Christian Reflection and Prayer

Take A Flying Leap
December 5, 2101
Second Sunday of Advent(A)

Isaiah 11:1-10; Psalms 72:1-2,
7-8, 12-13, 17; Romans 15:4-9;
 Matthew 3:1-12

"Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven
is close at hand" (Mt. 3:2). 

On his return from a trip into the wilds,
a birdwatcher told this story of an encounter
with a bear. "I was hiking through the woods,
" he said, "and came to a big clearing.
When I got into the middle of the field
I found myself face-to-face with the
biggest bear I had ever seen. He was
at least twelve feet tall and his paws
were at least a foot wide. I turned
and ran for my life toward the only
tree standing in the field. It was a very
tall tree and the first branch was a good
twenty-five feet above the ground."
"What did you do?" cried one of his
listeners. "What could I do?" the man
replied. "The bear was right behind me.
I could feel his hot breath on my neck.
So I took a flying leap for that branch."
"Did you make it?" the listener asked.
"Well, no," said the birdwatcher, "not
going up. But I caught it coming down."

In today's Gospel Lesson, John the
Baptist is preparing his followers for
the coming of the Lord. John was a
powerful preacher. He called the
Pharisees in the crowd a "brood of vipers.
" He laced into those who were always
trying to flee God's judgment, instead
of coming under it. Many made their way
to him, "and as they were baptized by
him in the river Jordan they confessed
their sins."  Then he issued a call for
radical reform, radical change. He told
the people that unless they took that
flying leap into a whole new way of life,
their souls would wither and die, like
the tree that doesn't bear good fruit and
is thrown into the fire. Matthew tells us
that "In due course John the Baptist
appeared; he preached in the wilderness
of Judea and this was his message:
'Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is
close at hand'" (Mt. 3:1-2).

Repentance penetrates the crust of piety
we wrap around ourselves to keep us
from facing it.

Repentance begins deep within and
turns life upside-down for us, and right
side up for God.

Repentance reverses our priorities,
upsets our values, turns our pockets
inside-out.

Repentance shatters our systems of
security and hangs us on the thin thread
we call the Will of God.

Repentance revolts against the sin we
have loved and reconciles us to God,
whom we have not loved.1

Anything worthwhile demands a high price.
If you want fullness of life, if you want your
life to come to something better than the
kind of dull, gray existence you see going
on all around you, there is a price to be paid.
John the Baptist sums it all up  in one word in
today's Gospel Lesson: Repent! That is the
price of Faith in the Lord Jesus: change; turn
your life around; forget the shabby old life you
have been living. It is not worth remembering.
It is not worth keeping. This means giving up
the pleasure of blaming others and looking
deep into your own soul for a clue to what
ails you. This also means that pursuing the
fullness of life Jesus offers will put you at
odds with much that is going on in today's
world. This means that a committed Christian
is likely to be out of step with things as they
are. This is part of the price to be paid when
one chooses to answer "Yes!" to the call for
repentance.