Three different groups of people are featured in today’s Gospel passage. The first is simply described as “the crowd.” These would have been the simple peasants who tilled the soil and kept the flocks and worked as tradespeople. In general, they lived a subsistence kind of existence, always wondering where the next day’s food would come from. The second group is comprised of tax collectors, hated by the crowd because they collaborated with the Roman occupation. Unlike the crowd, these people would have been somewhat better off. However, their day to day existence would have been dependent upon being in the good graces of their taskmasters. Finally, a group of soldiers come to John. Although Hollywood has generally portrayed such soldiers as members of the Roman legions, that was not really the case at all. Once the conquest was over and done with, the legions moved on to conquer other lands. Some officers would be left behind to lead local citizens who were conscripted into the army. They were even more hated than the tax collectors because they not only collaborated with the Romans, they were often the ones who visited violence upon the crowd.
Each of these three groups asks the same question of John the Baptist: “What should we do?” John answers each of the groups with specificity. The crowd is asked to share their possessions with those who have nothing. The tax collectors are told to stop their corrupt ways and collect only what is prescribed. The soldiers are told to live justly, to stop accepting bribes and to stop accusing people falsely.
In each of these situations, John’s answer is quite simple. “Do what God expects of you.” The covenant relationship which informs the life of the children of Israel expects generosity to the poor and eschewing falsehood and false witness. It is part and parcel of the agreement that these people have made with God. John is not asking for heroic gestures here. He is asking for ordinary kindness and justice. Each of the answers offers a specific, observable behavior. It is through these acts that John asks them to “Prepare the way of the Lord.” His answers provide a call to action. His call is not a “one and done” kind of plan. These behaviors should characterize their daily lives.
Perhaps this Sunday of Advent would be a good time for us to ask the same question, “What should we do?” What specific, observable behavior would John suggest to us either as a group or as individuals? It is not my task as a homilist to answer the question for you. Rather, it is my task to ask myself the question and to suggest that you do the same. We all need to be honest with ourselves because I believe that we all know how we could be better than we are.
The announcement of the nearness of God’s Reign should be a cause for joy in our lives. This particular Sunday of Advent is known as “Gaudete” Sunday. The Latin word asks us to “rejoice.” Both the prophet Zephaniah and St. Paul ask us to rejoice. The cause of our joy is, in the minds of both of them, the simple truth that God lives among us. God is near. That fact may not always be readily apparent. If you are grieving the loss of a loved one, you may not be feeling the joy. If you are dealing with your own illness or disability, it may be difficult for you to rejoice. If you are facing financial difficulty, fear may be crowding out the joy. If you are dealing with one of the many different addictions that are present in our world these days, joy might be the last thing on your mind.
So the liturgy of Gaudete Sunday asks us to remember that God has loved us from the beginning of our existence and that God has promised to remain with us no matter what difficulty may have arisen in our lives. I have long been someone who believes in The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation, a movement which has as its mission to make kindness the norm in our schools, workplaces, homes and communities. Doing one act of kindness every day can have an enormous effect on one’s life. A daily act of kindness comes with a guarantee; namely, you will find joy in practicing kindness.
Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator