2nd Sunday of Advent

2^nd Sunday of Advent Year B

Entrance Chant “Populus Sion”

“People of Sion, behold the Lord will come to save the nations: and the Lord will make the glory of His voice heard in the joy of your heart”.

I wish you could hear this beautiful Gregorian Chant melody which perfectly expresses the words of the sacred text. You would see in your mind’s eye a herald climbing to the top of a high mountain and calling out to a people who are discouraged, depressed and anxious: BEHOLD! The Lord will come…But then there is a surprising twist: The Lord will also make the glory of His voice heard. How does one hear glory? I can only speak for myself, but I usually think of seeing glory rather than hearing it. What does glory sound like? Mystical writers tell us that we have spiritual senses but they work much more fluidly than our physical ones. So here we must simply “go with the flow”. Yes, we will hear the glory of God’s voice. Where? In the joy of our hearts! Especially we will hear it when there seems to be no reason for joy in our lives, when all is dark and dreary, like a cold December day after the bright colors of autumn have long faded but no snow yet whitens the muddy earth. On a day like that, all of a sudden there is a spark of joy, a trill of laughter that wells up from the depths of the heart. We know it does not come from ourselves. It is the voice of God assuring us that all will be well. He loves us, knows our pain and our trouble and is already working it for our good. As we walk through this valley of tears, let us raise our heads to see and to hear the herald of glad tidings who calls out: Behold the Lord will come to save us!