Prepare the Way of the Lord

[A reflection on the Gospel for the Second Sunday of Advent (Western Rite), December 8, 2024, which may be found here.]

A recurrent tradition in English-speaking countries during the month of December is a plethora of performances of Handel's Oratorio, Messiah. While the "Hallelujah" chorus gets the most airtime (ironically, as it is about Christ's Ascension and Session at the Father's right hand), another popular piece speaks of John the Baptist's ministry and the words from Isaiah foretelling it. The message is clear, despite all the Baroque frills, that we are to "Prepare the Way of the Lord." Likewise, those who regularly attend churches that observe liturgical seasons and have a schedule of readings often trot out one of the Gospel passages about this them at this time of year.

It is a fascinating message, speaking of raising up valleys and flattening hills and mountains to make a level roadway, smoothing out the rough places (this would include filling in pot holes and washouts and rockslides and road detritus for those who have confronted that on their daily commute...I spent three years in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and rockslides were a recurrent theme on my commute), and straightening out twisting, winding roads. It sounds like a great public works program that we all wish our departments of highways would undertake, but this is not applying to physical roadways but to our hearts.

The core of John the Baptist's ministry was the proclamation of forgiveness by repentance. He preached to all who would listen (and at all who would not) that despite our many sins and shortcomings, there was forgiveness, if we would turn around, if we would repent. That is where this road maintenance announcement comes into play. Repentance means turning back to God, it means reconciling with God, it means repairing the relationship with God. It does not mean expressing sorrow or regret or dissatisfaction with the issues at hand and then persisting without any effort to change them. Repentance means doing the roadwork to remove the obstacle and barriers and difficulties of bringing God back into our lives. That means working to fill in the areas where we roll into a gully or gorge that we struggle to get out of, bad habits and programming, bad associations and situations. That means knocking down obstacles such as attitudes and prejudices, unwise commitments and false barriers. That means avoiding and excising routines that get in the way of our relationship with God. That means being direct, and not taking the "long" way around.

John the Baptist preached about preparation to meet God, for God was coming soon. He filled his listeners with anticipation for an event yet to come. He exhorted those around him to work on their hearts so that when the One came to them, they would be ready. Here is where the miracle occurred. It was not after the preparations were done, it was not after the valleys were lifted up or the hills brought low in people's hearts, but during this process that the Lord came among them. It is in the act of preparing to meet God where we encounter Him. It is in the act of repentance where we are reconciled to Him. It was during John's ministry when Our Lord and Saviour Jesus the Christ appeared to us, to do what was needed to make salvation achievable for us all.

Let us begin our road work in our hearts, for it is in the work that the Lord comes to meet us.