.’”
In our day, when we hear so many things, so quickly and with so much interpretation, we are prone to worry or be anxious. It’s not a problem the ancients had in the same way, for even if they had rumors, the speed and quantity were different.
The disciple’s hearing, which this Gospel passage speaks about, is the other-worldly perspective from which “news” comes: it is from the Father – “I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;” it is via the Holy Spirit: “Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit;” in the words of Jesus addressed to those who really desire to listen: “revealed them to the childlike.”
Our lives really do pivot upon how well we are united to the One God has sent to tell us what matters:
The One who has the Spirit of the LORD,
with a Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, of counsel and of strength,
of knowledge and of fear of the LORD’.
Who delights, not in this world’s sophistication but in the fear of the LORD.
Not by appearance, nor hearsay, but with justice for this world’s needy.
Jesus taught his disciples, and so, us, that unless we receive the Kingdom like a child, we won’t enter.
A great deal of this reception lies in the critical eye we give to the news of the day. If we are infected with the view that there’s only this world at stake we will see it all one way; if we are enlightened with Christ—which our Baptism began—we will think about it newly!
Reflection by Fr. Xavier Nacke, OSB
Posted in Articles for Advent, Daily Reflections