Fourth Sunday of Advent
I saw Frozen 2 the other day! It is a good movie. I went to see it after strong recommendations, and I must say, it did not disappoint. For those who have not seen it, there are no spoilers in this homily. There is a line from Elsa’s sister Anna’s song, “Do the next right thing,” that I would like to focus on for this homily. She sings, “You are lost, hope is gone. But you must, go on. And do the next right thing!” Her song ends with the words: “Then I'll make the choice, to hear that voice, and do the next right thing!”
On the fourth Sunday of Advent, I think the words, “Do the next right thing,” best captures the theme of today’s readings. In each of the readings today we have situations in which key people who could have said, “You are lost, hope is gone. But you must, go on. And do the next right thing!” Whether it is Ahaz in today’s first reading, or Joseph in today’s gospel reading, or us in this church, the invitation is the same – “to do the next right thing.”
Let us reflect on this invitation in the following three points.
- Ahaz, the Counterexample. the Ahaz was the king of the Southern kingdom of Judah. He was only twenty years old when he became king. During his reign, Judah, and the neighboring kingdoms were being threatened by the might Assyrians. Pekah, the king of the Northern kingdom, and Rezin, the king of Syria, wanted Ahaz to form a coalition with them to oppose the Assyrians. Isaiah’s advised Ahaz against the alliance. Rather, he asked Ahaz to trust God unconditionally. Isaiah even asked Ahaz to ask for a sign to verify if his prophecy was true. Ahaz refused. Not because he was a man of faith, but rather, because if he did ask for a sign, and the sign was compelling, he would be obliged to be obedient to God. Ahaz succumbed to fear. Fear prevented him from doing the next right thing. Why was Ahaz not able to abandon himself to God? Why did he give into fear? Why did he not ask for a sign? Only Ahaz can answer these questions. What about us? Are there times when we have been like Ahaz? When we did, why did we fail to do the next right thing? This week take some time to reflect on these questions.
- Joseph, the Model. The story of Joseph in today’s gospel is a contrast to Ahaz. The gospel tells us that Joseph was “a righteous man” (Mt 1:19). His righteousness is seen in the manner in which he handled the crisis – the crisis of a pregnant fiancé. Joseph would have been legally justified if Mary would have been publicly put to shame and condemned. However, unlike Ahaz, Joseph did not act from his fear. He did not act out of his hurt or anger. Rather, even before the angel appeared to him, Joseph decided to spare Mary the shame. He simply decided to “do the next right thing.” As we re-read the story of the birth of Jesus, we realize how critical it was the Joseph “do the next right thing.” The story of the incarnation would be written differently had Joseph acted differently. God depends on us “to do the right thing” so that God’s plan of salvation can move forward. Joseph is the model for Christian discipleship.
- The Voice Within. In Frozen 2, there is lot of reference to “the call,” and “the voice inside.” Remember how the Anna’s song ends? “Then I'll make the choice, to hear that voice, and do the next right thing!” The entire movie revolves around the distant call that Elsa hears to discover the truth about the past. Anna too hears the inner voice to do the next right thing. They both were faithful to their call. In today’s scripture too, “the call” and “the voice” are familiar themes. Ahaz heard the God’s voice through Isaiah and chose to ignore it. Joseph, on the other hand, hears the voice of the angel. He decides to take Mary in as his wife and do the next right thing. As with Joseph, there is always a voice inside each of us inviting us “to do the next right thing.” It is the voice of God. During Advent, we are particularly sensitive to this voice within. In our very complex and complicated lives, we are invited to be in tune with our Christian calling and the voice inside. If we want to be a people that strives “to do the next right thing,” the key is to live inside as much as we live on the outside. That voice inside – the voice of God, our conscience - we must always be in tune with it. And if we want “to do the next right thing,” we must train ourselves, unlike Ahaz, to trust that voice more than ourselves. More importantly, if we want to do the next right thing in big matters, we must train ourselves to hear the voice inside and do the right thing in small matters. Then, as Anna sings, “We’ll make the choice, to hear that voice, and do the next right thing!”
As we celebrate this Eucharist, we realize that the God who lies on this altar is Emmanuel, God with us! He too did the next right thing. God embraced the manger and the cross for us. With God's help, we too, like Joseph, can be a righteous people; people who always do the next right thing.
Fr. Satish Joseph