Homily

"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!" These words spoken by the Apostle Paul to the Philippians are also spoken to us, as if to tell us that there is no longer a reason to remain in sadness, because the Lord is near. The liturgy itself takes on a joyful colour, as if to offer a visual commentary on Paul’s words: "Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Yes, this liturgy is our prayer and thanksgiving to the Lord, because he gives us the peace that guards our hearts and minds. God is not indifferent to our thoughts and worries. Indeed, he follows us and listens to us, but he also reminds us that there is something greater than our worries and our anguish: the Word of God, which the source of our strength and our joy.
This third Sunday of Advent brings us to the banks of the river Jordan, where the Baptist was preaching the "good news." The Gospel almost takes us by the hand and leads us to joy. In fact, joy does not come from us or from our works. It comes from someplace outside of us; it comes from listening to the good news proclaimed by the prophet. Indeed, his preaching is not abstract or distant. It plants in us a desire and a question: how can we attain joy? How can we live salvation? The crowds who were listening to the Baptist asked: "What then should we do?" This is the same question the crowd asked at Pentecost after they had heard the preaching of Peter. But it was not asked by the young rich man, who went away sad. Likewise the Pharisee who remained on his feet in the temple went away without the joy of forgiveness. Those who do not recognize their limits, those who are satisfied with themselves, those who do not give up their habits, those who do not abandon their pride, those who think they have done everything they can, those who do not listen are people who never ask to go any farther and so close the door to the Lord who is coming. They need neither Jesus nor his words. But the crowds who came to John asked, "What then should we do." This is every disciple’s question, and it is especially the question for this time of waiting, this season of Advent. Indeed, it wakes up our heart from laziness and makes us listen again. Without this question, preaching cannot be heard. In fact, it is blocked. It is the drama of a world, and of people, who no longer ask what they need to change, but instead remain prisoners of their own thoughts and feelings. But this closed attitude becomes unbelief, as the evangelist John writes, " He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him." He was not accepted because he could not find a room, just as happened that night in Bethlehem.
Advent brings us back to the Baptist’s side, along with the crowd, who, as Luke writes, "were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts." In this season we too must start wondering, "questioning in our hearts," what to change in our lives, what to do to become faithful disciples of the Lord, how to walk to obey his word. There is an answer: John continues to preach and show us the way. His words reach us with clarity. They concern every one of us, regardless of our age or our situation, our merits or our sins. No one is exempt from John’s words, and no one is excused from asking what he or she must due. John’s answer is made up of simple and concrete words, so they will not get lost among the meandering of our thoughts.
To the tax collectors he said, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you," that is, do not follow your voracious instincts, do not let yourself be subjugated by your attempts to fulfil your needs, whether real or imagined. It is easy for our everyday lives to make us forget the words of the Gospel and start living in a voracious and insatiable way. John asks us to be serious, honest, and loyal. He urges the soldiers to reject the violence that is in them and not to harm others. With simplicity he adds, "Do not abuse and be satisfied." It is a reminder to act in a gentle and humane way towards others, whoever they are and whatever our role. It is an important reminder in a society like ours, where it is easy to treat others badly, especially when we do not know or fear them. John then asks us to be satisfied. It is a reminder to have limits, a reference to the wisdom of not chasing after all the things that satisfy us and consuming them one after another, even at the cost of trampling on others.
And then there are the people who listen to John. The people who are not too bad off, who have two coats and enough to eat. They are the people of our world and our cities. We should reflect on John’s answer to them: "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise. This too is a simple and clear answer. We need to ask ourselves how to give something to eat to those who do not have anything and how to clothe those who do not have clothing. The soup kitchen that is open every day and the lunches that will be organized by our Communities on Christmas are a concrete response to this question from the Gospel. But they are also meant to question our world, which is so often greedy and evil. How can we stay calm when so many people in the world do have food or clothing? This is certainly a major issue of our time, a time in which millions of people continue to die of hunger, amidst the great and cruel indifference of the majority. This indifference demands that we open our hearts even more to charity, to make even more space for the poor and weak. If the poor and weak continue to be left out in our world, we are asked to be more generous and widen our hearts as much as possible, so that none "of these little ones should be lost."
John’s preaching invites us to look beyond ourselves, as he himself did. His humility and his lack of consideration for himself made him eager to wait and gave him a deep gaze. This is why he told everyone, "but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." This announcement hides the reason for our joy, a strong joy, as the prophet Zephaniah sings, "Rejoice and exult with all your heart...The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory." In fact, he is coming to dwell among us and guide our steps, so that we too, like the Baptist, will continue to proclaim to all the "good news" of his kingdom.