Whatever the circumstances leading up to their imprisonment, a knowledge of God’s love and God’s presence can help them find redemption and hopefully make a positive return to society.
So Bishop Perez celebrated Mass this week in anticipation of Christmas, just a week away. And he shared a little reflection on the Christmas story. He noted that the beautiful depictions of the Nativity scene we see on Christmas Cards, are not entirely accurate. Jesus was born in a cold, dirty cave, into a “real mess” said the Bishop.
Bishop likened the situation of the Holy Family on Christmas to some of the prisoner’s situations, which might also be described as a “real mess.” But the Christmas message is that it is precisely into the real mess of our lives that the Christ Child desires to be born: into the messiness, into the challenges and hardships, into the illnesses and financial concerns, into the addictions and family divisions. And the Bishop prayed that “As you confront what you are confronting, may you come face-to-face with the Christ Child.”
This week also the Church celebrated the feast of a saint who was himself imprisoned. St. John of the Cross was imprisoned, nearly starved, and publicly flogged by his own religious community. Not for committing a crime, they opposed and imprisoned St. John for attempting to reform his community according to the rule, the statutes, of his religious order. St. John saw that his community had abandoned the austerity, the poverty, and the discipline called for by the Carmelite Rule, but when he called for reform, he was silenced and imprisoned. Some people don’t like to be told that they are not being faithful to God!
In prison St. John came to know the cross quite acutely; for there he learned to unite his sufferings with the suffering and death of Jesus, as he sat month after month in his dark narrow cell.
But, he did not blame God for his situation, he did not become bitter because of the injustice. His sufferings did not diminish his desire for holiness. Rather, his desire for union with God increased. He passed the time reflecting on the Scriptures which he had memorized and composing poetry. In the darkness of the prison, he bloomed into a great mystical poet and theologian, and even enjoyed a depth of prayer that could be described as ecstatic. In the dark dank prison cell he discovered joy, the joy of the cross.
We, present here today, are not imprisoned, like the inmates of the County Prison or like St. John of the cross, but there’s likely a measure of messiness to each of our lives, or perhaps we feel imprisoned by circumstances beyond our control. And Advent helps us to prepare for new ways to encounter Christ in whatever we are facing.
The third Sunday of Advent is traditionally called Gaudete Sunday. Gaudete is Latin for rejoice. During this holy season we look forward in joy for the coming of our savior. On this Gaudete Sunday, St. Paul give us what sounds like an insane teaching: rejoice in the Lord always, In all circumstances give thanks. Paul writes these words just about 10 years before he himself would be imprisoned because of his preaching of the Gospel of Christ. Rejoice always. Really? Even in prison? Unemployment? Marital difficulties? Even when I seem to be failing at all life’s demands? I think Paul would, yes, rejoice always.
Of course, we don’t rejoice over the hardships and injustices themselves—over the unfortunate events and family divisions. St. Paul is saying, Christians are able to rejoice despite these trials because the Lord is near.
I think this is one dimension of the “liberty to captives” that Isaiah prophesied about in our first reading: that Christians are never truly captive, we are never truly alone, never truly abandoned because the Lord is near, and he gives us the freedom to be faithful despite our temptations and hardships.
Another dimension of this liberty that Jesus the Messiah brings is that he actually does help us mend the broken relationships, he helps us overcome the imprisoning sinful tendencies, he heals the wounds of sin and division in our life when we let him. Sometimes the working of grace doesn’t happen as quickly as we would like, or in the manner we first expected. Sometimes the Lord urges us to change our unrealistic expectations or to work harder for the peace we long for or to trust and fast and pray more deeply.
St. Paul writes about joy over 20 times in his New Testament letters. Joy is to be the defining characteristic of the Christian. Joy comes not from being free of crosses, but being filled with the life of the Lord despite those crosses, uniting ourselves to Jesus through those crosses. Joy comes from knowing the Lord and experiencing his nearness. The imprisoned Christian can be more full of joy than the spoiled Atheist in the midst of his mansion and earthly treasures.
If anyone here is experiencing a joylessness this Advent season, I encourage you to seek the Lord’s presence more deeply in prayer, in scripture, in the eucharistic chapel, in service of the poor. Joylessness is often a result of taken our focus off the Lord and onto the non-essentials and worldly pursuits. So repent of those times you’ve allowed selfishness or anxiety distract you from the closeness of the Lord, that you may be filled with his life and joy, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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