Guiding our feet

In the hours before the Christmas celebration, the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary resonate with the sense of God with humanity from the beginning as guide to our journey.

Guide for the Journey

The Dynastic Oracle from the Second Book of Samuel is the prophecy from Nathan to David about the line of kings of Israel to follow him.

* [7:8–16] The message Nathan delivers to David, called the Dynastic Oracle, is prompted by David’s intention to build a house (i.e., a temple) for the Lord, like David’s own house (i.e., palace) of cedar. David is told, in effect, not to bother building a house for the Lord; rather, the Lord will make a house for him—a dynasty, the House of David. Not only will he have descendants (v. 12) who will sit upon the throne of Israel (v. 13), their rule will last forever (vv. 13, 16); and even if they transgress the Lord’s commands, the line of David will never be removed from kingship as Saul was (cf. 1 Sm 13; 15). The oracle establishes the Davidic king as standing in relationship to the Lord as a son to a father (v. 14; cf. Ps 2:7; 89:27). The Dynastic Oracle, with cognate texts in the Scriptures, is the basis for Jewish expectations of an anointed king (1 Sm 12:3, 5), son of David (Mt 21:9); cf. Acts 2:30; Heb 1:5.1

In the Gospel from Luke, Zachariah declares that the promise made by God to Abraham will be fulfilled and his son John the Baptist will be the one to declare that Jesus is that fulfillment.

* [1:68–79] Like the canticle of Mary (Lk 1:46–55) the canticle of Zechariah is only loosely connected with its context. Apart from Lk 1:76–77, the hymn in speaking of a horn for our salvation (Lk 1:69) and the daybreak from on high (Lk 1:78) applies more closely to Jesus and his work than to John. Again like Mary’s canticle, it is largely composed of phrases taken from the Greek Old Testament and may have been a Jewish Christian hymn of praise that Luke adapted to fit the present context by inserting Lk 1:76–77 to give Zechariah’s reply to the question asked in Lk 1:662.

In the book “Word of Life”, Celia Sirois connects the Oracle and the Canticle to the nature of Messianic Promise.

Edward Morse observes that we must generally stand by and watch the lives of our children unfold.  Some of that watching apparently occurs after we are gone from this life! This truth likely seems as uncomfortable for us as it is for a successful king like David, who is used to getting things done his way. But God requires this kind of patience from all of us, from the greatest to the least

But the fullness of our Lord’s reign, including rest and peace, require us to wait, to be patient, and to hope, trusting in the goodness and mercy of God to continue moving us along. Let us remind one another in this season to wait patiently as we look for his return. Thanks be to God.4

Don Schwager quotes “My words will not pass away”, by an anonymous early author from the Greek church.

 "'O forerunner of Christ!... O Baptist inspired by God! We glorify Christ who bowed his head before you in the Jordan and sanctified the nature of mortal humankind... O wise John the forerunner, you have looked down from the bank of the river upon the glory of the Father's Word, even the Son as he stood in the waters; and you have seen the Spirit descend as a dove, cleansing and enlightening the ends of the earth. To you the mystery of the Trinity was revealed; and to you we sing, honoring your divine festival.    "O Baptist and forerunner, strengthened by the divine grace of Christ you have shown us the lamb that takes away all the sins of the world (John 1:29,35-36), and with joy you have this day brought two disciples to him (John 1:35-42). Entreat him that peace and great mercy may be given to our souls." (excerpt from SYNAXIS OF JOHN THE BAPTIST)5

The Word Among Us Meditation on 2 Samuel 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16 observes that we have undoubtedly been preparing physically and emotionally for Christmas Day. For many of us, there are the gifts, the cards, the parties, and the other preparations. But many of us have also faced family tensions, financial challenges, loneliness, and frustrated dreams. Life isn’t always easy, and the holidays can be a bittersweet reminder of that fact.

God knows how hard you have been working. You may or may not feel prepared for tomorrow, but that doesn’t matter. Today is a day to put everything aside, even if only for a short time, and rest. You have done all you can do; now let Jesus take care of you. Let him work on building his house in you—his own dwelling place in your heart.6

Friar Jude Winkler reviews the history of the Kings of Israel and the dynasty of David. The structure of the passage from Luke points to the fulfillment of the promise to Abraham as the key theme. Friar Jude comments on the value of the silent period imposed on Zachariah in the revelation of the truth about the mission of John.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, connects with the idea of mission as he comments on the true and essential work of all religion is to help us recognize and recover the divine image in everything.

Do you then also see the lovely significance of John’s statement: “It is not because you do not know the truth that I write to you, but because you know it already” (1 John 2:21)? He is talking about an implanted knowing in each of us—an inner mirror, if you will. Today, many would just call it “consciousness.” Poets and musicians might call it the “soul.” The prophet Jeremiah called it “the Law written in your heart” (Jeremiah 31:33), while Christians call it the “Indwelling Holy Spirit.”7

God remains faithful to the Promise to guide. We receive our mission to walk in the way of peace as we reflect the divine image to our companions on the journey.

References
1 (n.d.). CHAPTER 7 The Oracle of Nathan 1a After the king had taken up .... Retrieved December 24, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/2samuel/2samuel7.htm

2 (n.d.). Luke, chapter 1 - United States Conference .... Retrieved December 24, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/luke

3 (n.d.). Word of Life. Retrieved December 24, 2018, from https://books.google.com/books?id=tVzo1-Lt124C&pg=PT76&lpg=PT76&dq=The+Oracle+of+Nathan+The+Canticle+of+Zechariah&source=bl&ots=kqi7qROD3Z&sig=mWFmcN_4akhhHllB5mYZ2JLnbN0&hl=en

4 (n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections .... Retrieved December 24, 2018, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html

5 (n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved December 24, 2018, from https://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/

6 (n.d.). 4th Week of Advent (Mass in the Morning) - Mass Readings and .... Retrieved December 24, 2018, from https://wau.org/meditations/

7 (2017, December 30). 2018 Daily Meditations - Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved December 24, 2018, from https://cac.org/2018-daily-meditations/