EXPLANATION: Among the prophets of the Old Testament whose writings are extant, Isaiah was the greatest. He spoke as God's mouthpiece to the people of Judah during one of the most critical periods of their history, from 740-700 B.C. Infidelity to, and forgetfulness of Yahweh, the true God who had been a loving Father to them, was rife among the schismatic northern tribes (Israel) and also among the people of Judah. Those latter had Yahweh's Temple in their midst in Jerusalem.

In his attempt to bring about their conversion, the prophet reminds the people of Judah of the dreadful fate their sins are preparing for them. (Israel––-the northern tribes––-were taken into exile by Assyria in 722; an exile from which they never returned.) Nevertheless, he has words of hope and promises of a glorious future, that is, the messianic age, for the remnant who will repent and remain faithful to God.

Because he was so prominent among God's prophets he had followers and admirers who continued his preaching and added to his writings. It is from one of these later followers (Third-Isaiah) that today's reading is taken. He pleads to Yahweh, the Father of the Chosen People, for mercy. He prays that God will come down among them. This prayer was answered when the Son of God became man in the Incarnation.
our Father: This is a wonderful, but a true claim. Yahweh was creator and father of all nations. Ever since the call of Abraham (e. 1800 B.C.) he had revealed his fatherly love in many explicit ways to the Chosen People. Yahweh elected Abraham to be the father of his Chosen People. This was in preparation for the redemption of all men in the Incarnation. The Exodus, or liberation of Abraham's descendants from the slavery of Egypt, was a foreshadowing of the greater and universal liberation which was to come in the messianic age.
why make us err: According to the Hebrew way of thinking Yahweh was somehow to blame because he did not prevent his people from sinning. Yet they realized full well that each one was fully responsible for his own sins. The preaching of the Prophets would otherwise have been in vain. The prophet asks Yahweh once more to come amongst them as he did in Sinai. He asks him to fulfill for his faithful ones––-his servants––-the promise made through the Patriarchs to his Chosen People, "the tribes of his heritage."
rend the heavens and come down: That Yahweh dwelt above the upper skies was the opinion of the Hebrews. The prophet now asks him to come amongst them in a startling way: by tearing the skies apart and by making the mountains quake. This would be a repetition, on a grander scale, of the theophany on Mount Sinai. Mark evidently sees this fulfilled. He relates that after the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan, John "saw the heavens (skies) torn apart and the Spirit like a dove descending on him" (Mk. 1 : 10).
no one . . . has seen: The goodness and kindness of Yahweh is beyond human comprehension, for he is infinite. St. Paul quotes these words in 1. Cor 2: 9.
that remember . . . ways: Yahweh will repay those who trust in him and keep his laws. The prophet admits that the present sad state of Yahweh's Chosen People (they are exiles in Babylon) has been caused by their rejection of their merciful God. For generations they have been unfaithful to him. "There is no one that calls upon thy name." As a people they had forgotten God. They had turned away from God and now the prophet and the faithful "remnant" see the disastrous consequences of the people's sins. The pious remnant" realize that unless Yahweh, who is still the Father of the Chosen People, has mercy on them, they will be utterly destroyed by their own iniquities.
clay . . . hand: They remind Yahweh of their lowly nature: they are but clay in relation to him. Because he is their Creator and their Father they call on him for mercy and forgiveness.

APPLICATION: Advent is the holy season in which the Church calls on us to prepare ourselves worthily to commemorate the anniversary of the coming of Christ amongst us. The lesson we have read has many instructions for us. If we take them to heart, they can help us to prepare ourselves for the great feast of Christmas. The pious Jews––-Third-Isaiah was one ––-looked forward anxiously and eagerly to a second coming of Yahweh amongst them. They had no very clear idea of how this would take place. They hoped and prayed that this coming would be very soon, otherwise the iniquities of the majority would destroy the whole Chosen People.

We are now living in the Christian age and have this marvelous advantage over the pious Jews of old: we have seen the realization of all their hopes and prayers. We know that God has come amongst us in a way that they in their wildest dreams could not have hoped for. God the Son became man––-one of us. He joined our human nature to his divine nature. This made us his brothers and therefore adopted sons of his eternal Father.

The Jews could call God their Father because he had revealed himself to them and had made them into a chosen race––-a people set apart from all the other nations––-and had established them in the promised land of Canaan. They called him their Redeemer because he had led them out of the slavery of Egypt and protected them during their long journey toward their homeland.

However, all this was but a shadow when compared with the reality. It was a foretaste of the tremendous act of fatherly love and compassion which the infinite God has since shown, not to one race or one people but to the whole human race in the Incarnation of his only-begotten Son. The Jews could call God their Father because he had united them into a Chosen People. With much more right and with infinitely more truth we can and do call him our Father. He has united us to his divine Son and made us his true children, brothers of Christ.

God was the Redeemer of the Chosen People. By his mighty hand he set them free from the slavery of Egypt, and later from other oppressions. He gave them a homeland to live in. But what was this redemption compared with what God has done for us through Christ? Through the Incarnation God has made available to all mankind an eternal home of peace and happiness. There we shall be free from sin and from all earthly limitations, imperfections and dangers. By becoming man the second person of the Blessed Trinity made us children of God and heirs to heaven. By dying for us and rising from the dead he has conquered our death. Because of this, death is not the end of life for us but the beginning of our true life––-everlasting life.

