Advent and Authority

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge our understanding of authority as Jesus acts to heal a Roman soldier in occupied Israel.

Advent and Faith

The Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah is a later addition to the oracles of Isaiah.

* [4:2–6] Usually judged as a later addition to the oracles of Isaiah. It relieves the threatening tone of the surrounding chaps. 3 and 5.

* [4:2] Branch: the term (Heb. semah) that is sometimes used of the ideal Davidic king of the future (cf. Jer 23:5; 33:15; Zec 3:8; 6:12). However, the parallel “fruit of the land” does not favor that usage here.

* [4:3] Inscribed for life: in God’s list of the elect; cf. Ex 32:32. (Isaiah, CHAPTER 4 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 122 is sung by pilgrims obeying the law to visit Jerusalem.

* [Psalm 122] A song of Zion, sung by pilgrims obeying the law to visit Jerusalem three times on a journey. The singer anticipates joining the procession into the city (Ps 122:1–3). Jerusalem is a place of encounter, where the people praise God (Ps 122:4) and hear the divine justice mediated by the king (Ps 122:5). The very buildings bespeak God’s power (cf. Ps 48:13–15). May the grace of this place transform the people’s lives (Ps 122:6–9)! (Psalms, PSALM 122 | USCCB, n.d.)

The Gospel of Matthew, proclaims Jesus healing of a Centurion’s Servant.

* [8:5–13] This story comes from Q (see Lk 7:1–10) and is also reflected in Jn 4:46–54. The similarity between the Q story and the Johannine is due to a common oral tradition, not to a common literary source. As in the later story of the daughter of the Canaanite woman (Mt 15:21–28) Jesus here breaks with his usual procedure of ministering only to Israelites and anticipates the mission to the Gentiles.

* [8:5] A centurion: a military officer commanding a hundred men. He was probably in the service of Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee; see note on Mt 14:1.

* [8:8–9] Acquainted by his position with the force of a command, the centurion expresses faith in the power of Jesus’ mere word.

* [8:10] In no one in Israel: there is good textual attestation (e.g., Codex Sinaiticus) for a reading identical with that of Lk 7:9, “not even in Israel.” But that seems to be due to a harmonization of Matthew with Luke.

* [8:11–12] Matthew inserts into the story a Q saying (see Lk 13:28–29) about the entrance of Gentiles into the kingdom and the exclusion of those Israelites who, though descended from the patriarchs and members of the chosen nation (the children of the kingdom), refused to believe in Jesus. There will be wailing and grinding of teeth: the first occurrence of a phrase used frequently in this gospel to describe final condemnation (Mt 13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30). It is found elsewhere in the New Testament only in Lk 13:28. (Matthew, CHAPTER 8 | USCCB, n.d.)

Mirielle Mason comments that the faith and trust thing is difficult.

How difficult must it have been for him to approach Jesus, not knowing what animosity he might face. But Jesus does not receive him with bias, rather He praises him for a faithfulness unlike what He has seen in Israel. I am sure that ruffled some feathers. Imagine an outsider being praised for such qualities? The centurion also approached with humility, seeking help not for himself but for another. He was trying to be a good steward of those who were his responsibility. He trusted the Lord to take care of his servant.

To conclude, I ask God to help us be good stewards of our relationships. May we have the courage to invite God into our lives, and help us to trust that through His unconditional love for us, He will lead us on the right path. (Mason, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “Welcoming the Lord Jesus with expectant faith and humility,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

"When the Lord promised to go to the centurion's house to heal his servant, the centurion answered, 'Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.' By viewing himself as unworthy, he showed himself worthy for Christ to come not merely into his house but also into his heart. He would not have said this with such great faith and humility if he had not already welcomed in his heart the One who came into his house. It would have been no great joy for the Lord Jesus to enter into his house and not to enter his heart. For the Master of humility both by word and example sat down also in the house of a certain proud Pharisee, Simon, and though he sat down in his house, there was no place in his heart. For in his heart the Son of Man could not lay his head" (Matthew 8:20). (excerpt from SERMON 62.1) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 8:5-1 comments that Jesus didn’t remind the centurion of how he might have harassed or abused the people of Capernaum. He didn’t expose any of the sins that the centurion’s servant might have committed, either. He just healed him, because the centurion was willing to believe in him.

That’s where it starts—with faith. When we understand that Jesus came to save everyone, we will begin to believe him and to surrender our lives to him. Meditate on that as you prepare for Christmas this month. Let this gospel truth change the way you pray. Let it change the way you go about your life at home, at work, and everywhere else.

