Isaiah 40: 1-11
Psalm 96
Matthew 18:12-14
As I read today’s passages, I see a theme of new beginnings and God’s care for God’s people. In Isaiah, the Jewish people are preparing to return to their homeland not knowing what they will find. Will life go back to the way it was before or will new ways have to be established?
As I write this we are still in the pandemic. I have no idea how life will be for us when you read this in December. What will the “new normal” look like? Will there even be such a thing? I find it not coincidental that recently in Richard Rohr’s daily meditation he wrote this: “The word change normally refers to new beginnings. But the mystery of transformation more often happens not when something new begins, but when something old falls apart”.
Advent is a time for new beginnings, whether by our own choosing or forced on us by circumstances beyond our control. I believe it is important to grieve what we perceive we have lost. Then we need to move on. This is where we can take huge comfort in scripture passages like Psalm 96 and the reading from Matthew. Wherever we are God will go with us, God will find us and help us in this demanding task. Wherever we are in Advent this year and whatever is happening my prayer is that we will embrace these new beginnings knowing that God’s divine love will go with us.
Jean Gandon
