Removing Obstacles; Making Room for Christ

Homily: Second Sunday of Advent (B)

Mark 1:1-8

6 December 2020

Fr. Ricky C. Montanez

When I was a kid one of my favourite family activities was decorating the house for Christmas. We really did not have much but we always did that together. We used the same decorations every year, sprucing up a little here and there because Christmas never felt complete without all the tinsel and trimmings. We wanted our house to reflect the celebratory mood of the Christmas festivities and I guess, it is the same for every Filipino family. As residents of Metro Manila, Christmastime is marked by the spectacular lightshows of the Ayala Triangle in Makati, the magical displays of the Meralco Compound, the Cubao shopping district, and the famous Policarpio Street in Mandaluyong. Who would want to miss the very intricate and vibrant hotel and mall decors which have always been a feast for the eyes? Every year, Christmas has been associated with glitter, sparkle and brilliance — everything always “EXTRA”. Go big or go bust. This year has to be different. 

I have noticed that decorations came up a bit late this year and those on display are kept to a minimum. I think our experience of 2020 has forced us to focus on what is truly essential in every aspect of life including our manner of preparation for Christmas. With the economic downturn people are fiercely guarding their finances; those who have lost loved ones are still in the process of grieving; (Hindi pa nakapagbabang luksa.) and with the quarantine still enforced, parties are discouraged and we can expect that the holiday rush will not be as overwhelming. We’ve sobered up from the intoxicating mood of revelry and excess.  In most respects, the pandemic has made us revisit and appreciate the significance of some of our personal and family Christmas traditions. Have you seen the Christmas ad for Disney Europe featuring a young Filipina girl and her grandmother?  The story of the mag-lola and the Christmas lantern brought tears to many of us as it highlighted the beautiful family-oriented celebration of Christmas in the country.  It made me wonder, why Christmas needs to be a showcase of twinkling lights when in the first place all we need is a ‘parol’ to remind us of the Light of the World who came to illumine the darkness of this world? 

In this Sunday’s Gospel reading from Mark, John the Baptist proclaims the urgency of “preparing the way of the Lord.” (Mark 1:3) He invites us to prepare well by calling people to repentance. Just as paving the way was necessary to welcome returning victorious kings or generals, so are we all directed to remove any obstacle that might prevent us from making room for the Lord in our lives this Christmas. But what does it mean for us to pave the way for Jesus in a year such as this? I think, that given the situation we find ourselves in, this year’s preparation for Christmas will be quite special. Although we have had to contend with so much loss this year — in terms of loved ones, finances, and various opportunities, this year has still given us a remarkable gift — the blessing of time for introspection. It has given us the chance to see where we were in life, where we are, where we ought to be and who we need to be. When everything else is dissolved, St. Peter asks: “What sort of persons ought you to be?” (2 Peter 3:11)

Preparation for Christmas used to mean fun parties, shopping, sumptuous meals, foreign trips, exchange gifts, this year without big events and numerous parties or the mad rush of Christmas shopping at the malls, we are forced into a more quiet, solemn and prayerful preparation for the coming feast. Most of us will be celebrating a no-frills Christmas this year, with many of us attending a livestream Christmas mass in the comforts of the home. This will be followed by a simple Noche Buena meal with our immediate family. Some families who must sacrifice their traditional large family gatherings for the safety of their loved ones have organised a Christmas family gathering via zoom or other social media platform. This brings to mind the wisdom of a social media meme that said “Skipping large family gatherings for the holiday season of 2020 might just ensure you get to see those family members in 2021.” This year we can savour the togetherness that we tend to lose amidst hectic and frantic Christmas celebrations. Family will be more amplified and valued as part of the real meaning of the holy season. 

We have also been given a chance to practice temperance. In our zoom parties, we have learned to patiently wait for one another, listen to one another and give each other the chance to be heard and appreciated. As we stumbled our way through safety protocols and various levels of quarantine, we realised that we need each other in order to make it through this most trying time.  Those among us who are achievers and control freaks have been taught by circumstance to accept failure and to trust in the Lord, to be patient and learn to follow His lead. Moreover, all of us have had to struggle with ourselves to overcome our tendency to fight to get our way. With certain laws set in place to ensure the safety of all, we have learned to accept that we cannot always insist on what we want. We have learned to let go in order to make room for the good of the majority.  We’ve learned to take the higher ground and perceive the bigger picture. Whether we like it or not, life is not fair and people are not perfect. There is always room for improvement.  We do recognize, that no matter what state we are in, there is a chance to do better and always something to contribute to help ease the difficulties of others. In the words of the Prophet Isaiah, “there are certain valleys in our lives that need to be filled in; a number of mountains and hills that need to be made low; a few rugged lands that shall be made plain and still rough countries that need to be become broad valleys.” (Isaiah 40:3-4)

In context of this year’s challenges, we have had a chance to stop and look at ourselves, our values, our priorities, our capacity to rebound from hardship…  What kind of persons have we become through our experiences this year? We are all a work in progress, but we must not wallow in what is missing or lacking. We have to learn to celebrate the incremental character upgrades we have achieved during this time of the pandemic and see that as we become less selfish and more others-centred we are already doing the work of paving the way for God. Let us continue to walk on the path of holiness and righteousness hastening the coming of the day of the Lord.