Name Him Emmanuel

December 23, 2007

Fourth Sunday of Advent

By Rev. Joe McCloskey, S.J.

Then he said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary men, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:13-14

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means “God is with us.” Matthew 1:22-23

Piety

Oh, Emmanuel,
"God-with-Us,"
You have touched me;
you are God-with-Me.

Thank you for these weeks of prayer.
In the spirit of the season
my waiting, my patience,
feels sacred.

Refine and purify my heart
with the hottest flame of your love.
Give me the courage of your prophets
and let me do what is right
even when others don't understand.

Bless my heart with generosity
and make me ready to receive you.

Come, Lord Jesus! Come!

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel!

(Prayer from http://www.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/Advent/aweek4.html)

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/122307.shtml

Mary is asked to do more than she ever dreamt it was possible for her to do. She is asked to open her life to the dream of her people. The Messianic expectations of Mary did not include herself. To be told she is the one makes her uneasy. She becomes the patron of all the impossible dreams of the human race. How easy it is to look at the peace the world needs so desperately and to wait for someone else to bring the peace we dream of. Our hearts remind us of what we need to do that our world be a better place for all. Mary accepts the destiny that belongs to all of us. We bring Jesus into our life even as we bring Mary into our prayer. Nativity is almost upon us and all the last moment preparation expresses the joy we hope for in the coming of the Prince of Peace.

Joseph is spoken to by an angel in a dream. He is told to take Mary as his spouse. How many times has an angel spoken to us in the example of a parent, sibling, friend or a stranger? The goodness of any one of us can make us an angel for others. How quickly do I respond to the inner calls of my heart to meet the need of someone who has come my way? How often have I gone out of my way for the sake of someone. Dreams are made of our worries and of our good experiences of life. They open our hearts to reach beyond what we would otherwise not do because of timidity or fear.

Dreams are the gentle voice of the call of the Lord to reach for the heavens. It is in our dreams that we learn to fly.

Action

It is the impossible that draws us closer to God. The advantage of the impossible is that it gives us something to work at for a while. How many impossible things have we prayed for? The wonder of making a list of what seems crazy to hope for is that when we come back to our list we will discover that prayers we made with half our heart have been answered. God is always loving us and always responding with what we ask or what is better. Sometimes it is so much better that we do not recognize it as an answer to what we were asking for. God has many surprises for us and all in the proper time. God’s schedule is not ours. Yet we can learn to recognize that God’s love is waiting for us in all we would dare to do in his name.