“Thank you, Lord, for the amazing gift of your birth—for all of us!” (Meditation on Matthew 8:5-1, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments that in  the reading from Isaiah, God will purify Israel through great tribulation to bring them around so God can bless by  reminding them of Exodus and how they will prosper again. In the Gospel, the centurion asks Jesus to heal but he speaks about authority and is generous to Jesus, the Jew who would be thought “unclean” in his house. Friar Jude notes this reference to a faith stronger than in Israel. He notes that in Matthew addressed to the Jewish population, we unexpectedly see faith among the Gentiles greater than among the Chosen People.

Father Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces author Stephanie Duncan Smith who writes of Mary’s “yes” to God as a choice for expansion over contraction, mirroring God’s own yes in creation.

We stretch by reaching toward each other—by reaching out from the solo act into the plural “we,” the pronoun God loves most. Life is long, the feast is wide, and we are meant for keeping it together. Our hearts are a muscle made in the image of God, made for connection. And there are so many ways of being kindred.  

We enact our own advents every time we brave reaching beyond the borders of the self toward each other. Expansion is the anthem of anyone who is “brave enough to break your own heart.” [2] Every time we reach toward each other—considering the risk, compelled by love—we sing its anthem anew….[3]  

Advent is nothing if not the story of beginnings, revealing a God who dares to expand, who chooses enlargement over happiness, no matter the chaos. This season shows us the astonishing view of a God gone radial, one who will never stop reaching toward his beloved, no matter the risks. And so, in the true spirit of Advent, we find our courage to chance. [4] (Rohr, n.d.)

We implore the Spirit to guide us in our understanding of authority as a vehicle to demonstrate faith rather than a technique to impose our will on others.

References

Isaiah, CHAPTER 4 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved December 1, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/isaiah/4?2 

Mason, M. (n.d.). Daily Reflection. Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved December 1, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-december-1-2025 

Matthew, CHAPTER 8 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved December 1, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/8? 

Meditation on Matthew 8:5-1. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved December 1, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/12/01/1437647/ 

Psalms, PSALM 122 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved December 1, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/122?1 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved December 1, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/expanding-beyond-ourselves/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Many Will Sit at Table in the Kingdom of God. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved December 1, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/ 

Alert to the Triumph

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today encourage us to look beyond the trials and tribulation of today to the Grace that calls us together for the common good.

Beyond the darkness

 

The reading from the Book of the Prophet Daniel describes his visions and how they are interpreted.

* [7:25] The reference is to the persecution of Antiochus IV and specifically to the disruption of the Temple cult (1 Mc 1:41–64). A time, two times, and half a time: an indefinite, evil period of time. Probably here, three and a half years, which becomes the standard period of tribulation in apocalyptic literature (Rev 11:2; 13:5 [in months]; 11:3 [in days]; and cf. 12:14). As seven is the Jewish “perfect” number, half of it signifies great imperfection. Actually, the Temple was desecrated for three years (1 Mc 4:52–54). The duration of the persecution was a little longer, since it was already under way before the Temple was desecrated.1 

The response from the Book of Daniel is from the Prayer of Azariah.

* [3:24–90] These verses are additions to the Aramaic text of Daniel, translated from the Greek form of the book. They were probably first composed in Hebrew or Aramaic, but are no longer extant in the original language. The Roman Catholic Church has always regarded them as part of the canonical Scriptures.2 

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus exhorts us to watch and be alert.

* [21:5–36] Jesus’ eschatological discourse in Luke is inspired by Mk 13 but Luke has made some significant alterations to the words of Jesus found there. Luke maintains, though in a modified form, the belief in the early expectation of the end of the age (see Lk 21:27, 28, 31, 32, 36), but, by focusing attention throughout the gospel on the importance of the day-to-day following of Jesus and by reinterpreting the meaning of some of the signs of the end from Mk 13 he has come to terms with what seemed to the early Christian community to be a delay of the parousia. Mark, for example, described the desecration of the Jerusalem temple by the Romans (Mk 13:14) as the apocalyptic symbol (see Dn 9:27; 12:11) accompanying the end of the age and the coming of the Son of Man. Luke (Lk 21:20–24), however, removes the apocalyptic setting and separates the historical destruction of Jerusalem from the signs of the coming of the Son of Man by a period that he refers to as “the times of the Gentiles” (Lk 21:24). See also notes on Mt 24:1–36 and Mk 13:1–37.3 

Jeanne Schuler comments that data about climate change brings an apocalyptic mood.  The ice pack is melting.  Ancient glaciers weaken and collapse.  Seas are rising.  Acidic oceans kill coral reefs.  The permafrost is thawing.  Mass extinctions are underway.  Droughts and wildfires devastate farmland and forests.  Nations go to war over fresh water.  Faced with starvation, families migrate.  Without vigorous global action, 50 million climate migrants are predicted by 2050.  The drumbeat of dangers keeps sounding.

