Sunday Homily, December 15, 2013, 3rd Advent
Readings:
Isaiah 35, 1-6, Be Strong, fear not. Psalm 146, Lord, come and save us.James 5, 7-10, Be patient until the coming of the Lord.
Matthew 11, 2-11, What did you go out to the desert to see?
Isaiah 35 observations:
As you may remember, the book of Isaiah has three distinct writers. Isaiah I covers the first 39 chapters, out of 66 chapters. Isaiah I has a certain amount of condemnation typical of prophets. However, as you can see from this beautiful reading, Isaiah I can share a vision of a beautiful future.
Date: written before the Syrians destroyed the northern kingdom of Israel, around 700 years before Christ.
Advent Wreaths, a reminder: This little liturgical practice came to the Catholic liturgy, believe it or not, from the German Lutherans in the 1500's, the time of Martin Luther. It was more than just decoration. The circle symbolized eternity. The greens Christian life in a dead time of the year. The candles represent each of the 4 weeks of Advent, each candle symbolizing the greater light brought by Christ. Their color purple symbolized penance and purification for the Coming. The Rose candle says, 'We are almost there!'
All together the wreath represented and shed light in a dark world, a world with no electricity.
The Celebration
This past week has been momentous and touching for me and for many. Twice we celebrated the life and vitality of Chuck Pratt, one of our most special friends in this community. Wednesday evening was a memorial, and Thursday morning at All Saints, Pam’s husband’s brother, Joe, beautifully celebrated a Mass.
I would like to talk about Chuck in January. Today I would like to talk about the celebration.
At the memorial celebration Wednesday, Pam, Chuck & Sandra’s oldest child, told a story that comes from John Ruskin, a British academic and critic who lived until 1900. The story has gone around, but is beautiful to hear it again.
Picture this man. He is sitting in his house one night with a friend, looking out a window. He is an old man. There is no electricity. Many of you have been there. Remember what it is like, no heat, no light. He & his friend are looking across a valley.
As they watch a light is going up the other side. As the light goes, it lights other lights along the way. The lamplighter. They cannot see anybody, just the light moving and leaving light behind.
Ruskin says to his friend, “That is a good illustration of a Christian. People may never have known him. They may never have met him. They may never even have seen him. But they know he passed through their world by the trail of lights he left behind him.”
At the celebrations there were an abundance of lights. I want to tell you about two little lights who touched me.
During the Mass I was seated in the second pew with the family on the right end. At one point Amelia, Chris & Cecily’s 3 year old daughter crawled into the lap of the lady next to me. For the rest of the Mass she played with the books and chatted.
I’m sitting there with tears in my eyes half the time, but enchanted by Amelia’s happy spirit beside me. She and her sister Olivia had also shared their light with us by bringing up the offertory. I was most touched.
Which naturally made me reflect on the lights we have in our community, lights who chatter and clatter, walk around in the back, and occasionally walk shyly up here and put a toy on the altar.
Chuck was a lamplighter. He left lights behind him and they have become lamplighters in turn, two little ones and a bunch more.
Who are the lamplighters in your life? For whom are you a lamplighter?
