Reflection for the 4th Sunday of Advent
Faithfulness is a mystery.
It is perplexing to the rational human mind who logically opts for the least uncertainties in the ventures it undertakes, for two spirits to have complete faith in one another, in total surrender and abandon to the risk that the “other spirit” is or will become unfaithful.
In faith – like hope and charity – we give up a part of, or even our whole selves in the mystery of the other. In faith, we wager on the “foolish” presumption of the latent goodness of the other.
In hope, we pray that when we do “activate” our own goodness, the other will favorably respond and “activate” his or her goodness in return.
In charity thus, we initiate and enable this mutual gift of sharing goodness between two spirits, an action of love and service anchored on hope and faith.
Faith – like hope and charity – are extraordinary virtues that only the great Spirit of the heavens can bless us with. We can never “develop” them on our own, for faithfulness, hopefulness and charitable action does not and will never guarantee a “viable return.”
It is “too risky”: the goodness we shared may end up in a glorious satisfaction or in sorrowful disappointment; and worse, our goodness may become the impetus for devilish schemes intent on exploiting it.
Faith – like hope and charity – is a dangerous experiment. Yet they are at the core of the life of every true Christian. To be an authentic follower of the Christ, is to live constantly in the peril of the oppression of and disillusionment in one’s good character.
A kingdom of justice and peace founded on mutual responsibility, will be achieved only when all people can embrace these supernatural values of faith, hope and charity. We all have to become in one way or another, martyrs for God and for the other.
To live and to actualize this perilous gift-giving at the probable cost of one’s precious life, is the fundamental action behind our service for the kingdom.
To “die to oneself” for the poor and the oppressed, for the helpless and the abandoned, for our society and for the earth as our common home, must be the definitive attribute of our professed Catholicity.
In today’s readings, we witness the perfect and eternal faithfulness and goodness of our God. Abba will continue to have faith in each one of us, even if at times, we cannot be trusted to be as faithful to him. He will continue to be hopeful, even if at times, there is nothing to hope for in us. He will continue to love us, even if at times, we are not loving him back.
Like David, we can eventually deform into being cocooned and shielded within our selfish little worlds. Though in hypocrisy, we admire and praise God from afar, we are yet unwilling to leave the protection of the comfort zones we have built for ourselves.
Like Mary therefore, we must be willing to unconditionally leave our castles and our fortresses, to express our fiat in joining God in the ongoing “dangerous” mission of building his kingdom on earth.
In this holy season amidst great uncertainties, as we wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus, may we be consoled in the faithfulness of God to descend to us once again – to remind us to be faithful and to be hopeful in him; and to love him through a faithful, hopeful and charitable service towards others.
Brother Jess Matias is a professed brother of the Secular Franciscan Order. He serves as minister of the St. Pio of Pietrelcina Fraternity at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Mandaluyong City, coordinator of the Padre Pio Prayer Groups of the Capuchins in the Philippines and prison counselor and catechist for the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology.
The views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of LiCAS.news.
Source: Licas Philippines
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