OPEN OUR EYES AND FREE US
Our Christianity
really is not about fulfilling all the needs that are around us. It's not about
tasks. It's not about getting things done or fixing things. Fundamentally, the
feast of the Incarnation reminds us that what we are asked to do is to participate
in a great mystery. That is the heart of Christianity. The mystery is to trust
and to believe that God is truly in you and me. God's task is to be the source
of energy, life, and grace. He is to be the source that gets the work done -
most importantly the work of our sanctification.
In today's
readings, it's clear that the work is twofold: We are to help people to see and
to help people to be free. From the very beginning, human beings were conscious
of the fact that they were unable to see all that they needed to see. They knew
they couldn't be free of all of the burdens that are part of life on this
planet. And so, they longed for someone, something to come along and to help
them live in a manner befitting their calling as God's children. That's what
the longing for a Messiah is all about. Isaiah was one of the clearest voices
telling us that there would be someone coming to fulfill our needs. This
teacher will not shout or scream because he will speak the truth. Isaiah
proclaimed: The glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all people shall see
it. Comfort give comfort to my people says our God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem
and proclaim to her that her quilt is expiated ( Is 40: 1-2 ). This is God, who
has "grasped their hand." Isaiah also says this is the work of
"opening people's eyes, of freeing them from that which burdens
them."
We are like Christ.
We are the ones who have been called by name, grasped by the hand, led to a
place where if we trust, then something marvelous happens to us. The power of
God can open our eyes and free us from the things that bind us. This was our
prayer today in the responsorial psalm. When you send forth Your Spirit, they
are created, and You renew the face of the earth ( Ps 104: 30).
Points to Pray and Ponder: Trusting and believing that we have a role as
significant as Christ's is quite a challenge. Jesus began Nazareth, simply
being God's instrument of light, grace, and peace. He has opened the eyes of
each one of us!