By Dee Smith, M.M
Sunday, December 10, 2023
Is 40:1-5, 9-11 | 2 Pt 3:8-14 | Mk 1:1-8
Comfort, give comfort to my people says your God.
Isaiah 40:1
I see three distinct themes in our readings for today: comfort, preparation of the ‘Way’, and the promise of something better as we walk into the future.
God asks through Isaiah that we give comfort to God’s people. Later we are told to speak tenderly to God’s people as we listen to the voice that cries out in the desert: a voice that lifts its song in lament but hope.
In Psalm 85 we are invited to walk along the path, preparing the way for the coming of the Lord, and experiencing what realities lie on the way. We are called to journey and to discover truth, kindness, justice, and peace.
And finally, in Mark’s Gospel, we are entrusted with making the path, the way for God, straight. A path leading to a new heaven and a new earth; one free of injustices, violence, injury, and falsehoods.
As I still myself to reflect on the challenge of these readings today, while working at the border of Guatemala and Mexico in the southwest of the country, I see the thousands of migrants from all over the world passing before me. A steady, unrelenting stream of God’s people needing comfort, crying out in the wasteland for a new home free from poverty, violence, and despair.
As the migrating families make their way north to the United States, I pray that our simple actions here at St. Mary’s Hospice can bring some comfort to God’s people. We pass out a care package of soap, toothpaste and toothbrushes, diapers for the babies, sunblock against the searing sun, rubber sandals to protect feet from the scorching tarmac roads, bottles of fresh drinking water, and sweet cookies for the children.
Like never before, the Gospel speaks to us of our role in preparing the way for the coming of Emmanuel, God with us. We need to speak out in truth and justice to those who would receive the Lord; those who will receive the migrants. We need to renew our baptismal promises to work always for a better world where everyone is welcomed, and all are recognized as God’s people. Mary and Joseph started on the path and prepared the way for the birth of their Son, the chosen one. Their legacy lives on in all the migrants who leave their homeland and struggle to make the path straight for their children and grandchildren. Let us all join the migrants in spirit; let us comfort them as they look for their new heaven on this earth.
Maryknoll Sister Delia Marie (Dee) Smith was born in England. Sister Dee’s first overseas mission was to Guatemala where she continued her ministry with people with AIDS through education programs and counseling. Eventually, this led her and other missioners to found Project Life. Sister Dee also serves migrants at the Guatemala and Mexico border.
The 2023 Advent Reflection Guide from the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns contains questions and excerpts from missioners around the world.
Featured image: Sister Dee Smith, MM, delivering aid to migrants on the Guatemala-Mexico border. (Sister Darlene Jacobs, MM.)
Questions for reflection
How is God calling you to prepare a way for God to be with us?
What does a world where everyone is welcomed look like to you?
Prayer
Merciful God,
We pray to you for all the men, women and
children who have died after leaving their
homelands in search of a better life. Though
many of their graves bear no name, to you each
one is known, loved and cherished. May we
never forget them, but honor their sacrifice with
deeds more than words. We entrust to you all
those who have made this journey, enduring
fear, uncertainty and humiliation, in order to
reach a place of safety and hope. Just as
you never abandoned your Son as he was brought
to a safe place by Mary and Joseph, so now be
close to these, your sons and daughters, through
our tenderness and protection. In caring for
them may we seek a world where none are forced
to leave their home and where all can live in
freedom, dignity and peace.
– Pope Francis