In Saving Us, climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe finds apocalyptic moods numbing.  Heaps of dismal data do not move us to act.  She urges us to have conversations.  Listen to what our neighbors care about.  A planetary upheaval affects every aspect of our lives.  Look for solutions that bring us together. “Whoever we are, we are human.  And as humans, we have the power to connect with one another across many of the broad, deep lines scored across our societies and psyches … We have to start with respect, and with something we both agree on: bonding over a value we truly share, and then making the connection between that value and a changing climate … Rather than trying to change who someone is, it can become clear that the person you are talking to is already the perfect person to care about and act on climate change.  (229)4 

Don Schwager quotes “Drunkenness weakens both soul and body,” by Origen of Alexandria (185-254 AD).

"'But take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a snare.' You heard the proclamation of the eternal King. You learned the deplorable end of 'drunkenness' or 'intoxication' Imagine a skilled and wise physician who would say, 'Beware, no one should drink too much from this or that herb. If he does, he will suddenly be destroyed.' I do not doubt that everyone would keep the prescriptions of the physician's warning concerning his own health. Now the Lord, who is both the physician of souls and bodies, orders them to avoid as a deadly drink the herb 'of drunkenness' and the vice 'of intoxication' and also the care of worldly matters. I do not know if any one can say that he is not wounded, because these things consume him."Drunkenness is therefore destructive in all things. It is the only thing that weakens the soul together with the body. According to the apostle, it can happen that when the body 'is weak,' then the spirit is 'much stronger' (2 Corinthians 12:10), and when 'the exterior person is destroyed, the interior person is renewed' (2 Corinthians 4:16). In the illness of drunkenness, the body and the soul are destroyed at the same time. The spirit is corrupted equally with the flesh. All the members are weakened: the feet and the hands. The tongue is loosened. Darkness covers the eyes. Forgetfulness covers the mind so that one does not know himself nor does he perceive he is a person. Drunkenness of the body has that shamefulness." (excerpt from HOMILIES ON LEVITICUS 7.5-6)5 

The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 21:34-36 asks what if we looked at this reading more through the lens of Jesus’ love than through the lens of our fear? Maybe we could see that he is warning us not to become spiritually “drowsy” because he doesn’t want us to miss out on the privilege of living in his presence (Luke 21:34).

Every day is another opportunity to “stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:36). Every day is a fresh chance to come into Jesus’ presence, let him teach you through his word, and let him form your heart. If you stay faithful to him every day, you’ll have nothing to fear on that final day when you stand before him once more—this time for all eternity. “Jesus, help me to wake up to your presence today.”6 

Friar Jude Winkler notes how the text from Daniel points to the reign of the Syrian Empire in the 2nd Century BCE. The “half of the perfect time” description of the persecution is mirrored in the Book of Revelation about the Roman Empire. Friar Jude underlines the message of being ready in tribulation and testing for an encounter with Jesus.

 

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, discusses how Carl Jung helped him to understand that dreams are a way for the unconscious to break through into our conscious life. He shares a practice inspired by Jung’s emphasis on dreams—keeping a dream journal.

Looking over a broad scope of dreams and dreamwork in our journal, we become aware of the immense power and scope of the world to which dreams are a gateway for us personally and as members of a believing community. We begin to see the call to holiness and wholeness as an exciting goal toward which our journey is leading us. We strive to bring into balance and harmony more and more aspects of our life and personality that are slowly being revealed, including what we naturally do well, what we don’t do well, what we like and what we don’t like.7 

The Spirit prompts us to be aware of the path of our journey and alerts us to transformation that leads to fullness of life.

 

References

1	(n.d.). Daniel, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB. Retrieved November 27, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/daniel/7
2	(n.d.). Daniel, CHAPTER 3 | USCCB. Retrieved November 27, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/daniel/3
3	(n.d.). Luke, CHAPTER 21 | USCCB. Retrieved November 27, 2021, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/21
4	(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - Online Ministries. Retrieved November 27, 2021, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/112721.html
5	(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved November 27, 2021, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2021&date=nov27
6	(n.d.). Meditation: Luke 21:34-36 - The Word Among Us. Retrieved November 27, 2021, from https://wau.org/meditations/2021/
7	(n.d.). Daily Meditations Archive: 2021 - Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved November 27, 2021, from https://cac.org/carl-jung-weekly-summary-2021-11-27/