In the first reading of this First Sunday of Advent, Isaiah proposes a helpful image to advance the mood of this season: the story of the potter and the clay. The idea of the story is already in motion in the biblical world long before Isaiah’s prophecy.
The writer of Genesis employs it in the story of Creation, as God molds the first person from the dust of the earth. Jeremiah uses the image effectively many times, presenting vessels in the making and, yes, in the smashing.
Then Job sagely writes, “the Lord gives, and the Lord takes away.”
Last year, at the celebration of the Eucharist on the feast day of Christ the King, Archbishop Christian Lépine in his homily issued a challenge to the members of the congregation: “Do you have a crucifix at home? Do you take the time to ponder its meaning?” Our Archbishop led the faithful into the profound significance of the feast day, through these provocative questions about a king who brings the promise of a reign and a kingdom that are not of this world.
Ask any Christian to name some religious obligations, and you will likely hear “going to church on Sunday” high on the list. Beyond that fundamental “duty,” many people will speak of the important duties to pray regularly; to receive the sacraments appropriate to each person’s state of life; to keep and to respect the Ten Commandments and the disciplinary traditions of the Church; to offer appropriate financial support to the ministries of the Church.
Hallowe’en. All Saints Day. All Souls Day. Remembrance Day. November comes upon us, and we see the signs of death in nature: falling leaves; wet windy days; long chilly nights; the first snowfall. Inevitably – and even more so in this pandemic year – November invites us to ponder our mortality, finitude, and vulnerability. Our faith takes death seriously. But it also teaches us that death is not the final answer. “Death, where is your victory?
What does it take to make a saint in this world? Two miracles and much publicity? Martyrdom for the right cause? Canonization can be achieved on these terms, but it takes a bit more to be actually counted among the blessed. Scripture goes on at length about the holy ones, but their identification always seems to boil down to a curious factor rarely considered: the condition of the human heart.
St. Monica's Parish