The prophet's prayer has been heard, his devout wish has been fulfilled. We are preparing ourselves to commemorate this extraordinary act of divine love for us––-the coming of the Son of God as a baby, born of a lowly, human mother in the midst of poverty. We are preparing to celebrate the great feast of Christ, the birthday of Christ, our divine Redeemer. Like the prophet, we must confess that we too are unworthy of God's love and of God's pardon. How many times have we offended our loving Father during the past year? How often have we forgotten him in our daily pursuit of earthly things?

There is still time to repent of our sins and to make ourselves worthy of all that Christmas means. We are the adopted sons of the Father of infinite mercy. If, truly repentant, we turn to him he will forgive us and make us worthy to be his children and call him by the loving name of "Father."

What do you do when someone you love very dearly and miss very much has been gone a very long time but promises to return soon? Do you ignore their absence, or do you anticipate their return and send them messages to let them know how much you long to be with them again? Jesus' parable about the long-expected return of the Master to his household brings this point home. Wealthy landowners often left their estates in the hands of their trusty servants and stewards. This gave them freedom to travel, trade, and expand their business ventures. They expected loyalty and hard work from their servants and rewarded them accordingly. Dutiful servants would eargerly anticipate their master's return by keeping the house and estate in good order. Jesus doesn't tell us in his parable whether the servants were ready to receive the unexpected return of their master. Were these servants excited or anxious about their master's return? The watchful servants, no doubt, looked forward to the future because they knew their master would be pleased and would reward them for their vigilance and hard work. Disaster and reprisal, however, awaited those who were unprepared because of carelessness or laziness.

When we expect some very important event to happen, we wait for it with excited anticipation. The Lord Jesus expects us to watch in great anticipation for the most important event of all – his return in glory at the end of time! The prophets foretold the coming of the Lord when he shall judge between the nations and decide for many peoples (Isaiah 2:5). The Advent season reminds us that we are living in the end times. The end times begins with the first coming of Christ (his Incarnation which we celebrate at Christmas) and culminates in his final return on the Day of Judgment. Jesus spoke of his return in glory at the end of time as a for certain fact.  Jesus' audience understood the title, Son of Man, as referring to the Messianic prophecy of the Annointed King who comes to establish an everlasting kingdom over the earth (see Daniel 7:13). While the second coming is for certain, the time is unknown. The Lord's judgment comes swiftly and often unexpectedly. Jesus warns his listeners to not be caught off guard when that day arrives. It will surely come in God's good time! Do you earnestly pray for God's kingdom to come – here and now!

The prophet Isaiah tells us that God will surely reward those who wait for his visitation: "From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who works for those who wait for him" (Isaiah 64:4). Our Master, the Lord Jesus Christ, entrusts us with his gifts and grace and he expects to be ready for action and prepared for the future. Our call is not only believe, but to watch with expectant faith; not only to love, but to wait with eager longing; not only to obey, but to prepare with joyful anticipation! What are we to watch, wait, and prepare for? The greatest event to come – the return of  our Master and Lord Jesus Christ when he comes again in glory to meet us at the end of the age. The kind of watching our Lord has in mind is not a passive "wait and see what happens" approach to life. The Lord urges us to vigilance and to active prayer that his "kingdom may come" and his "will be done on earth as it is in heaven". We are not only to watch for Christ, but to watch with Christ. The Lord wants us to have our hearts and minds fixed on him and his word. He wants us to be ready for his action and grace in our lives and in our world. Those who "wait" for the Lord will not be disappointed. He will surely come with his grace and saving help. Do you watch for the Lord's action in your life with expectant faith and with joyful hope?

The season of Advent is a time for rousing our minds and hearts for the Lord's coming. As his servants we watch for his will – continually seeking him; we watch for his word and his power – that he may act now to save and to deliver; and we watch for his visitation – he will surely come again! Servants of the Lord rouse yourselves! Be vigilant, be alert, be "watchmen" for the Lord pointing the way for his coming. Are you ready to meet the Lord?

"Lord Jesus, awaken my heart and mind to receive your word and to prepare for your coming again. Free me from complacency, from the grip of sin and worldliness, and from attachments to things which pass away. May I always be eager to receive your word and be ready to meet you when you came again."

Have you ever had one of those days when you just wish God would show up, snap his figures and work miracles?  The people of Israel had about 500 years worth days like that, groaning under the oppression of one tyrant after another.  The book of Isaiah gives voice to these sentiments: “O that you would rip open the heavens and come down, with the mountains quaking before you!”  (Is 63:19).

The problem is that he answered their prayer.  He showed up, in person, working miracles beyond anyone’s wildest expectations.  But they failed to recognize him.  In fact, they crucified him.

How could this have happened?  The analysis of Jesus is that they were asleep on the job (Mark 13:33-37).  Sure, they busied themselves with a variety of activities, including pious practices.  But constant movement can lull you to sleep, like a baby on a long car ride.  Asleep means unconscious.  Unaware.  Lethargic.  “There is none who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to cling to you” (Is. 64:50).  Lip service is not enough.  Making God a manageable part of one’s life is not enough.  He demands to be worshiped, which is to say that He must take center stage, be at the top of the priority list.  We are not just to believe He exists, but to avidly pursue Him and his will for our lives.

• In the 2nd Reading, what kinds of gifts has God given to all believers by his grace? To what
end are we given these gifts? How are you using the gifts God has given you?