Elijah's prophetic office was fulfilled
by the mission of John the Baptist
by the mission of John the Baptist
Our challenge is
to be watchful servants, for we, too, must prepare and live a life with Jesus
in our hearts and be eager to do God's will; being a part of a bigger picture.
According to
tradition, Elijah did not die but was taken up to God, and according to the New
Testament, Elijah appeared again in the person of John the Baptist. This
teaching does not reflect a belief in reincarnation; rather, it makes clear
that the purpose of Elijah's prophetic office was fulfilled by the mission of
John the Baptist as he prepared the people to receive Jesus Christ.
In a sense we could
correctly maintain that all the prophets of the Old Testament made a new
appearance on this earth when John began his preaching; preparing the world for
the coming of Christ Jesus. The future coming of the Savior was proclaimed by
all the prophets. We are preparing for the celebration of another Christmas.
Throughout the long history of salvation in the Old Testament God, our Father,
was at work, patiently and wisely directing events toward the marvelous moment
when His Son Jesus would be with us, and become like us in all things but sin.
In Preface I of
Advent, the Church prays: "For He assumed at His first coming the
lowliness of human flesh, and so fulfilled the design You formed long ago, and
opened for us the way to eternal salvation, that, when He comes again in glory
and majesty and all is at last made manifest, we who watch for that day may
inherit the great promise in which now we dare to hope."
Isaac Newton,
possibly the greatest scientist who ever lived, made this concession, "If
I have seen further than others, it is because I stood on the shoulders of
giants." This statement should help us to see that every one of us can
make contributions to move forward and progress. We do get help from those who
have done great things and have gone on the journey before us. We do need each
other at times to help one another grow. For us to accomplish our goals and do
God's good work in this life it is necessary that we have the sense of being
created for some purpose, that one's being here on earth is more than a simple
chance that we are living and going through daily routines.
Our challenge is to
be watchful servants, for we, too, must prepare and live a life with Jesus in
our hearts and be eager to do God's will; being a part of a bigger picture.
When it is our time to leave this world we pray that we will be in the fullness
of God our Father. As we acclaimed in the Responsorial Psalm, "Lord, make
us turn to You; let us see Your face and we shall be saved" (Ps 80:4).